by No major updates on the website this week
From http://projects.nfstc.org/ipes/
The nature of impression and pattern evidence is highly variable, and can be found at nearly every crime or accident scene. Impression and pattern evidence are considerably diverse forensic disciplines, including, but not limited to friction ridge analysis, firearm and toolmarks, footwear and tire treads, and some types of questioned document examinations, among others. While this evidence is rarely the only evidence available in an investigation, identifying the origin of foreign material found at a crime scene and linking such material to a possible source is a powerful evidentiary finding.
Recognizing the important impact that impression and pattern evidence have on criminal investigations and, ultimately, on our system of justice, the National Institute of Justice (NIJ), the Bureau of Justice Assistance (BJA), and the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) Laboratory Division will cosponsor an Impression and Pattern Evidence Symposium to be held August 2–6, 2010, in Clearwater Beach, Florida.
To enhance the awareness of cutting-edge research and casework being conducted in the fields of impression and pattern evidence, the NIJ, BJA, and the FBI Laboratory Division announce a call for abstracts for presentation at the Symposium. Applicants will be required to select whether they prefer an oral or poster presentation format. Presentations in oral format include pre-symposium workshops, general (plenary) session, and break-out session topics. Opportunities also exist to present information in the form of a poster at the Symposium.
Suggested topics include (in no particular order) but are not limited to:
- New trends/information on traditional topics
- Novel research
- Methods and materials
- Analysis of atypical materials
- Significance of a class association of impression or pattern evidence
- Case Studies
- Impact of the NAS report
- Other issues which impact impression and/or pattern evidence practitioners
Abstracts must be received by 5:00 PM EST on Friday, January 8, 2010 and submitted via the on-line submission form. Applicants must complete each section of the on-line submission form. Abstracts must not exceed three double-spaced pages. Abstract submissions over three double-spaced pages will not be considered for peer review.
All abstracts submitted that meet the submission criteria will undergo a peer-review process. Recognizing that information is sometimes more suitable for a particular format, you will be given the option on the submission form to select whether you prefer an oral (workshop, plenary, or breakout) or poster presentation format. Please be advised, however, that given the limited space available for oral presentations on the symposium agenda, your preferred presentation format can not be guaranteed. Additionally, applicants will be required to list the discipline(s) covered in the presentation.
Upon acceptance, all expenses for one presenter will be paid regardless of the number of authors contributing to an abstract. Federal employees who are accepted to present in any format must pay their own expenses. Also, please be advised that should more than one abstract submitted by a lead/primary author be accepted for presentation, the peer review panel may allow the secondary author/researcher listed on the application to present at the Symposium as well. These decisions will be made on a case-by-case basis, so please ensure to consider this issue (as appropriate) when filling out the application.
Notifications for accepted abstracts will be delivered no later than March 12, 2010. Once an abstract has been accepted, presenters (oral or poster) will have until April 30, 2010 to submit a revised or updated version of their abstract for inclusion in the program materials which will be published on the Symposium webpage.
Jennifer Hannaford brought us details about the Boston PD Latent Print Unit accreditation process.
Lt. David Grady of the Worcester Police Department Latent Print
Unit brings us a Weekly Detail I meant to combine with the one
last week for a double on accreditation - so I'm running it this
week on it's
own instead.
__________________________________________
Accreditation
of the Worcester Police Department Latent Print
Unit
by Lt. David Grady
I am proud
to announce that the Latent Print Unit of the Worcester Police
Department recently achieved accreditation from Forensic Quality
Service (FQS) to the standards of ISO 17025:2005 “General
Requirements for the Competence of Testing and Calibration
Laboratories” (http://www.iso.org/iso/catalogue_detail.htm?csnumber=39883) and the
supplemental requirements of FQS (http://www.forquality.org/) . The WPD Latent Print Unit became the first
stand-alone LPU in the
Our LPU began the road to accreditation in February of 2006 when we received a commitment of support from our administration. This support is absolutely essential for any unit/agency seeking accreditation. Our administration then provided funds to completely renovate our lab and office space. Everything from floor to ceiling was redesigned and replaced to better suit the needs of a modern Latent Print Unit.
We also then began the process of reconstructing our procedures, a far more difficult task. I know everyone has heard the old saying, “If something ain’t broke, don’t fix it,” and if you were to ask me in 2006 if I thought my unit was broke, I’d have said ‘no’.
But when I compare how we operated four years ago to how we operate today, I realize how less-than-perfect we were. We are fortunate that we saw the need to change before someone else did. The ISO accreditation process, which places such a strong emphasis on quality assurance, is a superb mechanism for uncovering weaknesses. My unit also fully realizes that the accreditation process is not in end in itself, but rather a commitment to constantly improve.
To anyone
seeking accreditation, my best advice is to seek guidance. If I were
to do anything different, knowing what I know now, I would have
gathered more data from persons who went down the road before me.
There is a lot of great information out there if you look for it.
Also, don’t just seek information from the forensic field. I
obtained some valuable information about chemical storage and
disposal from the Quality Manager of
Following the report by the National Academy of Sciences, the time has never been more appropriate to work toward laboratory accreditation and analyst certification.
__________________________________________
Feel
free to pass The Detail along to other examiners for Fair Use. This
is a not-for-profit newsletter FOR friction ridge examiners, BY
friction ridge examiners. The website is open for all to visit!
If you have not yet signed up to receive the Weekly Detail
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and I will try to work things out.
Until next Monday morning,
don't work too hard or too little.
Have a GREAT
week!