USADA presents at the ACS National Meeting about Doping in Sports On March 23, 2015, Attorneys Justin J. McShane of The McShane Firm, LLC and Josh D. Lee of Ward, Lee and Coats moderated a symposium at the national American Chemical Society meeting in Denver, Colorado. The symposium concerned the chemistry and the law […]
Is your Crime Lab Out of Tune? What is a Tune Report and Why is it important in GC-MS work?
What is a Tune Report and Why is it important in GC-MS work? Would Eric Clapton ever play a concert or for a recording on an out-of-tune guitar? Of course not. The tune on a GC-MS instrument is as important if not more than the tune on Eric Clapton’s guitar. When the result matters, Clapton […]
What does reprocessing mean on a chromatogram?
What does reprocessing mean on a chromatogram? Reprocessing of the data generally means that after the data is acquired, the chromatograms are subjected to some sort of manipulation, meaning data processing. I know that to defense attorneys that when they read the word “manipulation” that is like nails on a chalk board to them inherently. […]
Problems in Bexar County Texas Too-Integrated Forensic Laboratories LLC
Another day, another headline. Sigh. According to the below email and also the newspaper article, sadly here’s another issue with an accredited laboratory and Quality Assurance. Here is another one: Lab errors place Bexar DWI cases under scrutiny By Eva Ruth Moravec May 22, 2014 | Updated: May 23, 2014 11:38am SAN ANTONIO — Hundreds […]
Brady notice in DUID cases at DPS Austin in Texas
Every once and a while, I get an email or a report that claims that the sender has never seen an incorrect analytical chemistry result come out of an accredited crime laboratory. I’m going to start publishing them when I get them. So, attorneys please send them in to us. Here is a fairly recent […]
The American Chemical Society-Chemistry and the Law Division Announces The ACS Forensic Lawyer-Scientist Designation as recognized by the Chemistry and the Law Division of the ACS
***For immediate publication and sharing*** The American Chemical Society-Chemistry and the Law Division Announces The ACS Forensic Lawyer-Scientist Designation as recognized by the Chemistry and the Law Division of the ACS http://www.forensicchromatography.com/lawyer-scientist/ With more than 161,000 members, the American Chemical Society (ACS) is the world’s largest scientific society and one of the world’s […]
Another week, another laboratory scandal: Santa Clara County Crime Lab (and it’s accredited by ASCLD/LAB)
Another week, another laboratory scandal: Santa Clara County Crime Lab (and it’s accredited by ASCLD/LAB) [Hat tip to The Charles Smith Blog] I have written time and again about how forensic science as it is currently practiced in the United States needs massive improvement. The repeated Quality Assurance system failures would never be tolerated in […]
Restek standards contamination
Restek standards contamination For the record, I think Restek is a good company. I have taken a tour of their facilities. It appears as if they want to do good and valid science. They are standards makers. In fact, they make ISO compliant standards. That is the top of the line. Here is a fine […]
Superfluous Sensitivity
I was at the 247th American Chemical Society meeting in Dallas where this research was first presented. Analytical instruments are destined to become more sensitive, it is the march of progress. But is this a good thing? Just because we can detect something, is it relevant? Is examining toxicological samples at 1000 times more sensitivity […]
“They are merely technicians”-the myth of Gas Chromatography analysis
“They are merely technicians”-the myth of Gas Chromatography analysis Language is important in science and in law. If you are a prosecutor, you would want to call those who preform the GC-FID analysis for EtOH “techs” because “techs” don’t think, they just do. It must be emphasized that the simple fact is these people are […]
Closer to an 0.05 DUI standard–National Safety Council-Alcohol, Drugs and Impairment Division Report 2014
Closer to an 0.05 DUI standard–National Safety Council-Alcohol, Drugs and Impairment Division Report 2014 Here is an update here from the National Safety Council-Alcohol, Drugs and Impairment Division. As frequent readers of this blog know, the former National Safety Council (NSC) Committee on Alcohol and Other Drugs (COAD) was upgraded by the National Safety Council […]
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