Lawyer Monthly - November 2021 Edition

we would have had to hire a helicopter at more than $5,000 per hour to assist us with photographing and assessing an incident scene and we probably wouldn’t get to use that resource more than once or twice during the entire investigation. Now, since we have recently added drones to our response capabilities, we can fly over a site multiple times a day and document changes as they occur, day or night. In addition to photography and videography, the drones enable us to perform precision aerial mapping and thermography at a fraction of the cost required for these efforts just a short time ago. As a further example, when a structure collapses or a piece of equipment causes a fire, the line between human error and mechanical failure can sometimes be difficult to ascertain as the scene rapidly perishes. We now routinely use laser scanners to capture the forensic details of a scene, such as debris dispersion and equipment positions as part of our investigation. Data captured accurately, safely and quickly at the scene becomes powerful documentation to verify investigation details, build compelling presentations and the gold standard for the average jurors who have developed high expectations of seeing forensic television quality work product during trials. How did you get into this career field? Well, I certainly did not graduate from high school with the expectation that I would be working in this field more than 30 years later! I actually worked my way through college by serving in emergency services; I was a firefighter paramedic and then a fire marshal. Even before I graduated from college, I was really fortunate to have some great mentors over the years and I work hard to pay that forward with the current generation of young professionals in our firm. My career has taken me all over the world and I have had extraordinary assignments ranging from global executive roles in large multinational corporations to my current job, which is serving as Chief Investigator and Managing Consultant for our firm. As Mark Twain said, “Find a job you enjoy doing, and you will never have to work a day in your life.” I have been very lucky to find a rewarding job that I really enjoy doing, at least on most days! share as evidence. These laser scanners collect millions of data points (point clouds) that can be processed and used to develop very accurate 3D computer models and animations that have become 17 NOV 2021 WWW.LAWYER-MONTHLY.COM “ When a structure collapses or a piece of equipment causes a fire, the line between human error and mechanical failure can sometimes be difficult to ascertain as the scene rapidly perishes.