Evidentiary Standards for Forensic Anthropology*
- 23 October 2009
- journal article
- other
- Published by Wiley in Journal of Forensic Sciences
- Vol. 54 (6), 1211-1216
- https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1556-4029.2009.01176.x
Abstract
As issues of professional standards and error rates continue to be addressed in the courts, forensic anthropologists should be proactive by developing and adhering to professional standards of best practice. There has been recent increased awareness and interest in critically assessing some of the techniques used by forensic anthropologists, but issues such as validation, error rates, and professional standards have seldom been addressed. Here we explore the legal impetus for this trend and identify areas where we can improve regarding these issues. We also discuss the recent formation of a Scientific Working Group for Forensic Anthropology (SWGANTH), which was created with the purposes of encouraging discourse among anthropologists and developing and disseminating consensus guidelines for the practice of forensic anthropology. We believe it is possible and advisable for anthropologists to seek and espouse research and methodological techniques that meet higher standards to ensure quality and consistency in our field.Keywords
This publication has 16 references indexed in Scilit:
- Kumho, Daubert, and the Nature of Scientific Inquiry: Implications for Forensic Anthropology*Journal of Forensic Sciences, 2008
- Role of Orthopedic Implants and Bone Morphology in the Identification of Human RemainsJournal of Forensic Sciences, 2007
- Argument from Expert Opinion as Legal Evidence: Critical Questions and Admissibility Criteria of Expert Testimony in the American Legal System*Ratio Juris, 2006
- Frequencies of Morphological Characteristics in Two Contemporary Forensic Collections: Implications for Identification*Journal of Forensic Sciences, 2006
- Evaluating the Accuracy and Precision of Cranial Morphological Traits for Sex DeterminationJournal of Forensic Sciences, 2006
- Is Fingerprint Identification Valid? Rhetorics of Reliability in Fingerprint Proponents’ DiscourseLaw & Policy, 2005
- The concepts of bias, precision and accuracy, and their use in testing the performance of species richness estimators, with a literature review of estimator performanceEcography, 2005
- Ten Years of Judicial Gatekeeping Under DaubertAmerican Journal of Public Health, 2005
- Assessing the variation in individual frontal sinus outlinesAmerican Journal of Physical Anthropology, 2005
- "Kumho" and How We KnowLaw and Contemporary Problems, 2001