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ilanaprincilus06

'Ballistic Fingerprint' Database Expands Amid Questions About Its Precision : NPR - 0 views

www.npr.org/...-questions-about-its-precision

ballistic fingerprint cognitive bias crime

shared by ilanaprincilus06 on 13 Jan 21 - No Cached
  • But now investigators are getting results in a matter of hours instead of months. And instead of just being a resource for prosecutors at trial, the NIBIN "match" is being used by investigators to generate leads, despite uncertainty about the precision of the match.
  • NIBIN was started in 1999 and has primarily been used by forensics examiners to testify at trial about the likelihood that a bullet was fired from a particular gun. But that's all changing now.
  • But some defense attorneys challenge the notion that the markings are unique, and the FBI says even expert testimony can't make that claim with certainty.
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  • flawed firearms forensics have led to exonerations in the past.
  • In 2013 a Mississippi man's life was spared hours before his scheduled execution after the FBI said experts had overstated the science. In a note sent to the district attorney in that case, the bureau clarified that "the science regarding firearms examinations does not permit examiner testimony that a specific gun fired a specific bullet to the exclusion of all other guns in the world."
  • Puracal says using NIBIN as an investigative tool is less problematic than using it in court, but she still takes issue with its use.
  • That's because a NIBIN match, she says, can lead to cognitive bias in the investigators — a kind of tunnel vision.
  • Wilbon said they found three loaded guns in the car. No one had the required conceal-carry permits, and the people in the car had outstanding warrants.In the past the investigation may have ended with three people arrested and the guns placed in an evidence locker. But, because the Portland police have this new equipment, the casings were immediately entered into NIBIN. And because the Seattle police also use NIBIN, the ATF database indicated a match to shootings in Seattle.
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