Forensic entomology: implementing quality assurance for expertise work

Abstract

The Department of Forensic Entomology (Institut de Recherche Criminelle de la Gendarmerie Nationale, France) was accredited by the French Committee of Accreditation (Cofrac's Healthcare section) in October 2007 on the basis of NF EN ISO/CEI 17025 standard. It was the first accreditation in this specific field of forensic sciences in France and in Europe. The present paper introduces the accreditation process in forensic entomology (FE) through the experience of the Department of Forensic Entomology. Based upon the identification of necrophagous insects and the study of their biology, FE must, as any other expertise work in forensic sciences, demonstrate integrity and good working practice to satisfy both the courts and the scientific community. FE does not, strictly speaking, follow an analytical method. This could explain why, to make up for a lack of appropriate quality reference, a specific documentation was drafted and written by the staff of the Department of Forensic Entomology in order to define working methods complying with quality standards (testing methods). A quality assurance system is laborious to set up and maintain and can be perceived as complex, time-consuming and never-ending. However, a survey performed in 2011 revealed that the accreditation process in the frame of expertise work has led to new well-defined working habits, based on an effort at transparency. It also requires constant questioning and a proactive approach, both profitable for customers (magistrates, investigators) and analysts (forensic entomologists).

The Use of Forensic Entomology in Legal Veterinary Medicine: A Case Study in the North of Italy

“…The forensic investigator indeed has often recognized the presence of entomological evidence in animal abuse or wildlife death investigations. Thus, application of quality assurance principles, could have a strategic role in enhancing trust among national veterinary services officials and consequently in facilitating the use of forensic entomology in veterinary medicine [22].…”

Applications of forensic entomology: overview and update

“…As general, scientific evidence must fulfil "Daubert standards" under which scientific methods must have been tested before, subjected to peer review and publication, verified the reliability of the technique, estimated potential error, and obtained widespread acceptance in the scientific community [2]. This could be obtained by the commitment with best practice procedures [6] and quality assurance [7].…”

“…muszą zostać przetestowane, poddane ocenie specjalistów w danej dziedzinie (proces peer review), opublikowane, zweryfikowane pod kątem wiarygodności i potencjalnych błędów, a także powszechnie akceptowane w środowisku naukowym [2]. Cele te można osiągnąć przez stosowanie najlepszych praktyk [6] i zapewnienie jakości [7].…”

To Be There or Not to Be There, That Is the Question—On the Problem of Delayed Sampling of Entomological Evidence

“…Forensic entomology i.e., the use of insect evidence in legal investigations [1], has become one of the most accurate and precise methods to establish the minimum post-mortem interval (PMI min ), i.e., the time since the first insect colonization on a body, in the later stages of decomposition [2][3][4][5][6]. In addition to the worldwide scientific development in this field, with an average of approximate 100 publications per year since 2013 (Web of Science, 12 August 2020), forensic entomology is now more recognized in forensic casework by law enforcement: entomological reports are now an integral part of court proceedings in Europe [7][8][9][10][11], North [12] and South America [13], Asia [14][15][16][17], Africa [18], Australia and New Zealand [19], and the Middle East [20]. To present high quality entomological findings in the court, various standards and guidelines for sampling, analyzing, and reporting entomological evidence have been published in recent years [21][22][23].…”