WHAT IS OSAC UP TO?

A BEHIND THE SCENES LOOK
Gregory G. Davis, MD

Death, Crime Scenes, and OSAC

Crime Scene/Death Investigation SAC

American Academy of Forensic Science (AAFS) 2018
CS/DI SAC

■ Presenter’s Contact

Gregory G. Davis, MD (gdavis@uabmc.edu)

Professor and Director, Division of Forensic Pathology, UAB

Chief Coroner/Medical Examiner, Jefferson County, AL

Chair, Crime Scene/Death Investigation SAC

■ Scope of the OSAC units

–SAC – approves standards identified by subcommittees and 

coordinates standards spanning multiple disciplines.

–Sub-committees - work to identify existing high-quality 

standards and to facilitate the development of new 

standards by Standards Development Organizations

■ Members – 16, including crime scene investigators (including 

fire and dog specialists), death investigators (anthropologists, 

coroner, forensic pathologists, odontologists), epidemiologist
CS/DI SAC

■ CS/DI SAC sub-committees

–Anthropology

–Crime Scene Investigation

–Disaster Victim Identification

–Dogs and Sensors

–Fire and Explosion Investigation

–Medicolegal Death Investigation

–Odontology

■ Work

■ Challenges and Lessons Learned
OSAC Standards Approval Process
Anthropology

■ Chair

– Thomas D. Holland, PhD

■ Scope of OSAC unit – focuses on standards and guidelines related to 

application of anthropological methods and theory, particularly those 

relating to the recovery and analysis of human remains

■ Members – 18 members, 3 new

■ Work Products

– 1 document on Stature Estimation in Academy Standards Board (ASB).

– 3 documents approved by sub-committee, gone to Resource Committees 

for comment.

– 1 document (Age Estimation) ready to send to RC’s.

– 17 additional documents developed by SWG ANTH have been approved 

for posting as legacy documents and as draft documents for 

forthcoming proposed standards.

– Sub-committee preparing an additional 4 documents not based on SWG 

documents (Statistical Methods, Forensic Archaeology, Isotopes, and 

Method Selection)

– Glossary
Anthropology 

■ Challenges and Lessons Learned

■ Research Topics/Needs

– Controlled experimental bone trauma studies in collaboration 

with biomechanical engineers to further the understanding of 

fracture patterns in bone.

– Determination of healing rates of fractures, especially to 

estimate time since injury in children and the elderly.

■ Highest Priorities – Documents in SDO process
Crime Scene Investigation

■ Chair

– Marilyn T. Miller, EdD

■ Scope of OSAC unit – focuses on developing standards and guidelines related to 

investigation of crime scenes including search for, documentation of, and presentation 

of evidence associated with the crime scene.

■ Members – 17 members, 3 new

■ Work Products

– Glossary

■ Research Topics/Needs

– Crime Scene Research Database and Information Clearinghouse

– Crime Scene Investigation Documentation Technology

– Human Factors in Crime Scene Investigation

– Use of Laboratory Based Techniques and Technology at the Crime Scene

– Crime Scene Contamination

– Evaluation of Personal Protective Equipment at the Crime Scene

■ Highest Priorities – Time to work to catch up with others in OSAC

■ Progress

– Education, Credentials, Training

– Topics listed in Research Needs above
Disaster Victim Identification

■ Chair

– Jason Wiersema, PhD

■ Scope of OSAC unit – focuses on standards and guidelines 

related to fatality management of a mass fatality incident that 

involves the scientific identification of human remains

■ Members – 15 members, 1 new (data management)

■ Work Products

– 6 documents with ASB (posted as drafts on sub-committee 

web page; documents concern scene investigation, data 

management, and use of anthropology, DNA analysis, 

fingerprint analysis, and forensic pathology); fingerprint 

document with ANSI and expected approval in next month

– 4 documents in preparation for submission to SDO

– Glossary

■ Challenges and Lessons Learned
Disaster Victim Identification

■ Research Topics/Needs

– No means to anticipate volume and variety of data that result 

from and must be managed following a mass fatality incident. 

Existing assumptions are anecdotal and based on a small 

number of incidents. The volume of data (missing persons 

call centers, victim information centers, hospitals, law 

enforcement etc.) available from previous incident after 

action reports should be used to systematically develop 

reliable expectations for medicolegal operations

– No means to quantify individualistic value of contextual 

identifiers, and thus no measure of confidence associated 

with contextual decedent identifications. Need for 

development of population-level likelihood values for human 

characteristics/circumstances that are regularly used in 

support of scientific identification methods (including 

scars/marks/tattoos, body location, etc.)
Dogs and Sensors

■ Chair

– Kenneth G. Furton, PhD

■ Scope of OSAC unit –focuses on standards and guidelines for 

continual improvement of consistency, performance, and legal 

acceptance of deployed detection teams. Focus areas include 

optimal integration with other sensors designed to improve 

overall detection capabilities

■ Members – 19 members, 2 new

■ Work Products

– General Canine Guidelines

– Working Canine Terminology

– Tracking/Trailing People Based on Last Known Location

– Pre-Scented Canine - Aged Trail Search

– Pre-Scented Canines - Location Check

– Canine Career Field Progression

– Glossary

■ Challenges and Lessons Learned
Dogs and Sensors

■ Research Topics/Needs

– Identification of odorant chemicals present in and above targets (particularly 

human remains, as well as live human scent, explosives and drugs) including 

novel applications (chemical, microbes, etc.). 

– Development of methods for monitoring levels of contamination of aids. 

Identify when training aids are contaminated, how long it takes to dissipate 

the contamination odor off the pure odor training aid. 

– Development of reliable surrogate aids (particularly for human remains, as 

well as live human scent, drugs and explosives). These must provide 

controlled delivery of chemicals to allow for an assessment of threshold 

variance, but not to be used for certification purposes (canine and possibly 

equipment calibration). This also pertains to emerging threats.

– Integration of canine and instrumental detectors: Identifying applicability of 

certified detector dogs and sensors to reliably detect target odors; 

Comparison of detection capabilities of canines and instrumentation; 

Identifying complementary instrumentation for application with canines; 

Comparison of dogs to other biological detection entities.

– Evaluation of the dissipation of odorant: Research is needed to understand 

the dissipation/permeation rates of various odors that originate from canine 

training aids. Currently odorants dissipate from canine training aids at 

unknown rates, this results in canines being exposed to aids without knowing 

if the aid is in fact releasing sufficient odor before, during, or after use under 

various environmental conditions. 

■ Highest Priorities – Move work products above through registry approval 

pathway to SDO
Fire and Explosion Investigation

■ Chair

– Craig Beyler, PhD

■ Scope of OSAC unit – focuses on standards and guidelines related to the 

investigation, analyses and interpretation of fire and explosion incidents. 

Our discipline deals with fire and explosion investigations without initial 

regard for whether the event is possibly arson. It is antithetical to our 

methodologies to presume any cause of the incident.

■ Members – 19 members, 2 new

■ Work Products

– Strategic Plan for Fire and Explosion Investigation, expect publication in 

2018 

– Proposal to NFPA for Standard for Fire and Explosion Investigation Units, 

work to begin in 2018

– Open comments for next revision of NFPA 921 shared with OSAC 

members, comments submitted for review committee to consider in 

making next revision

– Glossary

■ Highest Priorities – Develop standards for Fire and Explosion 

Investigation Units
Medicolegal Death Investigation

■ Chair

– J. Keith Pinckard, MD, PhD

■ Scope of OSAC unit – focuses 

■ Members – 15 members

■ Work Products

– 1 document (Competent Medicolegal Death Investigation) 

with ASB

– 2 documents of recommendations for medical examiners and 

coroners concerning investigation and certification of deaths 

potentially related to drugs.

– Glossary

– Exploring common data elements collected in medicolegal

death investigations with intent of developing a means to 

capture, retrieve, and share these data.
Odontology

■ Chair

– Robert E. Barsley, DDS

■ Scope of OSAC unit – focuses on standards and guidelines related to 

application of dentistry to legal issues including human identification, 

bitemark analysis, age estimation, litigation, oral and facial injuries, 

and human abuse and neglect.

■ Members – 15 members

■ Work Products

– 2 documents (ADA 1058 – forensic dental data set, ADA 1088 – dental 

identification) approved by ANSI/ADA

– 1 document (Estimating age) in final draft

– Glossary

■ Task Group

– Bitemark task group meeting with other odontologists in Seattle to work 

toward a unified diagnostic algorithm, which all agreed to on February 19.

■ Research Needs

– Studies of 3D imaging of patterned injuries, normal dentition, and bitemark

analysis

– Datasets for teeth in populations of differing ages and backgrounds
www.nist.gov/osac

QUESTIONS?