NRC Report Flashcards
When was the NRC report published?
January 2009
What professions does forensic science impact?
Criminal investigations & prosecutions, civil litigation, legal reform, investigations of insurance claims, national disaster planning & preparedness, homeland security
What caused the NRC to undertake this study?
In November 2005 Congress directed the NAS to undertake such a study, and the NAS formed the NRC to complete this task.
What were the issues covered during the committee’s hearings and deliberations?
Fundamentals of the scientific method as applied to forensic practice, assessment of forensic methods and technologies, infrastructure and needs for basic research and technology assessment, training and education, structure and operation of labs, structure and operation of ME/C systems, budget and future needs, accreditation & certification, SWGs, forensic practices, use of forensic evidence in court, nontraditional forensic science service providers.
Daubert v. Merrell Dow Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (1993)
The judge is the gatekeeper of what satisfies Daubert criteria and what is admissible in court.
Recommendations
NIFS, terminology, research, administrative control, dealing with human error, standards, accreditation & certification, quality assurance, ethics, education, MDI, fingerprint data, homeland security
The Innocence Project
367 post conviction exonerations based on DNA evidence since 1992
How many cases have no DNA evidence?
> 90% cases
OSAC
Organization of Scientific Area Committees (created by NIST)
AAFS
American Academy of Forensic Sciences
ASB
AAFS Standards Board
SDO
Standards Developing Organization (ASB)
What is OSAC’s purpose?
To generate drafts of standards.
What is the purpose of SDOs?
They take OSAC’s draft standards and shepherd them through the approval process with ANSI.
When was the updated report?
In 2016, the President’s Council of Advisors on Science and Technology published a follow-up report
