Forensic Science Laboratories, Ethics, and Quality Assurance

Vocabulary flashcards covering forensic laboratory services, accreditation organizations, ethics, bias, and quality control/assurance.

Private Forensic Science Labs

Specialized forensic science labs, universities, or independently owned and operated consultants that offer one or two types of services to the public.

Public Forensic Science Labs

Forensic laboratories funded through tax dollars and owned and operated by government agencies (federal, state, and local) that perform multiple types of services for state prosecutors, police officers, and detectives.

Federal Public Forensic Labs

Public forensic labs operating under federal departments, including the Dept. Of Justice, Dept. Of Treasury, Dept. Of Interior, and US Postal Service.

Chain of Custody

Documentation of the location of evidence from the time it is obtained to the time it is presented in court.

American Society of Crime Lab Directors (ASCLD)

A nonprofit professional society of crime lab directors and forensic science managers.

American National Standards Institute (ANAB)

An organization that accredits forensic science labs.

American Society for Testing Materials (ASTM)

An organization that develops technical standards for a range of materials, products, systems, and services.

International Organization for Standardization (ISO)

An organization that develops standards that make sure things work and ensure quality, safety, and efficiency.

American Academy of Forensic Sciences (AAFS)

An organization that developed a code of ethics followed by most forensic labs and scientists.

American Board of Criminalistics (ABC)

An organization that accredits forensic scientists.

Forensic Science Education Programs Accreditation Commission (FEPAC)

An organization that develops and maintains standards to administer an accreditation program that recognizes and distinguishes high quality undergrad and graduate forensic science programs.

Organization of Scientific Area Committees (OSAC)

An organization that develops and endorses forensic science consensus documentary standards and guidelines, and ensures a sufficient scientific basis exists for each discipline.

Forensic Scientist

A professional whose duties include performing scientific analysis of evidence and offering expert testimony in legal proceedings.

Basic Ethics

Ethical principles and standards of conduct that are non-negotiable.

Aspirational Ethics

Ethical goals and best practices that individuals or organizations strive to meet.

Bias

A preference for or against a person, thing, group, idea, or behavior, based upon one's own experiences.

Cognitive Bias

A tendency to think a certain way which leads to judgement and decision making.

Contextual Bias

Bias where a person is influenced by clues surrounding the topic but not the content itself.

Confirmation Bias

The tendency to search for and use only information that supports a belief or hypothesis.

Quality Control

A set of processes and procedures put in place in a lab to be followed by personnel so that a desired level of quality can be achieved.

Quality Assurance

A set of processes that can evaluate a lab and its personnel to determine if they are achieving or maintaining a given level of quality.