What is the value of forensic science? An overview of the effectiveness of forensic science in the Australian criminal justice system project

Abstract

Forensic science is increasingly relied upon by law enforcement to assist in solving crime and gaining convictions, and by the judicial system in the adjudication of specific criminal cases. However, the value of forensic science relative to the work involved and the outcome of cases has yet to be established in the Australian context. Previous research in this area has mainly focused on the science and technology, rather than examining how people can use forensic services/science to the best possible advantage to produce appropriate justice outcomes. This fiveyear project entails an investigation into the effectiveness of forensic science in police investigations and court trials. It aims to identify when, where and how forensic science can add value to criminal investigations, court trials and justice outcomes while ensuring the efficient use of available resources initially in the Victorian and the ACT criminal justice systems and ultimately across Australia and New Zealand. This paper provides an overview of the rationale and aims of the research project and discusses current work-in-progress.

From Forensics to Forensic Science

“…Serious issues also exist with respect to research (Robertson 2011). From an academic standpoint, a research program is not sustainable and does not attract the respect from academic peers and major research funding bodies until it offers doctoral degrees (Roux and Robertson 2009).…”

“…Further, the capacity to carry out high-level research requires the ability to attract major funding, which in turn allows universities to employ experienced professional researchers such as post-doctoral fellows, research assistants and the like (Roux and Robertson 2009). Unfortunately, in most countries, it is still difficult to attract major funding for forensic science research through traditional research funding bodies while the 'forensic science industry' is cash deficient in being able to invest in R&D (Robertson 2011). In addition, traditional quantitative measurements of research quality, including number of citations, H indeX2 and Journal Impact Factors3, increasingly drive the allocation of resources; and it is fair to say that these indicators tend to underestimate the true usefulness of a person's or a group's contributions to forensic science innovation (Jones 2003).…”

“…However, more often than not, the question of efficiency is directly addressed to the forensics community and not to the broader system! In this context, it is acknowledged that very few empirical research studies are available that scientifically evaluate the value of forensics, especially when we consider the many processes where forensic information is or can be used (Wilson, McClure and Weisburd 2010;Julian et al 2011). As a result, forensics does not really know what the nature of its contribution is, because such a contribution is often drawn into broader policing activities, while laboratories are mainly concerned about complying with the quality of the service they have implemented, and not with efficiency in the broader criminal justice/security system.…”

Utility of the clue — From assessing the investigative contribution of forensic science to supporting the decision to use traces

“…In their 5-year project, Julian et al [44] attempted to "identify when, where and how forensic science can add value to criminal investigations, court trials and justice outcomes" [44, p.217]. Indeed, the usefulness of forensic science is much more diverse than solely for identification purposes or production of evidence.…”

Forensic intelligence: Data analytics as the bridge between forensic science and investigation

“…Can we determine the impact of forensic science on the justice system? Many studies have addressed the question of the value of forensic science and the measurement of those contributions ([ [1] , [2] , [3] , [4] , [5] , [6] , [7] , [8] , [9] , [10] , [11] , [12] , [13] , [14] , [15] , [16] , [17] , [18] , [19] , [20] , [21] , [22] , [23] ]). A fundamental component of that question involves what specific analytical outcomes signify value and how to measure each interpretation of value.…”