PARK Ridge State High School students were given a glimpse into the world of blood spatter analysis, DNA and evidence collection during a forensics presentation by local police.
School Adopt-a-Cop Acting Senior Sergeant Nick Edwards, along with Senior Constable Matt Wisbey and Sergeant Darren Smith visited last week to deliver a presentation to science-minded students.
Topics also on the agenda included recovering bones, identifying bodies and examining crime scenes.
Acting senior sergeant Edwards said the presentation had given interested students a look into the real world of forensic science, which could be very different to what they saw on television.
"This is giving them a hands-on demonstration on how science works in the real world, as opposed to thinking it's a person in a white coat with wild hair," he said.
"What we're here to do is to give them an insight into how forensic science works compared to what you see on TV where in 30 minutes we've had a murder, it's solved and someone's in jail.
"These investigations can go on from months to years, cold cases even 30 or 40 years, and it's the evidence we gathered 30 to 40 years ago which we're examining now which is yielding the results."
Having worked with Park Ridge State High School for about five years, acting senior sergeant Edwards said the Adopt-a-Cop program was vital in building links with the community.
"It gives the children someone to go to (and) it breaks the barrier that's often put up by parents towards police," he said.
"Most parents are good people and the only interaction they have with police is when they get a ticket, so they might have a negative idea of police. This is building a bridge beyond that."
He said it was important to guide the next generation of leaders in the right direction.
"If we can prevent one child from making a poor choice, it makes everybody's life easier."
