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Maintaining the chain of custody: evidence handling in forensic-cases. AORN Journal, Oct, 2003, by Mary Margaret Evans, Pamela A. Stagner, Findarticles.com:"There is an epidemic of interpersonal violence in the United States, and it is the responsibility of medical personnel to identify, treat, and refer victims of abuse to appropriate authorities and ensure that items that may be presented as evidence in courts of law are not compromised. Clinical forensic nursing is a relatively new field that unites the disciplines of nursing science, forensic science, and criminal justice to protect victims' legal, civil, and human rights. (1) The term forensic derives from the Latin word forensics, meaning a public debate or forum or pertaining to the law. (2) The intertwining of law and medicine forms a medico-legal or forensic case."
http://www.findarticles.com/cf_dls/m0FSL/4_78/108967603/p1/article.jhtml

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Bank Fraud Newsletter February 26, 1996. Investigator's Corner:"Opposing counsel will often attack the admissibility of evidence in terms of its relevancy and chain of custody. Especially in the early stages of an investigation, the relevance of a piece of evidence may not be evident. As a result, every item recovered should be treated as though it is relevant."
http://www.w-z.com/evidence.htm

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Proof Of Chain Of Custody In A Criminal Case:"a party seeking to introduce an item of physical evidence must prove that the item was that which was taken from a particular person or place which makes the item relevant as evidence in the trial. Such proof is provided by testimony identifying the item as having been taken from that person or place, and by evidence tracing custody of the item from the time it was taken until it is offered in evidence. This latter evidence is necessary to avoid any claim of substitution or tampering."
http://www.njlaws.com/chain.htm

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Forensic Audio Enhancement and Analysis:"In the event your recording is used in a court of law, it is important that a "chain of custody" be established (i.e., a record documenting who has had physical custody of the tape, for how long, and under what security conditions). The following steps outline a procedure for the documentation of each change of custody."
http://caeaudio.com/custody.html

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Mandatory Guidelines for Federal Workplace Drug Testing Programs:"The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) revises some of the scientific and technical guidelines for Federal drug testing programs and revises certain standards for certification of laboratories engaged in urine drug testing for Federal agencies."
http://workplace.samhsa.gov/DrugTesting/MGuidelines.htm

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Chain of Custody, Warde Medical Laboratory:"Delivery of a drug screen sample to Warde Medical Laboratory should involve an external chain of custody form that provides a consecutive list of names of individuals who have had access to the sample. Receipt of the sample at the laboratory continues the chain of custody. We recommend using the form and collection kit and procedure provided by Warde Medical Laboratory. In the WML chain of custody procedure, container and bag seals are adequate to secure the specimen, and the courier is not required to sign the chain of custody documentation since the courier did not have true possession of the sample."
Warde Medical Laboratory
5025 Venture Drive, Ann Arbor, MI 48108 Phone: 734-665-8300 Fax: 734-665-8380
http://www.wardelab.com/ser_cus.html

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