Fall 2004 SWGGUN Meeting Summary
SWGGUN
recently met at the FBI Academy in Quantico, VA
September 20-24, 2004. Fifteen of the Board
Members were present at the meeting; seven
additional members and the AFTE President were
not in attendance.
Progress was made in the formation of a set of
guidelines for establishing… “Projectile Path
Reconstruction Training and Procedures Manuals…”
This document is awaiting final Board approval
and should be available in the “Training Guides”
area of the website within the next few months.
A draft statement regarding the AFTE “Range of
Conclusions…” and discussion regarding
eliminations was prepared and debated. This is
awaiting full Board discussion and approval. I
anticipate this becoming available for
distribution and comment in the next few months
as well. Look for it to be posted in the “Q/A
Guidelines” area on the website.
The data collected and protocols used for the
initial indoor silencer testing were collated,
reviewed, and some initial conclusions were
drawn. The work was organized and the data
integrated into a usable format for publication.
The Board will be reviewing this draft,
commenting and looking for approval of this
first stage of testing in the near future.
Preliminary data was collected for the
comparison of trigger pull testing equipment.
(i.e. arsenal weights, spring gauges, digital
force gauges, etc.) This data is currently being
reviewed and will be used to evaluate the
systems used for obtaining trigger pulls and the
intent is to release the findings at a later
date. This project is in its infancy.
Ongoing projects that are being addressed by
SWGGUN are:
- Continued evaluation of protocols for use in
suppressor/silencer testing.
- Trigger pull evaluation of methods and
equipment used.
- Range of conclusions (currently addressing
eliminations).
These three subcommittees are working to develop
a product that can be posted on the SWGGUN
website for review and comments from the
forensic community. SWGGUN continues to operate
its own website at
www.swggun.org.
The SWG is encouraged by reports that the
material available at the SWGGUN website
continues to assist the criminal justice system
in addressing Daubert issues in court cases
during the past year.
Thank you for allowing us to serve you. Board
member information can be found under the
“Members” tab. We look forward to hearing from
you and encourage your continued participation
in these ongoing projects that ultimately affect
our work product.
Thomas L.G. Price –Chair, SWGGUN
