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Forensic Science

News and Updates

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New NIST Forensic Tests Help Ensure High-Quality Copies of Digital Evidence

December 12, 2017

Data found on a suspect’s computer, cell phone or tablet can prove to be crucial evidence in a legal case. A new set of software tools developed at the National

Empty courtoom with seats and scales of justice on table

NIST Experts Urge Caution in Use of Courtroom Evidence Presentation Method

October 12, 2017

Editor’s Note: The headline on this article was updated to clarify that NIST as an institution is not making a policy recommendation on this subject. The peer

NIST to Assess the Reliability of Forensic Methods for Analyzing DNA Mixtures

October 3, 2017

The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) will undertake a study to assess the reliability of forensic methods for analyzing DNA evidence that

The Physicist Who is Working to Accelerate Change in Forensic Science

September 26, 2017

Sylvester James Gates, Jr. is a world-recognized researcher in theoretical physics. Formerly of the University of Maryland and now a professor at Brown

The Forensic Scientist Who Knows How to Build Consensus

September 26, 2017

Jeremy Triplett has had a busy three years. Since the inception of the Organization of Scientific Area Committees for Forensic Science ( OSAC) in 2014, Triplett

Lynn Garcia at the 2017 International Error Management Symposium

Speaking of Error in Forensic Science

September 5, 2017

When Continental flight 3407 crashed on approach to Buffalo Niagara airport on February 12, 2009, all 49 persons on board, and one on the ground, were killed

NIST Seeks Input on OSAC 2.0

August 30, 2017

GAITHERSBURG, Md.—The U.S. Commerce Department’s National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) is seeking public input on a potential new organizational

Scientists Automate Key Step in Forensic Fingerprint Analysis

August 14, 2017

The first big case involving fingerprint evidence in the United States was the murder trial of Thomas Jennings in Chicago in 1911. Jennings had broken into a

Standard for Glass Comparison Approved for OSAC Registry

July 31, 2017

The Organization of Scientific Area Committees for Forensic Science (OSAC) has approved the Standard Test Method for Forensic Comparison of Glass Using Micro X

Scientists Lay the Groundwork for a Reliable Marijuana Breathalyzer

July 5, 2017

Marijuana is now legal for recreational or medicinal use in at least 28 states and the District of Columbia. But driving under the influence of marijuana is

Fire Testing of New Building Materials

June 8, 2017

New, lighter, cheaper, sustainable and recyclable building materials are entering the market every day as developers try to lower costs and shrink their carbon

Woman uses gas analysis mass spectrometer at NBS for chemical analysis of gas or vapor mixtures

NIST Upgrades Widely Used Database of Molecular 'Fingerprints'

June 6, 2017

When scientists need to identify an unknown compound, they do what a police detective might do. They get fingerprints—in this case, the “molecular fingerprints”

Do You Have What It Takes to be a Forensic Fingerprint Examiner?

May 18, 2017

Being a forensic examiner seems glamorous on TV. But working in a crime lab requires long hours of intense focus that are anything but action-packed. This is

Two vials, one with heroin and one with an equivalent dose of fentanyl, which is a much smaller amount.

Fentanyl Can Sicken First Responders. Here’s a Possible Solution.

May 9, 2017

Dan Kallen, a detective in southern New Jersey, was searching a home with fellow officers in August 2015, when they found a bag of white powder. Kallen removed

Standard for Sampling Seized Drugs Approved for OSAC Registry

April 3, 2017

The Organization of Scientific Area Committees for Forensic Science (OSAC) has approved the Standard Guide for Sampling Seized Drugs for Qualitative and

Man in NIST fire research t-shirt and hard hat standing among wreckage

Fire Investigator Qualifications Standard Approved for OSAC Registry

December 22, 2016

The Organization of Scientific Area Committees (OSAC) for Forensic Science has approved the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) Standard for

NIST Research Enables Enhanced DNA “Fingerprints”

December 15, 2016

As the new year approaches, forensic labs across the country are gearing up for a big change in the way they generate DNA profiles, the genetic fingerprints so

Database of Software “Fingerprints” Expands to Include Mobile Apps

December 15, 2016

A group of computer scientists at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) has been working for more than 15 years on an impossible task: to

Department of Justice and the National Institute of Standards and Technology Name New Member of National Commission on Forensic Science

December 13, 2016

DOJ Contact: Office of Public Affairs, 202-514-2007 WASHINGTON—The Department of Justice and the Department of Commerce’s National Institute of Standards and