Essential Quality Practices for Friction Ridge Examiners

Instructor: Deborah E. Smith, MSFS, CLPE, CMQ/OE
Course length: 40 hours

The Essential Quality Practices for the Forensic Science Professional course serves the interest of furthering educational aspects of friction ridge analysis, primarily relating to the importance and necessity of quality control within the analysis and testimony process. The quality of testimony provided by a fingerprint analyst can go a long way into the acceptance of not only that particular analyst, but of the science itself. Not only is it important for an agency to have competent fingerprint analysts, but they must also be able to competently explain the science behind the examination. For this reason, it is a necessity to have a structured quality system in place for the training of anyone performing fingerprint analyses.

This course is designed to provide participants with the quality management principles, techniques, tools, and skills for on-the-job applications useful in latent print disciplines, including auditing principles for potential or existing accreditation, techniques for the recognition and defense of bias, and successful curriculum vitae development. During this course, participants will learn comprehensive methods of quality control improvements for error reduction, including the establishment of recommended guidelines for reporting, documentation, and testimony to ensure examiner competency and proficiency.

Target Audience
This forty-hour course is best suited for individuals currently employed in the fingerprint/latent print discipline. It is also applicable to Quality Managers, however named, and supervisory personnel who play a key role in establishing quality assurance/quality control policies and procedures.

Goals of the Workshop
Upon successful completion of this course, the student will gain an understanding of the effects of human factors, as well as the causes and consequences of human error, in latent print analysis. Likewise, participants will gain an understanding of a variety of factors that may directly and indirectly affect latent print examiners, which will allow for the provision and establishment of quality control methods to defend against bias and other significant sources of error.

Schedule

Day One:

Latent Print Comparison - Science vs. Art
Scientific Law and Theory
Philosophies of the Examination Process
Methods of Examination

Day Two:

Types and Causes of Bias
Types and Causes of Error
Studies of Error
Error Rates

Day Three:

Quality Assurance Documents
Verifications and Reviews
Conflict Resolution
Corrective Action

Day Four:

Competency Training & Proficiency Testing
Accreditation and Certification as a Means to Quality Improvement
Training / Continuing Education
Curricula Vitae (CV) Development

Day Five:

Brady and Michael Morton Acts
Ethical and Professional Obligations
Expressions of Certainty
Court Challenges – Avoiding Traps in Fingerprint Testimony

Deborah E. Smith, CLPE

Holding a Master of Science in Forensic Sciences with an emphasis in Forensic Science Administration from Oklahoma State University and a Bachelor of Science degree in Government with an emphasis in Legal Studies and a minor in Criminal Justice from Texas Woman’s University, Deborah E. Smith is a strong advocate for quality management and assurance, she involves herself in every opportunity to share knowledge and communicate best practices in the field of fingerprints.

This course has been approved for 40 hours of certification/recertification training credit by the IAI Latent Print Certification Board and the Tenprint Fingerprint Certification Board.

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