NCDD Blog

Posted on February 17, 2019 in News & Events

The National Forensic Science Commission has fully reported on its last two meetings. Of concern, currently there are no practicing private criminal defense attorneys on the Commission. As of meeting ten, the Commission has come up with 14 recommendations to the United States Attorney General. Here are some highlights.

Meeting ten occurred on June 20-21, 2016 in Washington, D.C. The Commission reported that it is their view and position that "the overall accreditation of forensic science service providers could be strengthened by, at a minimum, full compliance with ISO/IEC 17011 standards for all accrediting bodies offering services to forensic science providers." They further mentioned requiring method validation to include both external sources and studies of the overall performance and reliability, in addition to internal studies of appropriateness. They are recommending both targeted (currently in place by the American Society of Crime Lab Directors knows as ASCLD) and random sampling in the audit process. This is a marked improvement over existing crime lab accreditations now in place.

Posted on January 31, 2019 in News & Events

There have been 9 committee meetings by the NCFS (National Commission on Forensic Science) created by the Obama administration. The commission is comprised of scientists, judges, prosecutors and defense lawyers. Here are the highlights from each meeting:

Meeting 1: Update from the NIST committees, the objective focus has been on strengthening forensic science in the United States.

Meeting 2: Explored issues of cognitive bias and ethics in forensic science. Texas Court of Criminal Appeals Justice Barbara Hervey emphasized the need for judges to receive forensic training and education.

Posted on May 07, 2018 in News & Events

The National College for DUI Defense, Inc. is pleased to announce that on August 11, 2014, the American Bar Association officially approved the renewal application of the NCDD for another 5 years. In 2004, The National College for DUI Defense, Inc. (NCDD) became accredited by the American Bar Association (ABA) to certify lawyers as specialists in the practice area of DUI Defense Law. The NCDD is the only organization in the history of the ABA that has been granted the authority to certify lawyers as specialists in this highly complex area of practice.