Could a dog's scent help identify suspects, and what strength does it hold in court?

Abstract

A canine’s heightened sense of smell has been used throughout the years to aid in several police investigations. Their capability to highly detect several scents has deemed them a key asset to police forces around the world. The highly sophisticated canine olfactory system alone, however, is not capable of identifying human scents. Each canine brought into the force is carefully paired with a handler, who holds the responsibility of carefully training the canine. Handler to canine selection is a crucial step in dog training which must not be overlooked by the force. The amount, as well as the intensity of the training the canine is exposed to, will determine the canine’s ability to accurately identify the suspect/s in question during an investigation. Studies regarding the training of canines in relation to accurate identification have been conducted, proving that the training received by the canine solidifies the argument regarding its abilities in a court of law. Several courts worldwide deem the evidence collected by canines to be admissible if recorded evidence of the canine, as well as its handler can both be fully established