North Carolina Office of Indigent Defense Services

You are here: Home / Archives for Reports and Publications

Reports and Publications

Structured forensic interview protocols improve the quality and informativeness of investigative interviews with children: A review of research using the NICHD Investigative Interview Protocol

//  by 

Lamb, M., Orbach, Y., Hershkowitz , Esplin,P ., Horowitz, I. (2007 ). A structured interview protocol improves the quality and informativeness of investigative interviews with children: A review of research using the NICHD investigative interview protocol. Child Abuse and Neglect. 31, 1201 1231.

Structured forensic interview protocols improve the quality and informativeness of investigative interviews with children: A review of research using the NICHD Investigative Interview ProtocolRead More

American Professional Society on the Abuse of Children (APSAC) Practice Guidelines: Forensic Interviewing in Cases of Suspected Child Abuse

//  by 

American Professional Society on the Abuse of Children. (2012). Practice guidelines: Forensic interviewing in cases of suspected child abuse. APSAC.

American Professional Society on the Abuse of Children (APSAC) Practice Guidelines: Forensic Interviewing in Cases of Suspected Child AbuseRead More

Approved ULTR for the Forensic Firearms/Toolmarks Discipline – Pattern Match​

//  by 

Effective Aug. 15, 2020 In the firearm/toolmark pattern match Uniform Language for Testimony and Reports (ULTR), the new guidance for Department of Justice firearm examiners includes: [A]n examiner shall not: assert that a ‘source identification’ or a ‘source exclusion’ conclusion is based on the ‘uniqueness’ of an item of evidence. use the terms ‘individualize’ or …

Approved ULTR for the Forensic Firearms/Toolmarks Discipline – Pattern Match​Read More

Approved ULTR for the Forensic Latent Print Discipline

//  by 

Effective Aug. 15, 2020 In the fingerprint Uniform Language for Testimony and Reports (ULTR), the new guidance for Department of Justice fingerprint examiners includes: [A]n examiner shall not: assert that a ‘source identification’ or a ‘source exclusion’ conclusion is based on the ‘uniqueness’ of an item of evidence. use the terms ‘individualize’ or ‘individualization’ when …

Approved ULTR for the Forensic Latent Print DisciplineRead More

Childrens Allegations of Sexual Abuse in Criminal Trials: Assessing Defense Attacks on Credibility and Identifying Effective Prosecution Methods

//  by 

Date: February 2020 Author: Stacia N. Stolzenberg Annotation: This study examined how attorneys establish and attack children’s credibility in cases that involve alleged child sexual abuse (CSA), and assessed how attorneys phrased questions for such children, how children responded, and whether questioning practices were sensitive to the developmental level of the child.

Childrens Allegations of Sexual Abuse in Criminal Trials: Assessing Defense Attacks on Credibility and Identifying Effective Prosecution MethodsRead More

NIJ Digital Evidence Policies and Procedures Manual

//  by 

The National Institute of Justice’s (NIJ) Forensic Technology Center of Excellence published a Digital Evidence Policies and Procedures Manual to be used as a guide for law enforcement agencies in developing manuals of their own. The manual contains procedures for handling and retaining digital evidence, information about what should be documented in lab reports, and …

NIJ Digital Evidence Policies and Procedures ManualRead More

Preparing Testimony about Cellebrite UFED in a Daubert or Frye Hearing

//  by 

This manual is designed to help attorneys prepare themselves and their witnesses for Daubert or related challenges to the admissibility of Cellebrite UFED-extracted mobile device evidence. It contains sample voir dire questions.

Preparing Testimony about Cellebrite UFED in a Daubert or Frye HearingRead More

Recommendations for the Investigation, Diagnosis, and Certification of Deaths Related to Opioid and Other Drugs

//  by 

Position paper which provides best practices for death scene investigation, autopsy, toxicology, and determining cause of death in overdose cases

Recommendations for the Investigation, Diagnosis, and Certification of Deaths Related to Opioid and Other DrugsRead More

Forensic Handwriting Examination and Human Factors: Improving the Practice Through a Systems Approach

//  by 

NIST convened the Expert Working Group for Human Factors in Handwriting Examination to recommend ways to improve the practice and reduce the likelihood of errors. The Group’s report discusses human factors as they relate to all aspects of handwriting examination, including communicating conclusions through reports and testimony. The report also discusses education, training, certification, and …

Forensic Handwriting Examination and Human Factors: Improving the Practice Through a Systems ApproachRead More

OSAC’s Friction Ridge Subcommittee Develops Friction Ridge Process Map

//  by 

The Organization of Scientific Area Committees (OSAC) for Forensic Science’s Friction Ridge Subcommittee has developed a friction ridge examination process map that describes the conventional process for latent print examination. The process map identifies key decision points in the fingerprint examination process, enables laboratory managers to better understand how their protocols compare with those of other laboratories, …

OSAC’s Friction Ridge Subcommittee Develops Friction Ridge Process MapRead More