COMBATING BIAS IN CRIME SCENE INVESTIGATIONS

Originally appearing in the Georgia State Division of the International Association for Identification (Q2 2025), this article examines how cognitive bias can distort crime scene investigation and bloodstain pattern analysis. Drawing on real case experience, it explains confirmation and desirability bias, the bias blind spot, and the Dunning-Kruger effect. It also outlines practical safeguards—using the scientific method, seeking blind peer review, challenging one’s own conclusions, and slowing decision-making under pressure—to keep evidence ahead of assumptions and improve investigative accuracy.