A sample (n = 79) of practicing firearm and toolmark examiners was queried about casework as well as their views about the potential role that statistics might play in future firearm examinations and expert witness testimony. Principal findings include: The modal response for time spent conducting bullet examinations is 2–4 hours, and the modal response for cartridge casings is 1–2 hours. The average participant (median) makes an identification in 65% of casework, makes an elimination in 12% of casework, and reports that the examination was inconclusive in 20% of casework calls. The vast majority of examiners work at laboratories that permit eliminations when class characteristics agree. The reported industry-wide false positive error rate is 1%, though very few participants could name a study or give a citation for their reported estimate. Qualitative responses about the potential role of statistics were mixed.
Surveying Practicing Firearm Examiners

Journal: Forensic Science International: Synergy
Published: 2022
Primary Author: Nicholas Scurich
Secondary Authors: Brandon Garrett, Robert. M. Thompson
Type: Publication
Related Resources
A Study in Reproducibility: The Congruent Matching Cells Algorithm and cmcR Package
Scientific research is driven by our ability to use methods, procedures, and materials from previous studies and further research by adding to it. As the need for computationally-intensive methods to…
The Contribution of Forensic and Expert Evidence to DNA Exoneration Cases: An Interim Report
This report is from Simon A. Cole, Vanessa Meterko, Sarah Chu, Glinda Cooper, Jessica Weinstock Paredes, Maurice Possley, and Ken Otterbourg (2022), The Contribution of Forensic and Expert Evidence to…
CSAFE Project Update & ASCLD FRC Collaboration
This presentation highlighted CSAFE’s collaboration with the ASCLD FRC Collaboration Hub.
Understanding forensic decision-making with Item Response Theory: Using a NFI firearms study
This presentation is from the Forensic Big Data Colloquium at the Netherlands Forensic Institute, November 2022. Posted with permission of CSAFE.