Criminal Justice Assignment | Online Assignment

Professionals within the Forensic Science Field include Crime Scene Investigators and Evidence Response team members. These individuals are usually the first to arrive at crime scenes and first to identify, gather, catalog, and store evidence for a case. Ethics in evidence gathering is taught at the highest levels of the FBI’s Evidence Response Team training facilities in Quantico, Va. Unfortunately, a few years ago, it was determined that lab techs for the FBI had falsified evidence. This makes for interesting reading regarding evidence testing and ethical violations.

There are 2 types of witnesses; fact and expert.

Fact witnesses are called to testify for the purpose of providing testimony about things they have observed or otherwise have obtained knowledge.
Expert witnesses are individuals who possess certain knowledge in a particular field or area of expertise that would be helpful to the trier of fact.
And while both witnesses testify, the 2 are very different as their description clearly shows.

In Daubert (1993) the Supreme Court held that prior to the admission of scientific testimony; the trial judge must determine that the evidence is both relevant and reliable. Trial judges must consider numerous factors outlined in the textbook on page 316.

Given their expertise, expert witnesses may also provide an EXPERT OPINION on a certain area of concern in a trial. In the American trial system, attorneys may VOIR DIRE an expert witness to establish or dispute the qualifications of an expert witness.

The consequences of unethical, unprofessional, or sloppy forensic science practice can result in wrongful convictions.

For additional reading, go to the following link

https://oig.justice.gov/special/9704a/00exesum.htm

Read the Executive Summary, Section I, Principle Findings and Recommendations, and Section II, the OIG Investigation.

Week 15 – CHAP 13 Forum Discussion Topic

After reading Chapter 13, this lecture, reviewing Chapter 13 PPT, and the sections provided in the above link, what steps do you feel are necessary to ensure the ethical testing and reporting of evidence?