Forensic Speech Sciences: A Practical Approach

This contributed volume focuses on the scientific analysis of human speech and voice for identifying individuals in criminal investigations. This book explores the conceptual and methodological framework of forensic speaker identification, integrating elements of phonetics, linguistics, and acoustic analysis. It provides insights into objective speech parameters used in speaker profiling, voice mapping, and authentication. With the growing use of mobile communication and the increasing number of voice-based crimes such as kidnapping, ransom, extortion, and terrorism, speech evidence has become critical. Traditional tape-based methods posed limitations such as background noise and data tampering. Advancements in speech science, acoustics, forensic phonetics, and computer algorithms have led to reliable software tools for speaker identification. This book outlines the theoretical principles, interdisciplinary approaches, and practical techniques, including real case studies, that demonstrate the efficacy of forensic speech analysis as credible, court-admissible evidence. This book is valuable for students pursuing forensic science at undergraduate and postgraduate levels, as well as law enforcement professionals, legal practitioners, and speech scientists involved in criminal investigations.