Candace Matthews

Candace Matthews started as a CSI at the Brevard County Sheriff’s Office in 2003. She graduated from the National Forensic Academy in 2006. While at Brevard County, she also worked for the University of Tennessee and Louisiana State University, where she instructed law enforcement personnel in Advanced Forensics for Hazardous Environments and Crime Scene Processing. In 2011, she was recruited by the Department of Defense and deployed to Afghanistan. She spent 20 months handling terrorism-related cases and trained NATO allies on evidence documentation and processing for both battlefield and laboratory settings. After returning to the United States, Candace completed her contract at the United States Army Criminal Lab. She rejoined LSU in 2014 and relocated to Texas to be a forensic photographer at the Harris County Institute of Forensic Science, collaborating with the genetics lab, trace collection team, and medical examiner’s office. In 2016, she became the crime scene supervisor at the Sarasota County Sheriff’s Office, where she currently serves as the CSU Manager. She also holds positions as the RDSTF Region 6 Forensic Lead, is a board member of the Florida Sheriff’s Association Cold Case Committee, and she served as the FDIAI Region 3 Director for three years.