Best Practices in Forensic Sciences – Introduction PDF

Best Practices in Forensic Sciences – Introduction Mr. Tony Tessarolo September 9, 2024 Welcome to FSC330! Today’s class: General course information Introduction to major reports and inquiries in Forensic Science  Who Am I?? Worked at the Centre of Forensic Sciences for...

Best Practices in Forensic Sciences – Introduction Mr. Tony Tessarolo September 9, 2024 Welcome to FSC330! Today’s class: General course information Introduction to major reports and inquiries in Forensic Science  Who Am I?? Worked at the Centre of Forensic Sciences for 32+ years. Started as forensic scientist, Biology. Transferred to Northern Regional Lab (NRL) in SSM. Assistant Lab Manager (NRL) responsible for Biology, Toxicology, Evidence Receipt Transferred to CFS (Toronto) to become Head of Firearms Section. Added Digital Evidence, Photography, Questioned Documents to responsibilities. Ministry lead responding to Auditor General of Ontario Value for Money Audit on the CFS. Quality Manager CFS Director CFS (12 years) Served on the Executive of the Ontario Homicide Investigator’s Association. Currently working as an independent forensic consultant. General info Slides are posted for most classes (some guest lectures may not have all slides posted) just prior to lecture time Office hours – Mondays 4:30pm-5:30pm Term tests are in-person during class time (90 mins) If you have questions or concerns about your grade contact me as soon as possible, don’t wait until the end of the semester No class recording allowed Mobile phones off during class Office hours My office is in the New Science Building 3rd floor room NSB 3002 Mondays 4:30-5:30pm  Topic Class Date (2024) Course Introduction 1 Sept.9 Quality Assurance and 2 Sept.16 Schedule accreditation Communications and 3 Sept.23 Report Writing Court testimony 4 Sept.30 Forensic literature, research 5 Oct. 7 and bias Thanksgiving Day Oct.14 Term test 1 6 Oct.21 Reading Week Oct.28- Nov.1 Best practices - Health and 7 Nov.4 safety Guest lecture – Stress and 8 Nov.11 resiliency /Policing Note: Specific guest Guest lecture – Death 9 Nov.18 lecturers are tentative investigations and will be confirmed based on availability. Guest lecture - Biology 10 Nov.25 Course review 11 Dec.2 Term test 2 12 Tuesday, Dec. 3  Assignments and tests TEST/ASSIGNMENT DUE DATE % FINAL GRADE QA assignment Sept.30 20 Term test 1 - in- Oct.21 20 person Scientific literature Nov.4 20 review Resiliency Nov.25 15 assignment Term test 2 - in- Dec.3 25 If you can’t complete person an assignment on time, AND have a valid reason, please contact me as soon as possible. Assignments and exams 1. All lectures and assigned reading material will be examinable. 2. Final term test will cover entire course. Grades Volunteer note taker Information about volunteer note-taker is posted on Quercus - please consider this opportunity – thanks!  Quality Assurance First two topics Communications and report writing What’s a Best Practice? “Commercial or professional procedures that are accepted or prescribed as being correct or most effective”. (Oxford) What is meant by “correct or most effective” in forensic science? How are best practices developed? When and Why do things go wrong in forensic science? - Discuss in groups - The Impact of Science on Justice This Report ends where it started. An innocent person was convicted of a heinous crime he did not commit. Science helped convict him. Science exonerated him…...The challenge for all participants in the administration of justice in Ontario will be to draw upon this experience and learn from it.” – The Honourable Fred Kaufman, The Commission on Proceedings Involving Guy Paul Morin (1998, conclusion) “No justice system can be immunized against the risk of flawed scientific opinion evidence. But with vigilance and care, we can move toward that goal.” – The Honourable Stephen T. Goudge, Inquiry into Pediatric Forensic Pathology in Ontario (2008, Vol. 1, pg. 48) 1st case example Murder of Richard Oland Oland was a prominent businessman (family owns Moosehead Brewery) from Atlantic Canada July 7, 2011 – 69-year-old Richard Oland’s body was found in his office He was bludgeoned to death and found lying down in a pool of blood Crime scene “One of the bloodiest crime scenes of my career, with most blows to the victim” - Sgt Mark Smith 45 wounds from a hammer like weapon Blood splatter on desk, computer, floor etc. Suspect - Dennis Oland Richard’s son Last person known to see him alive $500,000 in debt to his father Suspicious behaviour during initial police questioning After 2.5 hrs police inform him he is their #1 suspect Nothing happens for the next two years He was formally arrested on Nov 13, 2013 Trial(s) 1st trial - found guilty Guilty verdict overturned - the Appeal Court found the trial judge did not properly instruct the jury on evidence around the jacket Oland was wearing the day of the murder 2nd trial – found not guilty by judge alone trial Many issues were raised at both trials, many relating to forensic issues Saint John Police Department Officers used the bathroom at the crime scene for two days before it was tested for blood or fingerprints Couldn’t recall if evidence had been touched with or without gloves Blood splatter expert didn’t arrive until four days later (blood splatter had since been removed and dried up) Officers touched the back door before testing for fingerprints. Photographed the back alleyway three years after crime Interviewed some witnesses three years after crime Evidence - footprints A footprint at the scene was not made by police or paramedics Defence suggested it may have been made by the killer But the footprint was not discovered until a review of crime scene photos three years later. Defence lawyer (Mr. Lacy) asked a Crown witness “You completely missed a footwear impression in the blood. Is that correct?” The forensics officer replied: “Basically, yes.” Evidence - jacket Dennis Oland's bloodstained jacket was stored in a Saint John police locker for nearly four months before undergoing forensic testing Evidence – blood stains Small blood stains were identified on the jacket Were they consistent with the bloody crime scene? Could they be due to general transfer of DNA? New evidence for 2nd trial Defence created an enactment video to illustrate how the killer(s) could have escaped using the backdoor Back door was most covert exit and was never tested for fingerprints or DNA because it was contaminated before Forensic Officers were on scene How does this case relate to this course? QA issues Health and Safety Resiliency o Discovery of the body o Officers at crime scene o Scientists performing tests o Jury members Reporting o Evaluative reporting Scientific Research Break Major reports/inquiries Errors in criminal justice when forensic science has contributed should be studied so we can learn from these mistakes Ensures that forensic science facilitates rather than obstructs justice Major reports into forensic sciences Hart House NAS report report Origins of the NAS Report “The forensic science system, encompassing both research and practice, has serious problems that can only be addressed by a national commitment to overhaul the current structure that supports the forensic science community in this country. This can only be done with effective leadership at the highest levels of both federal and state governments, pursuant to national standards, and with a significant infusion of federal funds.” Strengthening Forensic Science in the United States: A Path Forward (Feb 2009) Origins of the NAS Report ◼ Consortium of Forensic Science Organizations (association of 6 professional forensic science organizations) sought to establish national support for funding and good policies for the forensic science disciplines at all levels of government. ◼ 2005 US Congress passed the Appropriations Act of 2006. ◼ Under the terms of this statute, Congress authorized “the National Academy of Sciences (NAS) to conduct a study on forensic science, as described in the Senate report. ◼ Attorney General directed to provide funds to NAS to create an independent committee. Origins of the NAS Report ◼ Committee established by NAS in Fall 2006. ◼ Membership comprised of representatives from legal, forensic and scientific communities. HARRY T. EDWARDS, (Co-chair), Judge, U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit CONSTANTINE GATSONIS, (Co-chair), Director, Center for Statistical Sciences, Brown University ◼ Committee tasked with “assessing the present and future resource needs of the forensic community”, amongst other things. ◼ Strengthening Forensic Science in the United States: A Path Forward (Feb 2009) NAS report Published in 2009 Considered ground-breaking in its critical review of the quality of forensic evidence Found that scientists in a number of disciplines “Had yet to establish the validity of their approach or the accuracy of their conclusions” Warned that the adversarial justice system is not suited to the task of finding the “scientific truth” NAS Report Reliability and Acceptance “Two very important questions should underlie the law’s admission of and reliance upon forensic evidence in criminal trials: (1) the extent to which a particular forensic discipline is founded on a reliable scientific methodology that gives it the capacity to accurately analyze evidence and report findings and (2) the extent to which practitioners in a particular forensic discipline rely on human interpretation that could be tainted by error, the threat of bias, or the absence of sound operational procedures and robust performance standards.” NAS Report Disaggregation in US Forensic Service Delivery “Multiple types of practitioners with different levels of education and training and different professional cultures and standards for performance and a reliance on apprentice-type training and a guild-like structure of disciplines.” (NAS Report) NAS Report “Science and law have existed in two different worlds with contradictory principles and paradigms. Before the NAS report, forensics was held accountable only to the principles established by the law rather than science. The NAS report called on the scientific community to help the criminal justice system establish the resources and processes needed for forensics to move toward the promise of neutral truth teller. The progress that it set in motion cannot be understated—it is not an exaggeration to say that the report has freed innocent people and saved lives”. -Peter Neufeld, co-founder of the Innocence Project NAS report - recommendations 1.Create a National Institute of Forensic Sciences (NIFS) 2.Standardize terminology and reporting practices 3.Expand research on the accuracy, reliability, and validity of the forensic sciences 4.Remove forensic science services from the administrative control of law enforcement agencies and prosecutors’ offices 5.Support forensic science research on human observer bias and sources of error 6.Develop tools for advancing measurement, validation, reliability, information sharing, and proficiency testing and to establish protocols for examinations, methods, and practices NAS report - recommendations 7.Require the mandatory accreditation of all forensic laboratories and certification for all forensic science practitioners 8.Laboratories should establish routine quality assurance procedures 9.Establish a national code of ethics with a mechanism for enforcement 10.Support higher education in the form of forensic science graduate programs, to include scholarships and fellowships 11.Improve the medico-legal death investigation system 12.Support AFIS interoperability through the development of standards 13.Support the use of forensic science in homeland security NAS report - recommendations Create a National Institute of Forensic Sciences (NIFS) Hart House report Reliable forensic science is the cornerstone of any effective justice system Published in 2012 Three major trends in Forensic Science: o A shift to evidence-based paradigm in forensic scientific inquiry o The recognition that there is a need to bridge the gap between expectation and deliverables in expert opinion evidence o The seminal publication of the NAS report – influenced other jurisdictions to reflect on their own systems Hart House report Nine core disciplines: Forensic pathology Forensic anthropology Forensic odontology Forensic nursing Forensic entomology Forensic physical sciences Forensic toxicology Forensic biology Forensic psychiatry Hart House report - conclusions 1. Forensic Science is an integrative activity. Cases are complex and are analyzed by many experts whose competencies straddle different fields. Multidisciplinary approach is important 2. Expert-knows-best paradigm of expert witness testimony is obsolete. Replaced by a system where experts are accountable and have to explain why they hold their views with reference to current scientific literature. 2. As much attention should be given to teaching and research as to service. They are ALL important. Hart House report - recommendations 1. Research 2. Education and training 3. Best practices 4. Administration and Regulation Hart House report – Best practices 1. International guidelines and standards should be adopted for use in Canada e.g. SWGs 2. Professional certification 3. Organizations should be accredited 4. Practitioners should embrace professionalism and adopt strong codes of ethics 5. Recognizing the harmful effects of bias, a culture of scientific neutrality should be encouraged. This applies to all experts irrespective of their paymaster. 6. A systemic response to error is needed when it occurs. 2nd case example The Phantom of Heilbronn (AKA “the woman without a face” 1993 – An elderly woman was brutally murdered in Germany. The only evidence left behind by the perpetrator was DNA on a teacup. Over the next decade a series of almost 40 crimes had the same DNA found at the various crime scenes on items including cookies, syringes, furniture. The suspect was identified as a female, Eastern European or Russian descent. The Phantom of Heilbronn Crimes had little in common with the exception of the same DNA left at all the crime scenes Profilers were consulted from all over Europe Police even consulted fortune tellers to help discover her identity The Phantom of Heilbronn Doubts about the existence of the "phantom killer" were raised when her DNA appeared on documents belonging to a person who had died in a fire When police first tried to identify the victim, they found the phantom's DNA on the dead person's ID however a subsequent test, no trace of the phantom's DNA could be found on the document The Phantom of Heilbronn 40 crimes 16,000 hours of overtime 100 police officers in multiple countries >$400,000 The Phantom of Heilbronn Geographical disparity of crimes Lack of pattern in her crimes People arrested for some crimes denied her existence So what happened? DNA contamination of cotton swabs Best Practice: ISO 18385, use of QA Index Next Class QA practices Introduction to Accreditation and dealing with Non-Conforming Work Important preparation: Please review information on the Amanda Knox case: I suggest one or more of the following sources: 1. Documentary: Netflix – Amanda Knox 2. Podcast: LA Not so confidential - episode 18 - The Amanda Knox Saga 3. Article: Rolling Stone: https://www.rollingstone.com/culture/culture- news/the-neverending-nightmare-of-amanda-knox-244620/