Mitra Sharafi
Talk Title: Fear of the False: Forensic Science and the Law of Crime in Colonial South Asia
September 17, 2026, 12:00 pm – 1:00 pm CT
In-person: 206 Ingraham Hall
Zoom registration: https://uwmadison.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_Tw4INOaxQgO4kKVmX33ylg#/registration
Presentation Description: Around 1900, the government of British India created a web of institutions for the scientific detection of crime. Driven by anxieties about “native mendacity,” newly minted forensic analysts focused on uncovering faked evidence planted by South Asians. These experts were supposed to extract objective, scientific truth in the service of British justice. But in trying to counteract the presumed tendency of colonized peoples to lie, the system enabled widespread misconduct by state experts, increasing the risk of wrongful convictions of South Asian defendants. Through contexts from poisoning to species-of-origin bloodstain testing, this talk will explore advances in forensic science and shortcuts in criminal procedure against the backdrop of colonial mistrust.
About the Speaker
Mitra Sharafi is Evjue-Bascom Professor at the UW Law School and a legal historian of modern South Asia. She is an affiliate of History, the Legal Studies Program, and the Center for South Asia. She has published books on forensic science (2026) and Parsi legal culture (2014), both set in colonial India. Mitra Sharafi is president of the American Society for Legal History, the first UW faculty member and scholar of South Asia to hold this position. She has hosted the South Asian Legal History Resources website since 2010.