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Dwight
E. Adams - Assistant Director, Laboratory Division
Since entering
on duty with the FBI in 1983, Dr. Adams has held various
positions within the Laboratory Division. From 1987 to
1993 he served as an examiner and as Chief in the DNA Analysis
Unit. He was the first FBI Agent to testify in court on
DNA analysis and in all has testified more than 130 times
for both the prosecution and defense.
Prior to the
creation of the DNA Unit, Dr. Adams served on the research
team in the FBI Laboratory to develop and validate DNA-testing
procedures. Among his many research projects, one of the
most important included testing the reliability of the
procedures through validation research that would withstand
the scrutiny of the judicial system. This work enabled
the FBI to become the first public crime laboratory in
the United States to offer DNA testing in criminal casework.
From
1994 to 1996, Dr. Adams served as the supervisor of the
Interstate
Theft Squad and Multi-agency Interstate Theft Task Force
in the FBI’s Newark Division. During this assignment,
he was also the Violent Crimes program coordinator where
he supervised two successful undercover operations.
In
1997, Dr. Adams returned to the Laboratory Division where
he served
as Section Chief for the Forensic Science Research and
Training Center at Quantico, VA, then as Chief of the Scientific
Analysis Section at FBI Headquarters. He also has served
as Deputy Assistant Director and most recently as the “Acting” Director
of the FBI Laboratory.
Additionally,
Dr. Adams has served in the FBI’s Memphis and Washington
D.C. Field Offices where he worked violent crime and background
investigations.
During
his career, he has served as a member of the editorial
board for the
Journal of Forensic Sciences, editor of the Forensic Science
Communications, and as a member of the DNA Advisory Board,
established by the DNA Identification Act of 1994. He also
served as a commissioner on the Attorney General’s
National Commission on the Future of DNA Evidence.
Dr. Adams holds
a B.S. from the University of Central Oklahoma, an M.S.
from Illinois State University, and a PhD. in Biology from
the University of Oklahoma, which he earned in 1982.
As Assistant
Director, Dr. Adams leads one of the largest and most comprehensive
forensic laboratories in the world. He oversees diverse
functions, including: providing timely, high quality examinations
of physical evidence; analytical reports; expert testimony
in court; operational and technical support for investigations;
research and development of new tools for forensic and
investigative support; and training and symposia for crime
laboratory practitioners and law enforcement personnel.
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