Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment Laboratory crisis that concerns blood ethanol content by HS-GC-FID teaches us yet again the critical role that education plays in the training of analysts. People in the laboratory are just taught to press buttons and preform tasks. They are not experts. Anyone who has been in a courtroom […]
Quality Assurance failures at the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment Laboratory
Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment Laboratory crisis that concerns blood ethanol content by HS-GC-FID teaches us yet again the critical role that quality assurance (QA) is supposed to play in forensic laboratories. It is part of any quality management system. In all laboratories, the QA officer should be someone who is wholly independent […]
Training in Forensic Science: The Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment
If you have ever seen me lecture before, you know that one of my themes is the need fro greater education and training in the laboratory for analysts. For years, I have been talking about the “oral tradition” method of training that goes on at forensic laboratories wherein the last person to push the button […]
A “Redo” Book! Are you serious?!?!?! More on the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment Laboratory
Forensic scientists make mistakes. At the end of the day, they are human. But in criminal law and forensic science or just plain old science in general, you have to report out and document your errors. Apparently, this major legal lesson and scientific precept was lost on the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment […]
Breaking News: Crisis at the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment
On June 7, 2013, the Attorney General of Colorado in an unprecedented move released the findings of a report into the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment and blood ethanol testing. It paints a very grim picture of undereducated, undertrained and unsupervised work. You can read the full report here. Later this week, we […]
Cognitive Bias Redux
I read a very interesting article on bias. As we have discussed before bias permeates all forms of science and in particular forensic science. It provoked some thoughts. I wanted to pass it along in homes it might The Trouble With “Limitations” In Science By Neuroskeptic | May 16, 2013 4:09 pm Is it always good […]
The Forensic Lab Worker Retirement Plan Again: Screw up Tests, Skip Steps…. Retirement Life
Ahh yes. It’s time for our latest edition of “Lifestyles of the Newly Retired.” Here is another example of the greatest retirement plan in all of government. If you do bad science, with potential false convictions or undue exonerations, you are tampering with evidence. In all 50 states and in the federal system, tampering with […]
Retention of Biological Samples: In a DUI case, how long is long enough?
Suppose the following: You are driving home. You get stopped by the police. You are arrested for DUI. You are requested and give a sample of your blood. The blood goes to a laboratory and is analyzed. The results get transmitted to the police a few days later. The police type it up a few […]
Dry-lab get a promotion, become the chief, get discovered, and retire
Life is good for crime laboratory analysts. In the normal course of forensic science events. If you dry-lab, meaning you report out results when in fact you did not perform an analysis, you are efficient in the laboratory. You are someone who gets rewarded typically with a promotion. Heck, they even may make you chief […]
Guest Blog by Prof. David A. Harris: Forensic Labs Should Be Separate from Law Enforcement
When the National Academy of Sciences published its landmark report Strengthening Forensic Science in the United States: A Path Forward in February of 2009, most observers quickly saw that it had the potential to shake the forensic science establishment to its core if its recommendations were followed. Four years on, not enough change has occurred. […]
“Failed Evidence” – A must read for all interested in making our justice system better
One of the recurring themes of this blog is the consistent call for meaningful changes in the criminal justice system. TheTruthAboutForensicScience.com bloggers Justin McShane and Josh Lee having been highlighting areas of the criminal justice system that desperately need change for several years now. We are not the only ones. In the book “Failed Evidence: […]
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