The Future of Forensic

Investigations Symposium

On December 3-5th, 2008, the National Forensic Science Institute hosted “The Future of Forensic Investigations” Symposium in Nashville, TN.  Funded by the Bureau of Justice Assistance, the national conference had 270 registered attendees and focused on future trends and important updates in the realm of crime scene investigations.   Twenty-eights were represented, as well as 3 international attendees.

Attendees included:

Crime Scene Technicians
Law Enforcement Officers
Investigators
Crime Laboratory Personnel
Prosecutors
Judges
Medical Examiners
Criminal Justice Practitioners

The beginning of the Symposium was initiated by Nathan Lefebvre, the specialist responsible for the National Forensic Academy and Don Green, Program Manager for the National Forensic Science Institute.   Other dignitaries commenting on the importance of such training efforts included:  Dr. Mary Jinks - Vice President of the University of Tennessee’s Institute of Public Service (the parent organization of the NFSI/NFA), Chief Ronal Serpas -  Chief of Police for the Metropolitan Nashville Police Department, Mark Gwyn – Director of the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation, Cornelia Sigworth – Policy Advisor for the Bureau of Justice Assistance as well as our key note speakers:

Nancy Kolb – Program Manager, International Association of Chiefs of Police. Volunteers in Police Service:  Utilizing volunteers to assist in collection of property crime evidence.
               

Dr. Katherine Browning – Social Science Analyst, National Institute of Justice
DNA and Property Crimes:  The DNA Field Experiment.  In June 2008 NIJ released the results of a five city field study that looked at the effectiveness of performing DNA analysis on biological evidence collected from property crime scenes.
                               

Special thanks to the Metropolitan Nashville Police Department’s Honor Guard for their presentation of the colors.

Symposium Speakers and topics included:

Kevin Lothridge, Chief Executive Officer, National Forensic Science Training Center:  Deployable Labs and NFSTC Initiatives

Dr. Jamie Downs, Medical Examiner, State of Georgia

Anjali Swienton, President, SciLaw. Ltd.

Fred Stephens, Inspector, Georgia Bureau of Investigation:  Ethics in Forensic Investigations Panel Discussion

David Witzke, Vice President, Foray Technologies:  Digital Imaging

Charles Heurich, Program Manager, National Institute of Justice: Grant Opportunities for Law Enforcement

Dr. John Bond, Head of Forensic Science, Northamptonshire (U.K.) Police Department:  Visualization of Latent Fingerprints on Metallic Surfaces

Dr. Raynella Connaster, Scientist, Oak Ridge National Laboratories:  Latent Print Detection by Macro-Ramon Imaging

Dr. Neal Haskell, Professor, Forensic Science, Saint Joseph’s College – Forensic Entomology

James Markey, Sergeant, Phoenix (AZ) Police Department

Allison Sedowski, Forensic Scientist, Phoenix Police Department Laboratory

William Clayton, Attorney, Maricopa County Attorney’s Office:  Baseline Serial Rapist Panel Discussion

All of arrangements involved in making this Symposium a success can be attributed to the fine, and dedicated work of Amanda Johnson and Jennifer Benson who spent many hours coordinating the logistics involved.  Overwhelmingly, the comments from attendees were filled with praise concerning the value of the  training, the accommodations (both lodging and food) and selection of the training location.  Other NFA staff who deserve special mention include Robert Geiger, who coordinated the audio visual side of the presentations as well as Becky Kelso who ensured that  the registration and packet pickup occurred smoothly.

 

 

 

Contact NFA

Nathan Lefebvre
Specialist

1201 Oak Ridge Turnpike
Suite 101
Oak Ridge, TN 37830
Phone: (865) 946-3233
Toll Free: (866) 449-5342
Fax: (865) 946-3000
nathan.lefebvre@tennessee.edu

Robert Geiger
Coordinator

1201 Oak Ridge Turnpike
Suite 101
Oak Ridge, TN 37830
Phone: (865) 946-3023
Toll Free: (866) 449-5342
Fax: (865) 946-3000
robert.geiger@tennessee.edu