Ethical Standards in Forensic Science 1 Legal Responsibilities

Ethical Standards in Forensic Science 1

Legal Responsibilities of Forensic Science l Follow procedures l Obey the rules of evidence l Maintain impartiality l Stay within the legal, scientific boundaries Report what you observe, whatever you find, no matter what you believe. Copyright © Texas Education Agency 2011. All rights reserved. Images and other multimedia content used with permission. 2

Character of Forensic Scientists l Unprejudiced and impartial l Objective l Have sufficient education and training Copyright © Texas Education Agency 2011. All rights reserved. Images and other multimedia content used with permission. 3

Key Terms l Ethics – the branch of philosophy dealing with values relating to human conduct, with respect to the rightness and wrongness of certain actions, and to the goodness and badness of the motives and ends of such actions. Copyright © Texas Education Agency 2011. All rights reserved. Images and other multimedia content used with permission. 4

Key Terms (continued) • Expert Witness – the Forensic Scientist and or Crime Scene Technician presenting the findings of a crime investigation in a court of law

Ethical Guidelines for Analyzing Physical Evidence l l l Adequate examination Interpret and/or evaluate findings No excessive testing to falsely enhance results Use valid, reliable standards of comparison Use accurate, reliable equipment l l Precise Reproducible Copyright © Texas Education Agency 2011. All rights reserved. Images and other multimedia content used with permission. 6

Ethical Guidelines for Interpreting Physical Evidence l Don’t confuse scientific facts with opinion l Don’t state conclusions and opinions beyond the area(s) of personal expertise Copyright © Texas Education Agency 2011. All rights reserved. Images and other multimedia content used with permission. 7

Ethical Guidelines for Reporting Physical Evidence l Personal interest or gain should not bias or distort a report or testimony l Never claim results and/or accomplishments not your own l Avoid misleading or ambiguous language and terms easily misconstrued Copyright © Texas Education Agency 2011. All rights reserved. Images and other multimedia content used with permission. 8