Labs & Staff (Exam I) Flashcards
Responsibilities, Lab Types, and Organization
What can we do with DNA now that wasn’t possible 2 decades ago?
Use much smaller smaples
Name an advancement in technology that has provided more tools to study physical evidence in the lab.
AFIS, or databases in general
What should you do at the start of a case?
Start chain of custody upon receipt of evidence
What should you do after starting chain of custody?
Start written and photo logs
What should you do after getting the written and photo logs done?
Evidence testing/analysis
What should you do after evidence testing/analysis?
Interpret your results
What should you do after receiving and interpreting your case results?
Draw conclusion (match, no match, inconclusive)
What should you do after gathering the conclusions of your case?
Publish a report
What comes after publishing your report?
Testifying in court
What are 2 things you should be able to do with physical evidence aside from analyzing it?
1) Recognize invisible items
2) Properly collect, preserve, and store items
What are the 3 lab jurisdictions?
1) Federal
2) State
3) Local
What is the jurisdiction of the federal lab?
Entire country
What is the jurisdiction of the state lab?
The state
What is the jurisdiction of the local lab (HINT: 2 parts)?
City & county
Name 4 federal labs.
1) Federal Bureau of Investigations (FBI)
2) USACIL (located in Georgia)
3) Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms (ATF)
4) US Postal Service
Where is the main headquarters for Mississippi’s crime lab located?
Jackson
Where are the 3 satellite crime labs in Mississippi?
Batesville, Meridian, and Gulf Coast
Name 3 local crime labs with locations.
1) Scales Lab - Brandon
2) Legal Genetics - Ocean Springs
3) Ron Smith & Associates - Collinsville
What are the 2 lab sectors?
Government & private
You go into the government sector for…
Service
You go into the private sector for…
Money
What 2 things do government labs primarily work on?
Criminal cases & offender databasing
What 3 things to do private labs primarily work on?
Criminal cases, paternity cases, & offender data basing for CODIS
For what 2 reasons do private labs work on criminal cases?
1) They are picked up from no-suspect cases
2) People want independent results
What is the general, 5-step lab organization ranking?
1) Lab director
2) Deputy/assistant director
3) Supervisor
4) Analyst
5) Technician
How does the organization hierarchy differ in the bio unit?
DNA tech manager is ranked #4 over the analyst
What are 3 tasks of a DNA tech manager?
1) Overlook DNA operations
2) Assigning cases
3) Budgeting
In terms of experience, how does the DNA tech manager differ from the supervisor?
The DNA tech manager has a master’s degree + casework + tech experience while the supervisor has no master’s but does have casework
Who does the QA/QC unit have in place of analysts?
Assistants
Who does the admin unit have in place of analysts?
Support staff
How do the QA/QC and admin units deviate from the lab organization hierarchy aside from not having analysts?
There is no staff below the 4th tier. The hierarchy ends with assistants and support staff, respectively
There are multiple disciplines present in a single lab, but lab members may be trained in…
More than 1 discipline, but most training is done under a single discipline
You can go to AAFS.org for…
Information on qualifications, training, and experience
What does AAFS stand for?
American Academy for Forensic Science
What does USACIL stand for?
United States Army Criminal Investigation Laboratory
