Updated the Detail archives

we looked at draft legislation from the Innocence Project regarding a forensic science commission.

John Black brings us a survey regarding the extent to which agencies conduct verification.
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VERIFICATION SURVEY

I am doing some preliminary research regarding the degree of verification that is performed in the latent print community.  As I travel around the country, it seems that nearly every agency is performing verifications on 100% of reported identifications.  Exclusion, inconclusive and no value decisions are not being verified as a matter of course.  Some agencies will perform verifications on a percentage (something less than 100%) of conclusions other than identifications.  Some will verify all conclusions in only ‘major cases.’  However, some agencies are verifying all conclusion decisions in all cases.

 

With that brief background, I pose the following questions:

 

1.                   What percentage of identifications does your agency verify?

2.                   What percentage of exclusions does your agency verify?   

3.                   What percentage of inconclusives does your agency verify?

4.                   What percentage of ‘no value’ conclusions does your agency verify?

5.                   Do you review actual items of evidence that were processed by the initial examiner?

6.                   Do you verify all ‘non-match’ respondents from AFIS searches?

7.                   What are the reasons for not performing verifications on all conclusion decisions?  Please be specific.

8.                   Do you agree with the concept of 100% verification?  Why or why not?  Please be specific.

9.                   How many latent print examiners does your agency employ?

10.               What is the average caseload per month for each examiner?

 

 

Throughout my career as a latent print examiner, I have had the privilege to work in an environment where all conclusions are verified.  It has been my experience that it is not erroneous identifications that comprise the bulk of errors, but rather erroneous exclusions, erroneous inconclusives and incorrect ‘no value’ decisions.  Therefore, is there a need for 100% verification?

 

I would also like to suggest that because of the way the science of fingerprints is currently practiced, we will never be able to accurately determine an error rate.  The closest we can come is in establishing an error rate for erroneous identifications, since 100% of identifications are subject to the verification phase.  If that is all the courts are concerned with then perhaps we will be able to answer the question.  However, if the concerns regarding error rate are deeper then we will likely fail in that determination.

 

What could likely be more important in the courtroom are the error rates for both you and your agency.  It seems that this would perhaps be more relevant and significant for the courts than how the science performs as a whole, although the latter would obviously be preferable.  The problem is that most examiners don’t know their error rates, let alone those for their agencies, because they are not performing the verification phase on all conclusions.  Can we, or should we, continue in this manner? 

 

My intent is to publish the results of this research project in the Journal of Forensic Identification, as well as to present them at the IAI Conference in Spokane next year.  Numerous agencies have already responded and I am truly grateful.  I am fully aware that case backlogs are high and that resources are low, but I would appreciate it if you would find time to participate.   Please email your responses to johnb@ronsmithandassociates.com with the subject of ‘Verification Research.’

 

Thank you.

 

John P. Black, CLPE, CFWE, CSCSA

Senior Consultant/Quality Manager

Ron Smith and Associates, Inc.

 

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