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July 2000 Volume 2 Number
3
Quality
Assurance Standards for Convicted Offender DNA Databasing Laboratories
DNA Advisory Board
April 1999
(Part 1 of 2)
Introduction
Forensic DNA identification
analysis currently involves forensic casework and convicted offender
analyses. These complementary functions demand adherence to the
highest analytical standards possible to protect both public
safety and individual rights. Separate standards have been drafted
for laboratories performing these functions. This separation
is an acknowledgment of the differences in the nature or type
of sample, the typical sample quantity and potential for reanalysis,
and specialization that may exist in a laboratory. Standards
for convicted offender laboratories, in some instances, are less
stringent than for those performing forensic casework analyses,
but in no case should the two documents be interpreted as conflicting.
This document consists of
definitions and standards. The standards are quality assurance
measures that place specific requirements on the laboratory.
Equivalent measures not outlined in this document may also meet
the standard if determined sufficient through an accreditation
process.
Mechanism to Recommend Changes to Standards
Once the Director of the
Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) has issued standards for
quality assurance for convicted offender DNA testing, the DNA
Advisory Board may recommend revisions to such standards to the
FBI Director, as necessary. In the event that the duration of
the DNA Advisory Board is extended beyond March 10, 2000, by
the FBI Director, the Board may continue to recommend revisions
to such standards to the FBI Director. In the event that the
DNA Advisory Board is not extended by the FBI Director after
March 10, 2000, the Technical Working Group on DNA Analysis Methods
(TWGDAM) may recommend revisions to such standards to the FBI
Director, as necessary.
Effective
Date
These standards shall take
effect April 1, 1999.
References
American Society of Crime
Laboratory Directors/Laboratory Accreditation Board (ASCLD/LAB).
ASCLD/LAB Manual. American Society of Crime Laboratory
Directors/Laboratory Accreditation Board, Garner, North Carolina,
1997.
DNA Advisory Board. Quality
assurance standards for forensic DNA testing laboratories (approved
July 1998), Forensic Science Communications (July 2000)
2. Available at: www.fbi.gov/programs/lab/fsc/current/codis2.htm
International Standards Organization
(ISO)/International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC). ISO/IEC
Guide 25-1990. American National Standards Institute, New
York, 1990.
Technical Working Group on
DNA Analysis Methods. Guidelines for a quality assurance program
for DNA analysis, Crime Laboratory Digest (1995) 22(2):21–43.
Title 42 CFR Chapter IV,
Health Care Financing Administration. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services,
Washington, DC, 1996.
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FORENSIC SCIENCE COMMUNICATIONS JULY 2000 VOLUME
2 NUMBER 3
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