Abstract
A blind quality control (QC) program was successfully developed and implemented in the Toxicology, Seized Drugs, Firearms, Latent Prints (Processing and Comparison), Forensic Biology, and Multimedia (Digital and Audio/Video) sections at the Houston Forensic Science Center (HFSC). The program was put into practice based on recommendations set forth in the 2009 National Academy of Sciences report and is conducted in addition to accreditation required annual proficiency tests. The blind QC program allows HFSC to test its entire quality management system and provides a real‐time assessment of the laboratory’s proficiency. To ensure the blind QC cases mimicked real casework, the workflow for each forensic discipline and their evidence submission processes were assessed prior to implementation. Samples are created and submitted by the HFSC Quality Division to whom the expected answer is known. Results from 2015 to 2018 show that of the 973 blind samples submitted, 901 were completed, and only 51 were discovered by analysts as being blind QC cases. Implementation data suggests that this type of program can be employed at other forensic laboratories.
Highlights
A blind quality control (QC) program was successfully developed and implemented in the Toxicology, Seized Drugs, Firearms, Latent Prints (Processing and Comparison), Forensic Biology, and Multimedia (Digital and Audio/Video) sections at the Houston Forensic Science Center (HFSC)
The blind QC program is facilitated by HFSC’s Quality Division, which is organizationally separate from the laboratory sections and reports directly to executive management; quality controls are prepared and introduced into the system by personnel not connected with the actual testing
A total of 973 blind QC cases were submitted into the workflow of the technical disciplines at HFSC from September 2015 to December 31, 2018
Summary
A blind quality control (QC) program was successfully developed and implemented in the Toxicology, Seized Drugs, Firearms, Latent Prints (Processing and Comparison), Forensic Biology, and Multimedia (Digital and Audio/Video) sections at the Houston Forensic Science Center (HFSC). Blind proficiency testing was recommended by the American Society of Crime Laboratory Directors/ Laboratory Accreditation Board (ASCLD/LAB) in the 2009 National Academy of Sciences (NAS) report [4] This recommendation states that forensic laboratories should conduct blind proficiency tests as a more precise test of an individual’s accuracy. In support of this recommendation, recent analysis of proficiency testing suggests that blind testing reduces error rates by as much as 46%, depending on the level of bias and potential for penalties received by the test taker [5]. While the value of open interlaboratory proficiency testing is not negated, laboratories that desire a more constant and unbiased way to continually monitor and improve the performance of their processes are encouraged to implement an intralaboratory blind proficiency testing program, in addition to proficiency tests [2,7,8]
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