ASTM_E_1188_-_11.pdf

Designation:E118811Standard Practice forCollection and Preservation of Information and PhysicalItems by a Technical Investigator1This standard is issued under the fixed designation E1188;the number immediately following the designation indicates the year oforiginal adoption or,in the case of revision,the year of last revision.A number in parentheses indicates the year of last reapproval.Asuperscript epsilon()indicates an editorial change since the last revision or reapproval.1.Scope1.1 This practice covers guidelines for the collection andpreservation of information and physical items by any techni-cal investigator pertaining to an incident that can be reasonablyexpected to be the subject of litigation.1.2 This practice recommends generally accepted profes-sional principles and operations,although the facts and issuesof each situation require consideration,and frequently involvematters not expressly dealt with herein.Deviations from thispractice should be based on specific articulable circumstances.1.3 This practice offers a set of instructions for performingone or more specific operations.This standard cannot replaceknowledge,skill or ability acquired through appropriate edu-cation,training,and experience and should be used in conjunc-tion with sound professional judgment.1.4 This standard does not purport to address all of thesafety concerns,if any,associated with its use.It is theresponsibility of the user of this standard to establish appro-priate safety and health practices and determine the applica-bility of regulatory limitations prior to use.2.Significance and Use2.1 This practice is intended for use by any technicalinvestigator when investigating an incident that can be reason-ably expected to be the subject of litigation.The intent is toobtain sufficient information and physical items to discoverevidence associated with the incident and to preserve it foranalysis.2.2 The quality of evidence may change with time,there-fore,special effort should be taken to capture and preserveevidence in an expeditious manner.This practice sets forthguidelines for the collection and preservation of evidence forfurther analysis.2.3 Evidence that has been collected and preserved shall beidentified with,and be traceable to,the incident.This practicesets forth guidelines for such procedures.3.Procedure3.1 Documentary InformationCollect information relatedto events and conditions occurring before,during,or after theincident.Documentary information may be held by any entityassociated with the incident.Make a broad search to identifydocuments and,where possible,collect them.Obtain state-ments as early as feasible from all individuals associated withthe incident and the recovery activity.3.2 Physical Evidence:3.2.1 Plan the investigation to protect physical evidencesignificant to the incident.The plan should consider thepossibility of identity loss,physical loss,or the deterioration ordestruction of information due to environmental effects or therecovery and collection activities.For each item considered tobe significant to the incident,document,collect and preservephysical items and their information content as soon aspossible.3.2.2 Document conditions that prevent or interfere with thepreservation of any potential evidence in the state in which itwas found.This might include hazardous or accessibilityconditions,weather conditions,or other existing complica-tions.3.2.3 Assign a unique identifier to each item collected andinclude this information in a label securely attached to the itemor as documentation on the items container and enter theidentifying information on a log sheet together with a briefdescription of the item.The evidence documentation shouldalso clearly include any specific details necessary for preser-vation of the item,such as temperature control or specialhandling instructions.3.3 Photographic Documentation:3.3.1 Commence photographic documentation as soon aspossible after the incident.Document the scene of the incidentand the condition of items involved.3.3.2 Potential evidence should be photographed in theposition where it is first observed by the investigator.If itemsinvolved in the incident are disassembled or subjected to1This practice is under the jurisdiction of ASTM Committee E30 on ForensicSciences and is the direct responsibility of Subcommittee E30.11 on Interdisciplin-ary Forensic Science Standards.Current edition approved Sept.1,2011.Published October 2011.Originallyapproved in 1987.Last previous edition approved in 2005 as E1188 05.DOI:10.1520/E1188-11.Copyright ASTM International,100 Barr Harbor Drive,PO Box C700,West Conshohocken,PA 19428-2959.United States1 destructive testing,each step of the disassembly or testing shallbe documented by contemporaneous photographs or videotap-ing.3.3.3 The photographic technique utilized should be ofsufficient resolution to preserve the essential aspects of theappearance of the evidence being photographed,and shouldalso be capable of producing images tha