1- What is the field of application in the U.S.A.?
Fire Investigation. Civil, Criminal
2- Is the NFPA 921 has influenced court decision in U.S.A.?
Very much so. NFPA 921 urges the use of the scientific method. Any fire
investigator who wants to have any credibility with a jury states that s/he
has followed 921, and therefore has followed the scientific method.
Investigators who really haven't followed the scientific method can have
their testimony excluded. See, Benfield v. Michigan Millers Mutual, a case
ruled on by the 11th Circuit court of Appeals in May of this year. U.S.C.A.
No. 97-2138
3- What is the impact of the NFPA 921 on fire and arson litigations?
It has had a major impact in many cases, and is almost always brought up in
fire cases where two fire investigators disagree as to cause, origin, or spread. John J. Lentini,
Certified Fire Investigator
Fellow, American Board of Criminalistics
There is no more open door by which you can enter into the study of natural
philosophy than by considering the physical phenomena of a candle. There is
not a law under which any part of this universe is governed which does not
come into play, and is not touched upon, in these phenomena.
Sam Lewis
Arson Investigation curriculum coordinator at the Georgia
Public Safety Training Center, 1000 Indian Springs Drive, Forsyth,
Georgia 31029, United States
I am the Arson Investigation curriculum coordinator at the Georgia
Public Safety Training Center, 1000 Indian Springs Drive, Forsyth,
Georgia 31029, United States. Since its publication in 1992, NFPA 921
has been a document of considerable consternation here in the State of
Georgia. Our neighboring state, Alabama, adopted NFPA 921 as a
"standard" for all arson investigations throughout that state. I'm sure
that they have since learned to regret that mistake.
In Georgia our state is governed by multiple agencies with various
jurisdictions for various aspects. The agency responsible for arson
investigation is the Office of Insurance and Safety Fire Commissioner.
That agency accepted NFPA 921 only as a "guide" which should be
considered as any other research and/or reference document available in
the field of arson investigation. (There are certain individuals
associated with scientific fields in the United States who want to
consider NFPA 921 to be much more than just a guide. It is self-serving
for them.)
As you will note in the NFPA 921, 1995 Edition, the NFPA attempted to
soften and clarify its position assuring the reader that it was a Guide
and not a Standard. Mr. Steve Sprouse, Assistant State Fire Marshal,
Office of Insurance and Safety Fire Commissioner, Seventh Floor, West
Tower, Floyd Building, # 2 Martin Luther King Jr. Drive, Atlanta,
Georgia, 30334, wrote Mr. Casey C. Grant, Secretary, Standards Council,
NFPA, on June 9, 1998 to further clarify the position of that company as
it relates to NFPA 921. I will include the contents of that letter for
your information:
"Dear Mr. Grant,
I hope your office may be of assistance to us in providing clarification
to the latest addition of NFPA 921. After having reviewed the 1998
edition, I observed that the Technical Committee added the definitions
of a standard and a guide to the Administration section of Chapter 1. I
applaud them for this effort.
As you may or may not be aware, certain individuals in the legal
community have attempted to hold NFPA 921 as the method in which fires
are to be investigated and have touted the document as a standard.
Although we find this document to be a good resource, along with a
multitude of other technical resourses in the field of fire origin and
cause, we do not recognize it as the standard for fire investigation.
The National Fire Protection Association has previously held that it was
a guide.
It is for this reason that I hope that you can clear up a matter of
concern to those of us in the field of fire and areson investigation.
The latest edition of your document clearly states on the rear cover,
FM-97 that NFPA 921 is located in the "Bibliography of Standards." Is
it the National Fire Protection Association's position to infer that 921
is a standard? It will certainly be the position of some Defense
Attorneys to purport this to be the case.
As a result, we find that we spend considerable time discussing whether
NFPA 921 is a standard or a guide and if we followed this standard. I
would appreciate your written response to clarify this issue for the
Fire Service, Law Enforcement Community, and those attorneys that
purport this document to be something that it is not."
(s) W.S. Sprouse, Assistant State Fire Marshal
Although this is becoming a very long response to your request for
information, I have reporduced Mr. Casey C. Grant's July 20, 1998's
response below:
"Dear Assistant Marshal Sprouse:
Thank you for your letter dated 9 June, 1998, with a question regarding
the status of NFPA 921, Guide for Fire and Explosion Investigations.
As you indicate in your letter, NFPA 921 is a guide in accordance with
Section 3-3.6.1 of the NFPA Regulations Governiing Committee Projects.
As such, it is misleading to include it as part of a list under the
heading "Bibliography of NFPA Standards". The title of this list should
instead state "Bibliography of NFPA Technical Committee Documents", and
thus, future published list of the one you have included with your
letter will be corrected to use the apppropriate terminology. The term
"Technical Committee Documents" is defined in Section 1-4 of the NFPA
Regualations Governing Committee Projects, and include a code, standard,
recommended practice, or guide excluding any index thereto.
I appreciate your bringing this question to our attention, and I hope
that my response provides the necessary clarifications."
(s) Casey C. Grant, P.E. Secretary, Standards Council
All arson investigators in Georgia are trained as to the contents of
NFPA 921 and the varios mistakes and inconsistencies contained therein.
Each investigator carries each edition of NFPA 921 to the witness stand
with him and copies of these two letters to combat unscrupulous
attorneys from making this publication into something that it was never
intended to be - a "Standard". Once the attorneys realize that the
investigators are very knowledgeable as the 921, it ceases to be a tool
for them during litigation. It is when they find an uninformed
investigator that they have a field day with him. I hope I have
provided some assistance and provided some help toward your training
session.
Sam Lewis, Instructor, Georgia Police Academy
Sam Lewis, Instructor, Georgia Police Academy (autre cas en litige)
Have a number of articles, from various publications, in our library
concerning 921. Among these is one which appeared in the March/April
1996 issue of NFPA Journal entitled "Fire Litigation: The Role of NFPA
921". I would be glad to send you copies of the articles, if you provide
me your mailing address.
I am not sure whether you are referring to the United States or the
United Kingdom. If your are referring to the U.K. my information is that
921 is not as yet widely used there, but is gaining popularitey in
continental Europe. We have had students at our school from Belguim and
Spain who have advised that it is becoming popular in those countries.
Our school is once a year in the fall and the lecturers are the authors
of NFPA 921.......SO THEY ARE VERY CURRENT ON THE TOPIC.
As far as the U.S. and Canada are concerned the document is quite popular
and is often used in the courts in Ontario.
Fire Facts Inc.
Dennis Merkley
Frank Florence (fflorence@nfpa.org)
I have reviewed your request on information on NFPA 921, because 921 is a Guide and not a Standard its use is up to the "Authority Having Jurisdiction. We realize that it has an impact on court decisions and litigations on Arson Fires, but we do not track this information.
I will give you the phone and E-mail numbers for Terry-Dawn Hewitt, who is a Principal member of the 921 Committee. I have been told that she may have this information. Phone (403)414-1439 E-mail tdhewitt@connect.ab.ca
NPFA 921 has impacted American fire investigators in a positive and negative
way.
Negative-civil attorneys primarily used the guide against the unprepared fire
investigator. Some public (criminal) attorneys also did this. While this was
happening, the courts were also demanding that expert witnesses give
scientific testimony. 921 promotes this so 921 was referenced by many
attorneys in both civil and criminal court cases.
921 has tremendously impacted fire litigations. More and more attorneys are
becoming intimate with it and using it: 1) to enhance their understanding of
the science 2) to tear down the opposing counsel's fire expert 3) but
rarely, to petition the court, stating that the fire investigator'' opinion
is not scientific and asking the court to prevent the testimony.
I have written a book called "Fire Loss Litigation in Canada", (by T.D.
Hewitt), published by Carswell and updated annually. It is in most major
law libraries. See if you can get a copy of my book from the local law
library or law school library - NFPA 921 is addressed in Chapter 11 (p.
11-27-11-31) and Appendix E (included in a 1997 update). If you cannot get
a copy of my book, please e-mail me your mailing address and I will send you
a copy of an article I wrote that addresses most of your questions.
With respect to cases in Canada, NFPA 921 has been considered by the Courts
in 3 cases that I know of. There are probably more, but they do not appear
in the law digests. General Accident Insurance Company (now the largest
insurer in Canada) has recently announced in seminars to all of its
adjusters, lawyers and investigators across Canada that compliance with NFPa
921 is now mandatory for any work done for General Accident! So it will
quickly have even more of an impact.
Good luck with your seminar and let me know if you need a copy of my article.
