President's Message
As you may know, our Forensic Research Committee has officially launched our Laboratories and Educators Alliance Program (LEAP) to facilitate collaborative research between academic and forensic science laboratories. Henry Maynard is leading our FRC initiatives and this committee is really taking an important role. I am convinced that this will be one of the most important ASCLD initiatives going forward. In order to make this effort a success we are asking that you consider adding your lab to the LEAP map. It’s a simple sign-up that takes less than a minute ( click here ). Our university researchers and students can benefit greatly from lab directors, managers, and scientist’s experience and direction in making research projects serve all our joint needs.
 
The ASCLD FRC webpage has been updated with a new LEAP promo video. The video can also be viewed here .   We all recognize the need for research to provide our cases the latest technology to prevent and solve crime, while protecting the rights of the innocent and suspect alike. READ MORE...
President's Corner
Laboratories and Educators Alliance Program Promotional Video
Looking Ahead
October 19, 2018 - ASCLD Board of Directors Meeting (conference call)

November 2, 2018 - Due date for abstract submissions for 2019 ASCLD Symposium

November 16, 2018 - ASCLD Board of Directors Meeting (conference call)

May 19-23, 2019 - ASCLD Symposium in St. Louis, MO
2019 ASCLD Symposium
ASCLD is pleased to announce that the 2019 ASCLD Symposium website is live! Abstract submissions (located under agenda on the website) are now being accepted until November 2, 2018. Come explore the website and watch for upcoming events such as, the exhibitor floor plan launch, agenda development, hotel registration and the opening of the symposium registration.

Visit the 2019 ASCLD Symposium website at  https://www.ascldsymposium.com/  
Community Research and Surveys
Footwear Black Box Study — Volunteers Needed!
The FBI Laboratory, with Ideal Innovations and Noblis, is conducting a “black box” study evaluating the accuracy and reliability of forensic footwear examiners. Participation in the studies is open to all examiners who perform footwear comparisons in operational casework. Participation will be anonymous. We will begin testing examiners for both studies in late 2018. If interested, please contact footwear@noblis.org .

CLICK HERE for more information.
Forensic Research Committee
The goal of the Laboratories and Educators Alliance Program (LEAP) is to facilitate collaborative research between academia and forensic science laboratories. This joint effort between the American Society of Crime Lab Directors (ASCLD) and the Council of Forensic Science Educators (COFSE) identifies forensic science needs and provides a platform for laboratories, researchers, and students to seek projects aligning with their mutual research capabilities. Read more...
Weekly News and Resources
Newly Identified Novels Psychoactive Substances
The Center for Forensic Science Research and Education (CFSRE) at the Fredric Rieders Family Foundation, have received funding from the National Institute of Justice (NIJ) to develop systems for the early identification and notification of Novel Psychoactive Substances (NPS) in the drug supply in the United States. The goal of the program is the early identification of these substances in seized drug and forensic toxicology casework samples through various high resolution mass spectrometry retrospective data-mining and sample-mining techniques. Information about these programs can be found on our website .
ASCLD's research efforts with respect to the OPIOD crisis appear in the following article:

Opioid Legislation
Over the past several months, Congress has been developing new legislation aimed at addressing the nation’s opioid epidemic, providing additional funding, and building on the   Comprehensive Addiction and Recovery Act (CARA) that became law in 2016. Congressional leaders announced an agreement on   H.R. 6 - the Substance Use-Disorder Prevention that Promotes Opioid Recovery and Treatment (SUPPORT) for Patients and Communities Act .   Continue reading...
Standards Corner
OSAC News
One new standard for inclusion on the  OSAC Registry. OSAC Standards Bulletin, October 2018 Now Available
We have been notified by ISO and ANSI that a second Forensic Science Standard has been published.

This is ISO 21043-2 Forensic Sciences Recognition, recording, collecting, transport and storage of items. 21043-1 was previously published.

Many of you contributed to developing these standards - THANK YOU!
OSAC QIC Impact Assessment Task Group
The ASCLD reps on the Organization of Scientific Area Committees for Forensic Science (OSAC) Quality Infrastructure Committee's (QIC) Impact Assessment Task Group are seeking informal feedback from lab directors to assess the laboratory impact of the following proposed standard(s) being considered for inclusion on the OSAC Registry of Standards. This survey should take less than 4 minutes to complete. For further information, and to review each proposed standard, click the appropriate link(s) below. If you have any questions about this process, please contact the Impact Assessment Task Group Chair , Rita C. Dyas @ Rita.Dyas@chandleraz.gov
Click below for the link to the QIC survey for proposed standard:



NOTE: Access to this proposed standard and the formal public comment period closes on November 11th. The associated QIC survey will also close at that time.   Please participate; your feedback is important.
Forensic Science Scholarships
In addition to ASCLD's Scholarship opportunity for students studying forensic science, here is a link to a website listing other available scholarships. Some are national, some are regional, and others are demographic-specific forensic science scholarships. Please share this information with prospective students you may know. A link to this site will also soon be added to the ASCLD website.
ASCLD Partnerships

Please find pending legislation regarding the opioid crisis. This is NOT an appropriation of funding and these bills are only the ones that have passed one body of the Congress as of June 22, 2018. The Congress intends to roll many of these bills into a single Opioid Bill that will move forward.
These research reports have been submitted by the National Institute of Justice (NIJ) especially for their relevance to crime laboratory activities. ASCLD has not reviewed nor does it necessarily endorse the findings of this research.

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