The ASCLD Board believes publishing our work in peer reviewed and indexed journals is a key component in advancing forensic science. For approximately a year we have prioritized establishing relationships with journals that will enable our membership to publish their ideas, research, and validations. ASCLD first negotiated terms with FSI-Synergy and made that “a preferred journal of ASCLD.” We are very excited to announce that Synergy is now an indexed journal and is serving the organization very well. We have several ASCLD members serving on the Editorial Board, and many ASCLD members have already published in the journal. The journal published the ASCLD Symposium Proceedings from 2018, and we are pleased to announce that the 2019 ASCLD Symposium Proceedings from St. Louis have been published in FSI-Synergy and are available online. Synergy has published some great management and research from the forensic science community already and the number of publications is increasing literally every day. As an online journal, there is no limit to the amount of information that can be published. As an open access journal, there is no fee to access the content in the journal. Authors pay a nominal fee to publish in the journal and then it is free to access in perpetuity. ASCLD members can access a discounted publishing fee, and some fee waivers are available to ASCLD members for particularly salient work.
Our community has been criticized for the lack of peer reviewed research and validation studies, so the ASCLD Board continued to negotiate with Elsevier for access to other journals. We are pleased to announce that ASCLD has signed MOU agreements with the Elsevier publications “FSI-Reports” and also “Journal of Forensic Chemistry.” FSI-Reports will accept validation studies and other works. This gives labs an opportunity to share their great work, have it peer reviewed, and allow for public scrutiny. Many labs have been looking for an opportunity to have their validation studies more widely reviewed, and this is a fantastic opportunity. FSI-Reports is also an open access journal where the author pays a minimal fee to publish. Again, because this is now a “preferred journal of ASCLD,” our members get a discounted fee to publish and qualify for a waiver for particularly salient or sentinel work. Finally, ASCLD has negotiated with the Elsevier journal “Journal of Forensic Chemistry” and has designated it “a preferred journal of ASCLD.” This journal has a slightly different model in that there is no fee to publish, the article is free for the first year and then goes behind a pay wall for the second year. At the third year and from then on the articles are open access. ASCLD members can subscribe to the journal so they can get the articles during the second year. While this journal is more specific to Chemistry topics, it provides an excellent third publication option for our members.
More information will be posted on the ASCLD website regarding the cost to publish and thank you to Past President Matthew Gamette for providing the information for this week’s CLM.
Hope you had a great Labor Day holiday,
Brooke
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What can you do for ASCLD?
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The Membership Committee will be conducting their annual membership drive coinciding with the National Forensic Science week (September 15-21, 2019). The Membership Committee is reaching out to each current member via email, asking them to promote ASCLD membership to eligible candidates within their organizations. In an effort to capitalize on the power of social media, the committee is asking current members to post on Facebook or tweet on Twitter, during National Forensic Science Week, the benefits of ASCLD membership (e.g. networking, information exchange, access to resources, news and updates). Please use #ASCLDMembership2019 and tag partner forensic science organizations so that we may significantly expand the membership drive reach.
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July 29 – September 2019
– Abstract Submissions accepted for the 2020 Symposium
September 13-15, 2019
- Board of Directors Meeting - Utah (in person)
September 15 – 21, 2019
National Forensic Science Week
September – October – Fall 2019
ASCLD Leadership Academy – Austin, Texas
October 18, 2019
– Board of Directors Meeting – teleconference
November 15, 2019
– Board of Directors Meeting - teleconference
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ASCLD is pleased to announce that the 2020 ASCLD Symposium website is live! 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.
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Weekly News and Resources
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Community Research and Surveys
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OSAC QIC Impact Assessment Survey
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 and quality managers to assess the laboratory impact of the following documents 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 on each one for the link to the QIC survey for proposed standard:
NOTE: The formal public comment period closes on September 5. 2019, per the NIST OSAC website. The associated QIC survey will also close at that time.
Please participate; your feedback is important.
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Forensic Compensation Survey
The Kentucky State Police is conducting a national forensic compensation survey to identify salary and benefit trends across the United States. Upon completion, the aggregated results of the survey will be published as a resource for all crime laboratories. Please consider completing this short survey about compensation in your laboratory. If you have questions, please contact Jeremy Triplett at
jeremy.triplett@ky.gov
.
Foresight
Will your laboratory be among the 2020 FORESIGHT Maximus award winners? Click
HERE
to download the LABRAT form and for more information.
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A2LA WPT – Upcoming training events
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September 11-12, 2019, Grand Rapids, MI
October 9-10, 2019, Frederick, MD
September 16-20, 2019, Frederick, MD
September 23-27, 2019 Troy, MI
November 18-22, 2019, Frederick, MD
September 10, 2019, Frederick, MD
September 30, 2019, Grayslake, IL
September 20, 2019, Frederick, MD
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September 11-12, 2019, Frederick, MD
October 1-2, 2019, Grayslake, IL
October 3-4, 2019, Grayslake, IL
October 17-18, 2019, Charlotte, NC
September 10, 2019, Grand Rapids, MI
September 26, 2019, Denver, CO
October 11, 2019, Frederick, MD
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9th Annual Forensic Science Symposium
June 2-4, 2020
Miami, Florida
Join more than 200 forensic science colleagues and aspiring scientists from Florida and beyond at the 9th Annual Forensic Science Symposium at the beautiful Florida International University Modesto A. Maidique Campus in Miami. The symposium will be held June 2-4, 2020.
The 2020 symposium will showcase topics like DNA, chemistry, toxicology, digital forensics and latent prints, and include expanded criminal justice subjects beyond the laboratory. Workshops and a poster session will be included. Registration will be $30 and free for students. Group registration for agencies is also available.
We are looking for innovative topics and dynamic speakers to share their expertise. A call for abstracts will be released soon.
Questions about attending, sponsoring or presenting at the symposium? Email
forensic@fiu.edu
.
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HIT Workshop: Are You Prepared for a Mass Fatality Incident Response?
When:
Sunday, September 22, 2019
Where:
ISHI 2019- Palm Sprins, CA
Cost
:
Free
Click
here
for more information
Mass fatality incidents require an accurate and timely response. Rapid DNA is becoming an increasingly sought-after tool for identifying victims of mass fatality incidents as it saves time and money by making identifications faster. Planning for a mass fatality can feel overwhelming, but not being prepared leads to an error-prone and stressful response. The American Society of Crime Laboratory Directors (ASCLD) is leading efforts to help jurisdictions prepare for a mass fatality response.
This workshop is applicable to DNA analysts, supervisors and management and builds upon the efforts of the ASCLD Rapid DNA Disaster Victim Identification (DVI) Subcommittee. During the workshop, participants will work collaboratively in small groups through a tabletop exercise to evaluate the mass fatality incident and organize an appropriate Rapid DNA response for victim identification using the ASCLD response tools and best practices.
The goal of the workshop is to provide participants the opportunity to walk through a mass fatality DNA response in a low-stress environment using the ASCLD Rapid DNA Task Force DVI Subcommittee response planning deliverables.
This free workshop will take place on Sunday, September 22, 2019 at the 2019 International Symposium on Human Identification in Palm Springs, CA. Pre-registration is required. Please visit
https://www.ishinews.com/events/hita-workshop/
to sign up!
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ANAB - Upcoming training events
Forensic ISO/IEC 17025:2017 Internal Auditor Training
September 9-12, 2019, Springfield, VA
December 10-13, 2019, Emeryville, CA
Forensic ISO/IEC 17025:2017 Technical Assessor Training
September 24-27, 2019, Largo, FL
October 27-30, 2019, Austin, TX
December 10-13, 2019, Mesa, AZ
September 17-20, 2019 (11am-1pm ET)
Forensic Measurement Confidence MC100 (Web-based)
November 13-15, 2019 (11am-1pm ET)
ISO/IEC 17020 and Audit Preparation for Forensic Agencies
September 12-13, 2019, San Jose, CA
Digital Forensics Training
The Bureau of Justice Assistance (BJA), a component of the Office of Justice Programs, U.S. Department of Justice provides leadership and assistance to local criminal justice programs that improve and reinforce the nations' criminal justice system. Below is some information on digital forensics training opportunities (both classroom or virtual/online) and resources funded by BJA, including the Law Enforcement Cyber Center, and trainings organized by NW3C. NW3C is the training and technical assistance provider under the BJA Economic, High-Technology, White Collar, and Internet Crime Prevention National TTA Program. BJA has also encouraged online course offerings to save time/costs of travel, and included trainings for prosecutors, too. (Note: some NW3C courses sponsored apart from BJA funding may have a cost).
Click the links below for more information:
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Forensic Research Committee
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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...
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Newly Identified Novels Psychoactive Substances
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Recent Additions:
(click drug name for more information)
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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
.
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DEA Updates
NFLIS Program for Toxicology and ME/Coroners Expansion
Emerging Trends Program
Reference Materials Program
Real-time Network
Fentanyl Signature Profiling Program
DEA Resources
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CBP Program Updates
The US Customs and Border Protection has alerted ASCLD to a monthly phone call about drugs being seen by CBP. As CBP provides a first line of defense for the United States, these calls present early warnings of what might be coming to state and local crime labs. This teleconference is called the Scientific Trends Online Network Exchange (STONE) and is organized through the High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area (HIDTA) network.
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HIDTA Updates
ASCLD is currently forming stronger bonds with the HIDTA and specifically the HIDTA National Emerging Trends Initiative. A meeting is being organized in Cleveland in November to discuss ASCLD/HIDTA partnership on emerging drug data sharing.
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USDOT NHTSA Updates
NHTSA has a working group evaluating the existing
Recommendations for Toxicological Investigation of Drug-Impaired Driving and Motor Vehicle Fatalities
. The working group is going to put out the existing recommendations for public comment and possible federal endorsement, and work on related data collection issues.
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Click
HERE to review standards available for comment.
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August 2019 OSAC Standards Bulletin now available, click
HERE
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Crime Lab Minute Sponsors
For More Information, Click the LOGO below:
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A2LA WorkPlace Training (A2LA WPT) is a nonprofit organization established with a vision of being the leading management systems, conformity assessment, and measurement training company in the world. Our mission is to provide independent, world-class training programs that inspire confidence in the quality of service and acceptance of results from organizations.
Be a leader in your industry by building confidence and consistency in your product through A2LA WPT’s broad spectrum of instructor-led and online e-learning training courses. Move ahead of your competition by learning best practices on international standards, quality systems, technical tools, and soft skill
s.
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Donations to ASCLD can now be made online! This is a great way to honor the memory of a forensic colleague, to commemorate a life event for that person who has everything, or to otherwise assist in supporting the tireless efforts of the ASCLD organization in the pursuit of excellence in forensic science management. The donation page can be accessed by clicking
HERE
or by visiting the ASCLD website and clicking on "Donate to ASCLD" under the "Member Site" tab (this donation page is accessible even to non-members). Please consider donating and do share this information with anyone you think might be interested.
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The American Society of Crime Laboratory Directors
65 Glen Road, Suite 123
Garner, NC 27529
Phone: 919.773.2044
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