NIST 2017 Technical

Colloquium on Weight

of Evidence

The theme of the 2017 NIST Technical 

Colloquium on Weight of Evidence is 

Defining, Collecting and Understanding. The 

goal of the Colloquium is to get stakeholders 

across forensic science to think about ways to 

transform from reporting a “match/no match” 

to statements that integrate error and 

uncertainty. 

The first day is about defining the weight of 

evidence - what it means, and how to quantify 

it. The second day is about collecting and will 

cover data and its use and analysis within 

forensic science. The third day is about 

understanding and will focus on how to 

communicate and report forensic examination 

findings. 

Email us your comments or suggstions Quantifying the 

Weight of 

Forensic Evidence 

June 27-29, 2017 

at tc.forensicweightofevidence@nist.gov

Join us on Twitter

#NISTWOE 
	 	

	 	

	 	 	

	 	 	

	 	 	 	 	

	 	

	 	 	 	 	

	 	 	 	 	 	

	 	 	

	 	 	

	 	 	

	 	 	

	 	 	 	

	 	

	 	

	 	 	 	

	 	 	 	 	

	 	

	 	

	 	 	 	

	 	

	 	 	 	 	

	 	 	

	 	

	 	 	 	

	 	 	 	 	 	 	

 

	 	 	

	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	

	 	 	 	

	 	 	

	 	 	 	

	 	 	 	

	 	

	 	

	 	

	 	 	 	 	

	 	

	 	 	

	 	 	

	 	

	 	

	 	 	

	 	

	 	 	 	

	 	 	 	 	

	 	

	 	

	 	 	 	

	 	

	 	

	 	

 

	 	 	 	

	 	

	 	

	 	 	 	 	

	 	

	 	

	 	 	

	 	 	 	

	 	

	 	 	 	

	 	 	 	

	 	

Day 1:: Defining the WoE Day 2 :: Collecting for WoE Day 3 :: Understanding the WoE 

8:30-8:45 Welcome Remarks, Richard Cavanagh, NIST

8:45-9:35 Interpretation,	A	Personal Odyssey,	Christophe

Champod,	University of Lausanne and Ian Evett,	

Principal Forensic Services

9:35-10:00 Q&A

10:00-10:30 Break

10:30-10:45 Interactive question session 1

Shannan Williams, NIST

10:45-12:00 What is WoE,	Panel Discussion and Q&A

Doug Reynolds (moderator), MIT Lincoln Lab

Christophe Champod,	Univ. of Lausanne

Charles Berger, NFI

Simone Gittelson,	NIST

Chris Saunders, South Dakota State Univ.

Anjali Mazumder,	CMU

12:00-12:30 Statistical challenges in Quantifying the Weight of

Evidence: Measurement, Databases, Competing

Propositions and Multiple Sources,

Anjali Mazumder,	CMU

12:30-13:45 Lunch (on your own)

13:45-14:00 Interactive question session 2,	

Will Guthrie, NIST

14:00-14:40 Weight of Evidence, A Dutch Experience,

Charles Berger, Netherlands Forensic Institute

14:40-15:50 Quantifying WoE, Panel Discussion and Q&A

Will Guthrie (moderator), NIST

Charles Berger, Netherlands Forensic Institute

Cedric Neumann, South Dakota State University

Daniel Ramos, Universidad Autonoma de Madrid

Steven Lund, NIST

15:50-16:00 Break

16:00-17:15 Validation and Inter-laboratory testing, Panel	

Discussion and Q&A

Sheila Willis (moderator), Forensic Science

Ireland

Ruth	Corzo,	Florida International University

Tricia Hoffman, Florida International Univ.

Michael Coble, NIST

Geoffrey Stewart Morrison, Aston University

18:30-20:00 Social Event (sign up your name by 10 am)

8:30-8:50

8:50-9:10

9:10-9:50

9:50-10:15

10:15-10:45

10:45-12:30

12:30-14:00

14:00-14:15

14:15-15:30

15:30-15:45

15:45-17:00

17:00

Wrap-up of Day 1, Larry Tang, NIST

The role of data in evaluation of forensic

evidence, Melissa Taylor, NIST

Fostering innovation and knowledge

development with reference collections,

Stephen Sherry, National Center for

Biotechnology Information

Q&A

Break

Data for Forensics: Reliability, Reproducibility

and Repeatability, Panel Discussion and Q&A

Alan	Zheng	(moderator),	NIST

Christophe Champod,	University of Lausanne

Charles Berger, NFI

Toni Roberts, Federal Bureau of

Investigation

Jonathon Philips, NIST

Lunch (on your own)

Interactive Question Session 3

Melissa Taylor, NIST

Population Statistics,	 Panel Discussion and

Q&A

Melissa Taylor (moderator), NIST

Simone Gittelson,	National Institute of

Standards and Technology

Geoffrey Stewart Morrison, Aston University

Mike Smith, Federal Bureau of Investigation

Break

Method Evaluation,	 Panel Discussion and

Q&A

Elham Tabassi (moderator), NIST

Doug Reynolds, MIT Lincoln Laboratory

Niko Brummer,	AGNITIO

Daniel Ramos, Universidad Autonoma de

Madrid

Graham Jackson, University of Abertay

Dundee

DAY 2 END

8:30-8:45

8:45-9:15

9:15-9:45

9:45-10:00

10:00-10:20

10:20-10:50

10:50-11:20

11:20-12:00

12:00-12:30

12:30

Interactive Question, Sue Ballou, NIST

Communicating the	Results of Forensic

Science Examinations, Graham Jackson,

University of Abertay Dundee

What should a forensic scientist’s

likelihood ratio be?, Geoffrey Stewart

Morrison, Aston University

Q&A

Break

Lay Understanding of Forensic Science,

Bill Thompson, University of California,

Irvine

Jury Understanding of Statistics, Cedric

Neumann, South Dakota State

University

Moderated Discussion with presenters

and audience, Sue Ballou, NIST

Closing remarks, Elham Tabassi, NIST

END OF COLLOQUIUM