Plano Police Department CSI Video on Accreditation

The Plano, Texas, Police Department Crime Scene Investigation Unit, which was recently accredited by the ANSI-ASQ National Accreditation Board/FQS, has produced a video explaining why it sought FQS accreditation. Plano's Crime Scene Investigation Unit is the first law enforcement agency in the continental United States to attain accreditation to ISO/IEC 17020 for forensic inspection.

FQS accreditation to ISO/IEC 17020, the international standard for accreditation of bodies performing inspection, is based on an assessment of the unit's procedures, technical qualifications, and competence for conducting specific inspection activities within the scope of the standard, all with reference to ISO/IEC 17020 requirements. The Plano Crime Scene Investigation Unit accreditation applies to the disciplines of crime scene investigations, latent prints, and firearms examinations.

While U.S. accrediting bodies previously accredited crime scene units to ISO/IEC 17025, the international standard for analytical testing laboratories, FQS recognized that ISO/IEC 17020 is more appropriate for the forensic work performed by crime scene investigators and last year launched its ISO/IEC 17020 program for police forensic units.

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