On Friday the 5th February 2016, Dr. Adrienne Duff, Director of The Irish National Accreditation Board (INAB); the national body with responsibility for the accreditation of laboratories, presented the Garda Commissioner Nóirín O’Sullivan with Certification of the Technical Bureau ISO Accreditation at an official ceremony in the Garda Officer’s Club, Garda Headquarters, Phoenix Park, acknowledging an excellent achievement by the management and staff of the Section.
The ISO sets standards that are recognised worldwide. The ISO17025:2005 international standard specifies the "general requirements for the competence of testing and calibration laboratories”.
The EU Council Framework decision 2009/905/JHA requires that all laboratories reporting on DNA and Fingerprint evidence must comply with the same international standard – EN ISO/IEC 17025” by November 2015. Consequently, the Garda Commissioner decided that the Fingerprint, Ballistics and Documents & Handwriting Examination Sections of the Garda Technical Bureau must be accredited accordingly. In order to achieve accreditation to ISO17025:2005 standard a laboratory must be assessed by the national accreditation body; INAB in the Republic of Ireland.
The Garda Technical Bureau delivers expert forensic support to An Garda Síochána and the Irish Criminal Justice System. Nationally it provides operational support and assistance with investigations. The Technical Bureau is responsible for specific areas of forensic expertise: Ballistics Section, Photography Section, Document & Handwriting Examination Section, Mapping Section and Fingerprint Section. Additionally, the Forensic Liaison Office (FLO) plays a vital role in ensuring the integrity of exhibits submitted to the Garda Technical Bureau for processing. The primary goal of the Garda Technical Bureau is to enhance the investigative capabilities of An Garda Síochána.
In her acceptance speech Commissioner Nóirín O’Sullivan commented that "achieving accreditation to this standard means that the Garda Technical Bureau is providing a high quality forensic investigation service to An Garda Síochána, the Criminal Justice System, and the public. This will help improve and ensure trust among the public in the criminal justice system”.
Commissioner O’Sullivan congratulated the Head of the Technical Bureau Detective Superintendent John Nolan and his team on this excellent achievement. Reaching such a high standard is not easy and takes countless hours of dedicated and painstaking work
Accreditation to this standard facilitates the Garda Technical Bureau in providing a high quality forensic investigation service (both at crime scenes and our specialist laboratories) to An Garda Síochána, the Criminal Justice System and general public.
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