Policies and procedures for science and technologyPolicies and procedures can quickly become obsolete if an effective policy coordination function is not coupled. The creation of scientific and technological policies and procedures aims to meet the documentation, maintenance, distribution of policy files and updating of procedures, as well as to provide guidance for collection and preparation documents, even in the context of criminal investigations and prosecutions. Documentation, policies, procedures and delegations should enable criminal investigation and prosecution efforts by addressing a number of key points: ease of access, cost-effectiveness, responsiveness and accountability (University of California Santa Cruz , 1994). Ease of access. Policy and procedure manuals are still not up to date. Investigators or prosecutors cannot always find the documents needed to make informed decisions. Therefore, an up-to-date online system will allow those who use or are directly affected by the policies and procedures to access them confidentially, when needed. A designated office or facility must be dedicated to the retention of relevant records, resources, or other documents. The institution should be responsible for responding to requests for documents as needed. However, it might be better to allocate human resources within establishments to investigative activities. Therefore, a comprehensive policy and procedure and guidelines should result in the following benefits: less time spent on the phone or email; locate a person, either a detective or forensic technician, to whom a question can be directed; fewer errors; and provide consistent responses (University of California at Santa Cruz, 1994, p. 2).Responsiveness. P...... middle of article....../forensics/toxicology/2.htmlSociety of Toxicology. (2005). Society of Toxicology. Retrieved June 30, 2010 from the Society of Toxicology: http://www.toxicology.org/AI/PUB/si05/Si05_Define.aspStanford University. (1999, December 21). Cost Sharing: Stanford University Policy and Procedure (RPH 3.5). Retrieved June 30, 2010 from Research Policy Handbook: http://rph.stanford.edu/3-5.htmlUniversity of California Santa Cruz. (1994, October 28). Guide to writing policy and procedure documents. Accessed June 28, 2010, from http://www.ucsc.edu/ppmanual/pdf/guide.pdfU.S. Ministry of Justice. (2009, December). Solicitation: Research and development in forensic crime scene and forensic death investigationsWecht, C., Rago, J., & Wecht, B. (Eds.). (2006). Forensic science and law: investigative applications in criminal, civil and family justice. FL, USA: CRC Press.