The Importance of Blind Quality Control Samples in the Field of Forensic Fingerprinting

Mikalaa Martin*, Tim Schmahl and Robert K. O'Brien, Department of Forensic and Ivestigative Science, West Virginia University, Morgantown, WV 26505 and Houston Forensic Science Center, Houston, TX 77002

Field (Broad Category): Forensics (Physical Sciences & Engineering) 

Student’s Major: Forensic and Investigative Science 

This research was conducted under the direction of the Houston Forensic Science Center (HFSC) as a component of my required junior summer internship by the Forensic and Investigative Science Department at West Virginia University. This project was organized and assigned by Tim Schmahl, CLPE, and Supervisor of the HFSC Latent Prints Section (LPS). HFSC entered blind quality control samples into their workflow within the LPS in 2017. These samples serve as an ongoing proficiency test to the examiners and also allow for HFSC to report on the usefulness of their blind quality assurance program which was enacted and designed after the release of the 2009 NAS Report and the recommendations for forensic science within it. This research pertained to analyzing the samples from 2017 to the beginning of 2019 and assessing their quality scores through the use of ULW Latent Editor software. Through ULW Latent Editor, generation of scores was possible for overall latent quality, value for identification, and value for comparison. These scores were used to give insight of comparable evidentiary value of the quality samples which consume approximately 5% of the examiners’ workflow. Comparison between the blind samples data and the actual casework data will give insight as to if the blind samples are truly representative and comparable to the latent prints encountered when working through casework. This will allow for the quality assurance section to adjust the quality of the blind samples within the LPS to more accurately mirror latent prints obtained from crime scenes. 

Funding: Honors EXCEL Experiential Learning Grant 

Program/mechanism supporting research/creative efforts: An External Internship or Other Type of Program
FIS 386 required internship completed at the Houston Forensic Science Center in Houston, Texas