How does the analysis of paint help in CSI?

How does the analysis of paint help in CSI?

Richard Saferstein (Former Chief Forensic Scientist) gives expert video advice on: How does the analysis of metals help in CSI?; How is metal identified and compared in CSI?; How does the analysis of paint help in CSI? and more...

There are two areas of investigation that relate to paint analysis. The first is the "hit and run". The deposition of motor vehicle paint on the victim's body or clothing. Or, just being left behind somewhere at the hit and run scene, offers clues as to the vehicle that was involved in the accident. If the vehicle is a hit and run, we may be able to identify the make and model of the paint by examining its color and its layer structure. Many crime labs have access to vast libraries of automotive paints that allow for the identification of make and model. With respect to the automobile, what's important, what's critical, in analyzing automobile paint is color and layer structure. There's a tremendous variety of automobile paint colors. Tremendous variety when it comes to the underlying layers. Of course, there's the clear coat which is a top-layer of paint on the automobile which has no color. It still offers a point of comparison, when analyzing the chemistry of automobile paint.