This article calls for the implementation of proficiency tests that are designed and administered for the express purpose of providing factfinders with reasonable first pass estimates of error rates across forensic disciplines and techniques.
The reliability and probative value of forensic science evidence is inextricably linked to the rates at which examiners make errors. Jurors and others cannot rationally assess the significance of a reported forensic science match without having some information about the rate at which false positive errors occur. This article notes that the reliability and probative value of forensic science evidence is inextricably linked to the rates at which examiners make errors. Jurors and others cannot rationally assess the significance of a reported forensic science match without having some information about the rate at which false positive errors occur. (Publisher Abstract)