ASCLD/LAB Accreditation Programs

For forensic crime laboratories, ASCLD/LAB offers two voluntary accreditation programs: the ASCLD/LAB Legacy Program and the ASCLD/LAB-International

Program. Accreditation can be obtained in the disciplines of Biology (DNA), Controlled Substances, Crime Scene, Digital & Multimedia Evidence, Firearms and Toolmarks, Latent Prints, Questioned Documents, Toxicology, and Trace Evidence. ASCLD/LAB’s first accreditation program, now called the Legacy Program, began in 1982. The ASCLD delegate assembly membership approved the ASCLD/LAB-

InternationalProgram in late 2003 and it became effective on April 1, 2004. Originally, this program combined the ISO/IEC 17025:1999 standards and the ASCLD/LAB-

International Supplemental Requirements. ISO/IEC 17025:1999 is an internationally recognized standard that contains all of the requirements that testing and calibration laboratories have to meet if they wish to demonstrate that they operate a quality system, are technically competent, and are able to generate technically valid results. National and international accreditation bodies that recognize the competence of testing and calibration laboratories use the ISO/IEC 17025:1999 standard as the basis for accreditation. (Note: The current version is ISO/IEC 17025:2005). The Supplemental Requirements are based on the essential elements of the ASCLD/LAB Legacy Program and the ILAC G-19 standards. As of June 10, 2007, ASCLD/LAB had accredited 334 crime laboratories in the United States, Australia, Canada, Hong Kong, New Zealand, and Singapore. This included 182 state laboratories, 100 local agency laboratories, 22 federal laboratories, 10 international laboratories, and 20 private laboratories. Of the total, 298 are accredited under the Legacy Program and 36 are accredited under the

4.1. Commonalities Between ASCLD/LAB’s Accreditation Programs

Because both accreditation programs are voluntary, any forensic crime laboratory can apply for accreditation in either program (but not both). A laboratory can submit its application for accreditation when it determines that its management, operations, personnel, procedures, equipment, physical plant, security, and health and safety proce- dures can meet the established standards and criteria of the program selected. It is important to note that both programs accredit laboratories but neither certifies individual examiners in any of the forensic disciplines. Accreditation pertains to laboratories and certification pertains to individual examiners. After the laboratory has demonstrated that it can comply with applicable established standards and criteria, it may become ASCLD/LAB Legacy or ASCLD/LAB-International accredited. The individual examiners in both programs must comply with specific requirements in the areas of education, training, competency testing, and proficiency testing. As a result of this process, many ASCLD/LAB accredited laboratories self-certify their examiners in the individual ASCLD/LAB disciplines. Under these circumstances, self-certification validates the education, training, competency testing, and proficiency testing require- ments that examiners must meet prior to performing independent casework analysis.

A forensic crime laboratory performing analysis in any or all of the aforemen- tioned forensic disciplines (except Crime Scene) must seek accreditation for all those disciplines when applying for accreditation or re-accreditation. The laboratory must decide upon which accreditation program best serves its needs. It cannot apply for ASCLD/LAB Legacy accreditation in one discipline and ASCLD/LAB-International

accreditation in another discipline. Specifically pertaining to the Digital & Multimedia Evidence discipline, any entity performing analysis in any of the four subdisciplines is considered by ASCLD/LAB as a laboratory.

4.2. Differences Between the Two Accreditation Programs

The current ASCLD/LAB Legacy Manual (2005 version as of this writing) consists of statements of principles, the basic standards, 151 criteria for evaluation of the standards, and discussions to provide more detailed explanations of the criteria. These are catego- rized into 90 Essential, 45 Important, and 16 Desirable criteria. Any stand-alone Digital & Multimedia Evidence section, unit, or laboratory applying for accreditation must demonstrate documented compliance with at least 108 of these criteria (50 essential, 42 important, and 16 desirable) before accreditation can be obtained. Additionally, there are nine more essential criteria applicable if the stand-alone section or unit utilizes technical support personnel (four essential) and/or has a crime scene function (five Essential). Accreditation is granted by the ASCLD/LAB Board once the laboratory attains compliance with 100% of the applicable essential criteria, 75% of the applicable important criteria, and 50% of the applicable desirable criteria. No other combination is acceptable. The laboratory is accredited for a 5-year accreditation cycle and remains accredited as long as it continues to comply with the standards and criteria that lead to its accreditation. An annual self-assessment is required that must be submitted to ASCLD/LAB.

To attain accreditation under the ASCLD/LAB-International program, a laboratory must demonstrate conformance to the applicable requirements of both the ISO/IEC 17025:2005 General Requirements for the Competence of Testing and

Calibration Laboratoriesand the ASCLD/LAB-International Supplemental Require- ments for the Accreditation of Forensic Science Testing and Calibration Laboratories. Although there are at least 385 standards or clauses that are potentially applicable, for a Digital & Multimedia Evidence section or unit the number is considerably less since standards or clauses that pertain to calibration are generally not applicable. However, all applicable standard or clauses must be scored as “Yes” for a laboratory to attain accreditation. This is a major difference between the two programs. Also theInterna- tional Program’s 5-year accreditation cycle requires an annual surveillance visit. The laboratory will receive advance notice of the surveillance visit and which accreditation requirements will be reviewed.

5.

Conclusion

Individual certification(s) and laboratory accreditation are processes that can help define quality. Individual certification(s) are just that, for the individual to demonstrate that he or she has attained a level of competence in a particular area. Likewise, attaining accreditation demonstrates that a laboratory and its practices have achieved a recognized level of competence in the services that it offers. The combination of individual certification(s) and laboratory accreditation (when applicable and available) compliment each other in the attainment of quality.

References

20_{American Society of Crime Laboratory Directors/Laboratory Accreditation Board 2005 Manual. Published by} ASCLD/LAB, June 2005, Gamer, North Carolina. pp. 61–68.

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Chapter 4

History, Concepts, and Technology