DrPaula Tarttelin Hernandez

I joined UTS in July 2024, after having worked as a Lecturer in Forensic Investigations at Coventry University in the UK since 2018. Prior to that I worked as a Publishing Editor at the Royal Society of Chemistry, where I covered the publication of manuscripts in a range of high-impact journals in the Materials Science portfolio. I completed my PhD at UCL in 2017, which involved the development of gas sensors to investigate their feasibility in detecting illicit drug markers in security settings. I have previously interned with the National Crime Agency in London to gain greater insight into the strategies used by governmental agencies to disrupt illegal markets and those used by drug traffickers to conceal illegal drugs.

My research interests include:

• Understanding decision-making processes during crime scene processing and management.
• Investigation and application of AI tools to support crime scene processing, reconstruction, and decision-making.
• Responsible and ethical use of AI in Forensic Science 
• Detection of security-related vapours (drugs, explosives, or associated markers) using sensor or lab-benched technologies
• Transfer, persistence, and dynamics of traces.