The North Carolina Division of the International Association for Identification held its first meeting in High Point, NC on February 6,1938. The Division received its charter from the parent organization of the International Association for Identification on March 14, 1938.

 The North Carolina Division is the third oldest state division.  The parent organization has members in all 50 states and in many other countries and possessions.

During the fist meeting on February 6, 1938, it was established that the NCIAI was to be a forensic organization that would provide educational opportunities for its members in North Carolina.

With that, the NCIAI was established to cooperate and coordinate with the parent organization, the International Association for Identification. The NCIAI moved towards having legislation passed through the General Assembly of North Carolina to promote, build, a greater, cleaner, and more efficient Forensic Professional.

Qualifications and credentials of up and coming forensic professionals were the main focus of the organization’s first legislative movement. The NCIAI moved to put forth a Bill which stated, “...a technical expert to first qualify himself, prove beyond a question of doubt his ability to honestly and faithfully submit evidence before the Courts of the State of North Carolina and qualified experts in the various branches qualified experts in the various branches of technical and criminal investigation and identification of the North Carolina Division of the International Association for Identification.”

The first members of NCIAI also tried to instated licensure for forensic experts in North Carolina. The believed that licensure after completing the necessary steps successfully in proving proficiency and faithfulness in a specific area, should be available at a reasonable cost.

The licensure was important because it demonstrated to the courts that forensic professionals were serious about their education, continuing education, and honest about their intentions pertaining to evidence presented in court. The NCIAI wanted all Courts in North Carolina to recognize and accept the licenses, but to examine and approve of each forensic professional based on the specifics of each case independently.

Pursuant to the NCIAI’s Constitution, the organization holds two conferences each year annually. Both conferences feature various Speakers that present information on several aspects of forensic investigation.

Copyright 2007 North Carolina Division of the International Association for Identification

Email editor@nciai.org for Website Feedback.