Interface Project

Interfaces between science, medicine and law enforcement

The project is a joint venture between Australia New Zealand Policing Advisory Agency (ANZPAA) , National Institute of Forensic Science (NIFS) and the Tasmanian Institute of Law Enforcement Studies (TILES).

Official agreement signed - visit ANZPAA news
ANZPAA and NIFS Newsletter Sept 2011

Overview
Forensic science is increasingly relied on in police investigations and in criminal trials to exonerate the innocent and assist in establishing links to crime. With this increased reliance on forensic science the potential for unjust outcomes increases, especially in serious matters (homicide/sexual assault).The reasons for this are twofold. First, the more serious the matter, the more likely that evidence mishandling can lead to wrongful imprisonment. Second, the more likely the personnel involved in serious cases will be multi-disciplinary (police, medicine, law, forensic science), and multi-organisational (Health, Justice, legal, Police). The importance of discovering effective multi-organisational interactions was highlighted in a judicial report into the wrongful imprisonment of an Australian male for a sexual assault he did not commit. The report noted one factor that led to the unjust outcome was the limited communication between law enforcement, medical, forensic science and legal practitioners throughout the entirety of the case.

The Interfaces project was devised to identify current forms of communication, preferred forms of communication and current practices that are effective in preventing four profession groups from becoming isolated from each other during the investigation of homicide and sexual assault matters.The project has three primary aims, these are:

• To conduct interviews with practitioners from a range of relevant disciplines and identify areas of good practice related to their interactions;
• To highlight the range of communication patterns that are currently applied across different Australian states/territories that are working well;
• To develop a framework or model which maximises the benefit of the interactions between key personnel involved in sexual assault and homicide cases whilst maintaining their integrity and their independence as expert legal witnesses.

Methodology
This project will identify current forms of communication, preferred forms of communication and current practices between four profession groups during the investigation of homicide and sexual assault matters. The four profession groups are: forensic medicine, forensic science, law enforcement and law. This project involves a range of forensic disciplines and services used in homicide and serious assault cases; it is not restricted to the use of DNA only in these matters. Five Australian states/territories have been identified as sites for the interfaces project. These are: Victoria, Australian Capital Territory, Western Australian, Queensland and Tasmania. Data will be collected in focus groups or one-on-one interviews with a range of criminal justice personnel including police officers, forensic scientists, lawyers, judges, coroners, pathologists and forensic physicians/practitioners.

Project Team
Chief Investigator -Dr Sally Kelty (Post-Doctoral Fellow, TILES, UTAS)
Researcher - Associate Professor Roberta Julian (TILES, UTAS)
Project Executive - Mr Alastair Ross (Director) National Institute of Forensic Science (NIFS)
Research Associates - Heidi Gordon (PhD Candidate, UTAS) and Kate Cashman (PhD Candidate, UTAS)
Forensic Medicine Advisor - Associate Professor David Wells (Victorian Institute of Forensic Medicine ,Monash University)
Legal Advisor - Hon. Frank Vincent AO QC