On February 18, 2009, the National Academy
of Sciences (NAS) issued a report, entitled “Strengthening Forensic
Science in the United States: A Path Forward”. After a thorough review
of the executive summary and cursory review of the full report, the
SWGGUN supports the original mission and most of the recommendations set
forth in this report.
The SWGGUN has been aware of the
scientific and systemic issues identified in this report for some time
and has been working diligently to address them. SWGGUN has also been
aware of the disparity or “fragmentation” that presently exists in the
application of forensic science in general and within the discipline of
Firearm and Toolmark Identification specifically. As part of its
mission, SWGGUN has made it a priority to resolve any areas of
disagreement.
The SWGGUN views this report as being very
beneficial to our mission as it identifies the areas where we must
fundamentally improve our procedures to enhance the quality and
reliability of our scientific results, as well as better articulate the
basis of our science.
Presently, the SWGGUN’s Science Committee
is composing two reports that address the scientific and systemic issues
raised in the NAS Report. These reports should be completed and released
late next month (April, 2009).
Gregory S. Klees, Chairman
