Since its premiere in 2000, CSI: Crime Scene Investigation has been one of the most popular shows on television (Smith). Close behind the program in terms of ratings were, and still are, shows like Law and Order: SVU, Bones, and NCIS, which during the week of September 30, 2013 was the No. 1 show in the country according to the Nielsen ratings (Neilsen ). Viewers are entertained by these fictional shows, absorbing information as if it represents what happens in real life. Every day viewers can watch reruns of these fictional dramas or watch biographically accurate crime shows like Southern Fried Homicide or The First 48, which feature true stories, but often omit parts of the process involved in solving the case and trial. verdicts (Shelton). Forensic science is directly linked to our just criminal justice system because it deals with the evidence and artifacts created during the commission of a crime. Today's forensic science and crime-based television programs seemingly portray our criminal system, but viewers don't seem to understand that these programs are still works of fiction and that sometimes their methods used to solve crimes are anything but. accurate (Left-handed). CSI, Bones, NCIS and other crime dramas have created an explosion in people's interest in forensic science. While these shows are very entertaining, they paint highly unrealistic views of how a crime lab and criminal justice system works (Harriss). The methods shown in these programs are observed by viewers as what would apparently happen in real life, creating a problem when it comes to the courtroom. This problem is known as the CSI effect, a phenomenon in which a juror's decision to convict or acquit a defendant depends heavily on the presence or absence of scientific or forensic evidence. But at this point the existence of the CSI effect has not been proven, but is thought to be