Kyiv Scientific Research Institute of Forensic Expertise held the III International Scientific and Practical Conference “Current Issues of Forensic Expertology, Criminalistics and Criminal Procedure”

On December 15, 2021, the III International Scientific and Practical Conference “Current Issues of Forensic Expertology, Criminalistics and Criminal Procedure” was held. The event was held online, organized by the Kyiv Scientific Research Institute of Forensic Expertise.

This is the first event of such a large-scale event in Ukraine since independence, which gathered an unprecedented number of participants from the United States to Australia.

The participants of the conference represented all branches of government: legislative, executive and judicial. Distinguished representatives of various scientific, expert institutions and international institutions were also present.

Almost 500 participants from more than 25 countries took part in the conference: the USA, Great Britain, Italy, Austria, Australia, Israel, South Africa, the Netherlands, Lithuania, Latvia, Greece, Poland, Moldova, Armenia, Uzbekistan, Azerbaijan and other countries of the world.

Detailed information about the program, participants, topics of reports and video presentations can be viewed on the relevant page of the site of the Kyiv Scientific Research Institute of Forensic Expertise.

Nataliia Nestor, Deputy Director of the Kyiv Scientific Research Institute of Forensic Expertise, moderated the event.

The conference was opened by:

1. Andrii Haichenko, Deputy Minister of Justice of Ukraine for Executive Service;
2. Pinelope Miniati, Chairman of the European Network of Forensic Science Institutes (ENFSI);
3. Oleksandr Ruvin, Director of the Kyiv Scientific Research Institute of Forensic Expertise;
4. Ihor Fris, People’s Deputy of Ukraine;
5. Nataliia Tkachenko, Director of the Department of Expert Support of Justice of the Ministry of Justice of Ukraine;
6. Dariusz Zuba, Director of the Institute of Forensic Research, Poland;
7. Volodymyr Cherney, Rector of the National Academy of Internal Affairs;
8. Volodymyr Buhrov, Rector of Taras Shevchenko National University of Kyiv;
9. Nataliia Kuznietsova, Vice President of the National Academy of Legal Sciences of Ukraine;
10. Oleksandra Yanovska, Judge of the Criminal Cassation Court of the Supreme Court;
11. Olesia Otradnova, Director of the Training Center for Prosecutors, Doctor of Law, Professor;
12. Vladyslav Fedorenko, Director of the Scientific Research Center for Forensic Intellectual Property;
13. Vladyslava Mahaletska, Head of the State Service of Ukraine on Food Safety and Consumer Protection;
14. Olena Kovalenko, Director of the Dnipropetrovsk Scientific Research Institute of Forensic Expertise;
15. Oksana Kumanska-Nor, Director of the Lviv Scientific Research Institute of Forensic Expertise;
16. Ella Simakova-Yefremian, Deputy Director for Science, the National Research Center “Hon. Prof. M. S. Bokarius Institute of Forensic Examinations”;
17. Olena Kurylova, Deputy Director for Expert Work of the Odesa Scientific Research Institute of Forensic Expertise;
18. Andrii Svintsytskyi, Director of the Ukrainian Scientific and Research Institute of Special Equipment and Forensic Expertise, Candidate of Juridical Sciences;
19. Ihor Starodubov, President of the Union of Experts of Ukraine;
20. Giedrius Mozuraitis, Director of the Forensic Science Centre of Lithuania, and other honored guests.

Representatives of leading forensic experts, scientific institutions, educational institutions, and public authorities made reports. In total, 125 reports were submitted to the conference, covering almost all aspects of forensic science, criminology and criminal procedure.

Presentations on handwriting research were made by Yury Chernov, Research Director, Institute for Handwriting Sciences, Switzerland; Pavlos Kipouras, PhD, Prof. Law School-Dimocritus Un.of Thrace, Greece; Nauer Marie Ann, Director, Institute for Handwriting Sciences HIS, Zurich, Switzerland.

Reports on drug research and the current state of the illicit drug market were presented by Pete Ausili, Chairman of the Committee on International Affairs of the American Academy of Forensic Science (AAFS); Sabina Gadirova, Head of the Department of Forensic Biological Expertise, Center for Forensic Examination of the Republic of Azerbaijan; Patvakan Voskanyan, Deputy Director for Scientific Work, National Bureau of Expertises of the Republic of Armenia.

Foreign experience in the use of new technologies was shared by Dragan Primorac, Chair of the International Affairs Committee of the American Academy of Forensic Sciences; Martin S. Olivier, Professor of Computer Science, University of Pretoria (South Africa); Davide Cardia, Commander of Guardia di Finanza (Financial Police), Pordenone, Italy; Roman Pertsev, Deputy Chief of the Israeli Criminal Investigation Department, and Alexander Nuger, Representative of the  Criminal Investigation Department of the Israeli Police.

Reports on international cooperation of scientific and expert institutions, compliance with research quality standards were presented by Wim Neuteboom, Netherlands Forensic Institute; Alastair Ross,  Victorian Institute of Forensic Medicine, Melbourne, Australia; Mario Rica,  General Commissary of Scientific Police, Spanish National Police;  Pavel Giverts, Firearm examiner, Division of Identification and Forensic Science, Israel Police; Diana Petrova, Deputy Head, Economic Crime Enforcement Department, State Police of Latvia.

Also during the conference were presented reports on economic, commodity, military, biological, trasological, construction and other types of research. In addition, the issues of peculiarities of appointment and conduct of forensic examinations both in Ukraine and in other countries of the world, forensic characteristics of certain types of crimes, issues of legislation in forensic activities and other topics were covered.

Kyiv Scientific Research Institute of Forensic Expertise thanks all those who participated in the III International Scientific and Practical Conference “Current Issues of Forensic Expertology, Criminalistics and Criminal Procedure” both with reports and as students. Despite the difficult situation in connection with the COVID-19 pandemic, the conference brought together a large number of participants from 25 countries and became the largest scientific conference in Ukraine.