Know Puzzles – So You Want to Be a Forensic Scientist

This presentation will highlight the differences between Forensic Scientists on television versus reality and also provide an overview of the Oregon State Police Forensic Services Division.

Brian Medlock was born and raised in Sweet Home, Oregon. After he received his Bachelor’s degree in Biochemistry from Whitman College, he moved to Washington DC and worked as a Forensic Chemist for the Drug Enforcement Administration. Brian moved back home to Oregon in 2005 and began his career with the Oregon State Police Forensic Services Division in the Bend Forensic Laboratory. As a Forensic Scientist with OSP, he worked in the Serology, Trace, Drug Chemistry and Crime Scene sections. In 2015, Brian was promoted to Bend Laboratory Director and then in 2022, became the Director of the Oregon State Police Forensic Services Division, overseeing five laboratories and more than 150 employees. He is happily married to an amazing wife and currently has his hands full raising two teenagers and a crazy Aussiedoodle.