resources for forensic examiners

Do you feel isolated in your individual laboratory or agency, detached from the field at large? Do you ever wonder how other examiners are doing things, or what new research and development tools are being released? Luckily there are numerous ways for forensic service providers, examiners, vendors, and researchers to stay connected to one another. Below is a list of recommended options to consider, broken into categories.

The benefits of joining a professional organization of forensic examiners include access to valuable training conferences & seminars, access to publications and journals put out by the organization, and networking opportunities with other examiners in your field for times when you have questions or need assistance. Professional organizations also provide free access to upcoming trainings and job postings, as each organization lists these announcements on their websites. Here are a few organizations to consider –       

1) The International Association for Identification (IAI): Established in 1915, the IAI at any given time is typically the largest organization of professional forensic examiners in the United States and even the world. Membership grants you access to conferences and journal publications. Their website also posts training and job announcements, available to anyone. Visit them here: https://theiai.org
    

2) Divisions of the IAI: There are 41 regionalized divisions of the IAI. Each have the benefit of more localized training conferences, as well as connections to other examiners near your district. Furthermore, each division website may contain different job and training postings from one another, and even different from the parent IAI site. Find the division websites here: https://www.theiai.org/divisions.php
    

3) American Academy of Forensic Sciences: Established in 1948, also one of the largest organization of forensic professionals. At this time the friction ridge examination discipline is not included in the various types of membership categories, but other forensic disciplines are. Membership grants you access to conferences and journal publications. Visit them here: https://www.aafs.org
    

4) The Organization of Scientific Area Committees (OSAC): OSAC was created in 2014 in response to the NAS report finding of a lack of discipline-specific standards. Operating under NIST and made up of over 550 forensic practitioners, researchers & academics, members of the private sector, and members of professional organizations, the goal of OSAC is to facilitate consensus, science-based standards for 22 forensic disciplines. They do this by – 

- Identifying community needs for research & development. 

- Locating appropriate standards and best practice recommendations (BPRs) documents for the OSAC Registry, and authoring such documents in times when they do not yet exist. In the latter case, the documents are considered proposed standards and sent to a standards developing organization (SDO) for further development and publication.

- Maintaining a list of technically sound documents for Forensic Service Providers to refer to for standards and best practice recommendations, called the OSAC Registry. The OSAC Registry contains two types of documents – those published by an SDO and those proposed by OSAC that are awaiting publication by an SDO. Both types of documents are valuable resources to anyone looking to create standards and BPRs for their unit. If you would like to be involved in OSAC, you can apply for membership here: https://www.nist.gov/osac/apply-join-osac
    

5) Academy Standards Board (ASB): ASB is an ANSI-accredited standards developing organization (SDO) whose purpose is to provide accessible, high quality, science-based consensus forensic standards. Created in 2015 and operating under the AAFS, ASB frequently works with OSAC and its subcommittees to further develop standards and best practice recommendations for the forensic science community. Membership to ASB means you get to be a part of the discussion and development of standards and best practices for your forensic discipline. Contact the ASB at asb@aafs.org to inquire about membership.  

Newsletters are a highly recommended tool for staying connected with the field at large. Ever wonder what new research is coming out? Or where to find funding and grant money? Want to know what the standards organizations are up to and what new recommendations are coming out? All of this and more can be achieved by subscribing to receive newsletters from a variety of sources. Pro tip – not everything is found in a newsletter! Don’t forget to occasionally browse around these websites for full access to everything these organizations have to offer. Here are a few recommendations:
    

1) OSAC newsletters and standards bulletins: Subscribing to newsletters, and also checking the OSAC websites for news, can keep you informed on the activities of the various subcommittees. Receive notifications on the progress of documents and when documents open for public comment. Subscribe here: https://www.nist.gov/osac/news-communications and find prior newsletters here: https://www.nist.gov/magazine/osac-newsletter If you don’t want to wait for a newsletter, you can always find out what OSAC is up to on their activities tracker here: https://www.nist.gov/osac/osac-registry-implementation
    

2) ASB newsletters: Like OSAC, ASB newsletters can keep you informed on the progress of standards and best practice recommendation documents. Subscribe to ASB newsletters here: https://www.asbstandardsboard.org/ (scroll to bottom of page and click “ASB newsletter”) and view prior newsletters here: https://news.aafs.org/asb-news/ In between newsletters you can find out what activities the ASB is up to here: https://www.asbstandardsboard.org/asb-standards/
    

3) National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) newsletters: A fantastic way to stay in touch with national trends in forensic science, news, training, and research, NIST forensic science newsletters can be subscribed to by going here: https://www.nist.gov/forensic-science and enrolling at the bottom of the page.
    

4) National Institute of Justice (NIJ) newsletters: As with NIST, NIJ newsletters can keep you abreast with news and research going on at a national level. When you enroll you can choose from topics such as general forensic sciences, events and trainings, grants and funding news, and more. An automatic pop-up box for enrollment will appear when you visit this page: https://nij.ojp.gov/topics/forensics If you miss the pop up, click the link at the top of the page that says “subscribe.”
    

5) Consortium of Forensic Sciences Organization (CFSO) newsletter: Created in 2001 and made up of members from six professional forensic organizations, the Consortium acts as one voice to represent the needs of the forensic science practitioners to the members of Congress. Together they work with Congress to influence policies and legislation that impact the forensic science community. If you are curious as to what work is being done on this level, visit their newsletter page here: https://thecfso.org/newsletter Also take a look at their grant page if you are looking for funding.
    

6) The Center for Statistics and Applications in Forensic Evidence (CSAFE): CSAFE serves as a rigorous research center committed to applying proven statistical and scientific methods to improve the accuracy of the analysis and interpretation of forensic evidence. Learn more about their findings, publications, and training opportunities here: https://forensicstats.org/ and subscribe to their newsletters here: https://forensicstats.org/news-events/monthly-csafe-newsletters/ Don’t forget they also have a YouTube channel.
    

7) Forensic Technology Center of Excellence (FTCoE): The FTCoE, led by RTI and working with NIJ, is a team of professionals that facilitate the advancement of forensics through research and development, and connecting practitioners to reliable technological practices. Stay up to date with their podcasts, webinars, and news by going here: https://forensiccoe.org and by following them on social media.
    

8) FIGS newsletters: Started by Charlie Parker in 2007 as an e-mail list for interesting fingerprint images, taken over by Sandy Siegel in 2011 and now Rebecca Coutant as of 2021 – the FIGS newsletter has grown to be an excellent resource for a wide variety of friction ridge topics. These monthly e-mails contain links to pertinent articles and research related to friction ridge examination, training announcements, discussions and forums, and more. E-mail figs@doublelooppodcast.com to subscribe.
    

9) In the Loop: Run out of Australia this website is a fantastic resource for news, research, and events in the friction ridge and crime scene disciplines. Subscribe to their newsletter here: https://www.in-the-loop.net.au 

Want access to recent studies and commentaries? Want to stay informed of recent events or issues you may be asked about in court? How about enjoying an interesting case synopsis? Subscribing to journals and magazines is a great way to achieve this. Here are a few recommendations:
    

1) Journal of Forensic Identification: Published by the IAI this journal is free for members and a valuable resource for recent research projects and commentary pieces. If you are looking for research on a specific topic - numerous prior issues are available online for searching at various university websites (do a Google search), as well as here: https://www.ojp.gov/ncjrs/virtual-library
    

2) Journal of Forensic Sciences: Published by the AAFS this journal is also free for members and a valuable resource for recent research. Online issues are available for searching here: https://www.astm.org/DIGITAL_LIBRARY/JOURNALS/FORENSIC/index.html and https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com

3) Forensic Science International Journal: Published by Elsevier this journal is an invaluable resource for case reports, commentaries, research, review articles, and technical notes. Especially beneficial for those looking to keep up with what is coming out of areas outside of the United States. View and subscribe to the journal here: https://www.journals.Elsevier.com/forensic-science-international/
    

4) Forensic Magazine: Good resource for news and interesting cases. Also offers training webinars on various forensic topics. Subscribe here: https://www.forensicmag.com
    

5) Evidence Technology Magazine: Also a good source of news, articles, and recent cases. Access their home page here: https://www.evidencemagazine.com/index.php and click “subscribe” if interested. 

Podcasts are the perfect way to hear experts in your field discuss hot topics, current events, research and general events related to your field. Listening to these conversations can often provide you with a more in-depth understanding of an issue, and also enable you to better answer questions in court.
    

1) Double Loop Podcast: Led by Glenn Langenburg and Eric Ray this podcast discusses a wide range of topics pertinent to friction ridge examination. These two and their interviewees discuss everything from testimony challenges to research papers, famous cases and examination issues. Find all their episodes on podcast apps or on their website here: https://www.doublelooppodcast.com and don’t forget to follow them on social media.
    

2) Just Science Podcast: Put out by the Forensic Technology Center of Excellence this podcast covers a broad range of forensic topics such as impression evidence, toxicology, forensic anthropology, and more. Find their episodes on their website here: https://forensiccoe.org/just- science-podcast/ 

We all run into moments of having questions about what we do. Has anyone tried this new technique? What is the best equipment for this task? Does anyone know of research on this topic my agency is dealing with? How are other people handling this particular situation when it arises? Community forums are an invaluable resource when these moments occur. With a single post or e-mail to a handful of forums you can reach hundreds of examiners for insight and advice. Or browse prior posts for similar topics. You can also read through discussions on larger events and notorious topics, to better formulate responses to court questions about them. Here are a few valuable community forums to bookmark:
    

1) CLPEX: One of the original online forums for friction ridge examiners, CLPEX has over 2,000 message board topics to browse through. Or post your own and someone will respond. You can access the forum here: https://www.clpex.com/phpBB/
    

2)  The FIGS newsletter: Contained within the FIGS newsletter (mentioned above in “Newsletters and Publications”) is a section for community messages. Send your friction ridge questions to the moderator at figs@doublelooppodcast.com and it will be posted on your behalf. Include an e-mail address for people to send responses to.
    

3) California Friction Ridge Study Group: More information on the benefits of this group is listed below under training. Any question you have relating to the topic of friction ridge examination can be sent to moderators derrick.morisawa@doj.ca.gov and lori.orr@doj.ca.gov Include an e-mail address for people to send responses to. 

Accreditation can help instill faith in the quality of work being performed by a forensic service provider. At present there are two types of accreditation most often recommended for forensic units – ISO 17020 and ISO 17025. Both ISO 17020 and ISO 17025 are equal in their level of difficulty to achieve, however they have slightly different requirements to accommodate the different types of forensic disciplines. Below are bodies that offer accreditation to forensic service providers. 

1) The ANSI National Accreditation Board (ANAB): ANAB is a non-governmental organization that provides accreditation services and training. ANAB offers both ISO 17020 and 17025 accreditations to forensic service providers. Learn more about the accreditation process here: https://anab.ansi.org/en/forensic-accreditation 

2) A2LA: A2LA is an independent, non-profit, internationally recognized accreditation body. A2LA offers both ISO 17020 and 17025 accreditations to forensic service providers. Learn more about the accreditation process here: https://www.a2la.org/accreditation

Certification is a great way for a forensic examiner to demonstrate to FSP clients and to members of the court that they have reached a certain level of knowledge and training expected of examiners practicing in the field. Here is where to go to obtain certification from a reputable source - 

1) The IAI (see above description under “Professional Organizations to Consider Joining"): The IAI offers certification in bloodstain pattern analysis, crime scene, footwear, forensic art, forensic photography & imaging, forensic video, latent print, and tenprint fingerprint. Go here https://www.theiai.org/certifications.php and click on the certification board of the applicable discipline for further details.

2) The American Board of Forensic Document Examiners: Obtain certification in document examination from the ABFDE here https://abfde.org/certification/ 

3) The American Board of Forensic Odontology: Obtain certification in forensic odontology from the ABFO here https://abfo.org/application-documents 

4) The American Board of Forensic Toxicology: Obtain certification in forensic toxicology from the ABFT here https://abft.org/certification

5) American Board of Criminalistics (ABC): The ABC offers certification in comprehensive criminalistics, drug analysis, molecular biology, fire debris analysis, hair and fiber, and paint & polymer. Go here https://criminalistics.com/certification.html and click on the applicable discipline.

6) The Association of Firearms and Tool Mark Examiners (AFTE): The AFTE offers certification in firearms evidence identification and examination, toolmark evidence examination and identification, and gunshot residue evidence and examination. Go here: https://afte.org/afte-certification to find out more.