White Paper – Forensic Community Drug Database Conceptualization

Date February 2024 Overview The National Institute of Justice (NIJ)—in partnership with its Forensic Technology Center of Excellence (FTCOE) at RTI International and the National Center for Health Statistics, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)—convened a virtual Medicolegal Death…

Technical Note – The Use of Neutral Losses and Common Fragments Screening by QTOF in Forensic Laboratories

Date February 2024 Overview Quadrupole time-of-flight (QTOF) mass spectrometry is an advanced analytical technique that has some capabilities that make it particularly useful in screening in toxicology cases for unknown analytes. The technology combines the power of a quadrupole mass…

Drug Surveillance Initiatives: An FTCOE Repository of Resources

Date December 2023 Overview In the realm of drug surveillance, a multitude of data sources originate from diverse funding agencies, including but not limited to the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA), Centers for Disease Control…

White Paper – Information Sharing Between Medicolegal Death Investigators and Toxicology Testing Services

Date December 2023 Overview The National Institute of Justice (NIJ)—in partnership with its Forensic Technology Center of Excellence (FTCOE) at RTI International and the National Center for Health Statistics, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)—convened a virtual Medicolegal Death…

What FSSP Leaders Should Know about Artificial Intelligence and its Application to Forensic Science In-Brief

Date December 2023 Overview Artificial intelligence (AI), which leverages computers to perform tasks that enhance decision-making, problem-solving capabilities, and technology-driven innovativeness,” is a rapidly growing area of interest for both industry and the federal research and development (R&D) community.1 For forensic science service…

FLN-TWG: A Roadmap to Improve Research and Technology Transition in Forensic Science

← Back to FLN-TWG Main Page Forensic Laboratory Needs Technology Working Group (FLN-TWG) The National Institute of Justice (NIJ), in partnership with the Forensic Technology Center of Excellence (FTCOE) at RTI International, formed the Forensic Laboratory Needs Technology Working Group…

The Sentinel Role of Forensic Toxicology Laboratories to Identify and Act Upon Diverse Drug Threats by Addressing Toxicology and Economic Demands

Publication Forensic Science International: Synergy, September, 2022 Authors Jeri D. Ropero Miller | RTI International Lawrance D. Mullen | RTI International Paul J. Speaker | West Virginia University Introduction The societal costs from substance abuse are extensive and include treatment…

Medicolegal Death Investigation Partnerships on Overdose Fatality Reviews

Date July 2022 Overview The main purpose of Overdose Fatality Reviews (OFRs) is to review overdose fatalities and find gaps in services to help save lives. They rely on a multi-agency approach to information sharing to accomplish this goal. Upon…

Project ECHO: Applications for the Medicolegal Death Investigation Community and Other Forensic Disciplines

Date October 2022 Overview Similar to the foundational ECHO model designed for primary care providers, ECHO: Overdose Fatality Investigation Techniques (OD-FIT) is designed to promote the rapid dissemination of medicolegal death investigation–specific knowledge for immediate application to overdose casework.1 The ECHO…

Currently Applied Naming Conventions for Various Subclassifications of Novel Psychoactive Substances

Date May 2022 Overview The National Institute of Justice (NIJ), in partnership with its Forensic Technology Center of Excellence (FTCOE) at RTI International and the Center for Disease Control and Prevention, convened a virtual Medicolegal Death Investigation Data Exchange Working…