CLPEX Chat Board

https://www.loyola.edu/news/2020/0721-forensic-pattern

I guess the first topic can be the correct name of the position

"Students who complete the program will have the skillsets needed to work as a forensic scientist, latent printer examiners, firearms/toolmarks examiners, crime scene investigators, and numerous related fields. The program is designed for undergraduate students continuing their education into the forensics sciences, and for individuals looking to grow in their current field or change careers."

I've just got to ask whether the program in Masters in Forensic Science meets the ADA mandates and, if so, whether accommodations are made for the sight-impaired? So, if I'm blind and have a MFS, can I get a job as a Latent Print Examiner? I guess I could scan lift cards into AFIS and organize the candidates through FRStats for probabilities, then take the witness stand and testify to the results of my computer work. That's 21st Century science, isn't it?

Maybe they're just going above and beyond the AAFS ASB's recommendation that a Bachelor's degree be a requirement for LPE's.

http://www.asbstandardsboard.org/wp-con ... llot01.pdf

5 Qualifications
5.1 Trainee
A new trainee to the discipline shall have a Bachelor’s degree from an accredited institution. At the
time of hiring, the trainee shall have 24 semester hours (or equivalent) in Science, Technology,
Engineering or Mathematics (STEM) related coursework. This requirement shall be effective 18
months after the official publication of this document.
NOTE A degree in a natural or physical science is highly recommended

Note:This document is accepting comments until Aug 20th. Be sure to weigh in, the document is...uh...interesting.

Please download the template for comments to documents posted for ballot, and return it to asb@aafs.org by the close of the comment period.

I just reached out to Loyola and inquired about their curriculum for this program. I'll update when I get that information from them.

Boyd Baumgartner wrote: ↑Thu Jul 23, 2020 10:23 amThis document is accepting comments until Aug 20th. Be sure to weigh in, the document is...uh...interesting.

After reading this AAFS-ASB-proposed training program for latent print examiners, several comments seem appropriate:

1. Your statement quoted above brings to mind the curse, "May you live in interesting times."

2. More emphasis seems to be put on understanding the statistics of probability modeling than on ability to examine and reach valid conclusions on complex latent prints.

3. There is no section on the History of Fingerprints, although the topic is brought up tangentially in other sections. Maybe history doesn't matter.

4. The Scientific Working Group on Frictionridge Analysis, Study and Technology, AKA SWGFAST (see http://clpex.com/swgfast/), could
reasonably be described as follows:
a) SWGFAST was the premier guidelines and standards determining body for latent and tenprint operations for over two decades prior to the
formation of the OSAC.
b) SWGFAST was responsible for upgrading the discipline from the pre-ACEV decades to the present day.
c) SWGFAST propelled the science of latent print examination from the 20th Century into the 21st Century.
d) SWGFAST provided consensus documents that contributed to the first comprehensive written policies and procedures in countless departments
worldwide, both accredited and unaccredited.
e) SWGFAST documents are still used as reference in the practice of latent print examinations, from training to practice to writing new policies
and procedures.
f) SWGFAST IS NOT MENTIONED EVEN ONCE IN THIS FIFTY PAGE AAFS-ASB TRAINING STANDARD

See for yourself. Do a word search for "Scientific Working Group" or "SWGFAST."

Why does the AAFS-ASB avoid even the mere mention of the body that guided the practice of fingerprint examination for the decades immediately prior to the formation of OSAC? Even in sections of this training program that touch on professional organizations and history, it is as if SWGFAST never existed.

What gives?

Out of curiosity I sent an e-mail to the person listed as the coordinator, Dr. Rivers. Specifically I asked him if current work experience would qualify and he said that he's working to change that, but not at the moment. If anybody is curious, he did send me the curriculum of required classes.

Program Requirements
MS in Forensic Pattern Analysis

FPA required core courses: 33 credits

FO 500 Forensic Studies Seminar+ 3 credits
FO 530 Introduction to Criminalistics 3 credits

FO 610 Introduction to Fingerprints 4 credits
FO 630 Biological and Forensic Science Laboratory Quality
Control and Assurance 4 credits
FO 650 Forensic Pattern Evidence 4 credits
FO 675 Mock Trial for Forensic Pattern Evidence 3 credits
FO 710 Advanced Topics and Techniques in Fingerprints 4 credits
FO 790 Forensic Pattern Analysis Capstone* 4 credits
FO 780
WR 626 Pattern Evidence Recognition and Statistical Methods
Technical Writing in Pattern Evidence 1 credit
3 credits

FPA elective courses: choose 3 from the list 9-14 credits

BL 628 Bioterrorism 3 credits
BL 651 Forensic Entomology w/lab 5 credits
BL 655 Forensic Biology w/lab 5 credits
FO 600 Crime Scene Investigation 4 credits
FO 690 Topics in Forensic Science# 3 credits
GB 705 Leading and Managing People 3 credits
PL 611 Bioethics 3 credits
ST 510` Introduction to Statistics 3 credits
ST 565` Biostatistics 3 credits
ST 581` Probability and Statistics 3 credits
ST 776
WR 625 Bayesian Inference
Professional Writing in Forensic Science 3 credits
3 credits

Total 42-47 credits

` Only one course may count for credit from ST 510, ST 565 and ST 581.