Computer Fire Modeling and the Law: Application to Forensic Fire Engineering Investigations

David Icove; Thomas May

doi:10.51501/jotnafe.v38i1.167

Authors

David J. Icove, Ph.D., P.E., DFE (NAFE 899F) University of Tennessee
Thomas R. May, M.S., J.D. Law Office of Thomas R. May

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.51501/jotnafe.v38i1.167

Keywords:

Fire modeling, forensic fire engineering investigation, animations, simulations, verification and validation, admissibility of evidence, expert reports, expert testimony, Frye challenges, Daubert challenges

Abstract

Computer fire modeling can be a two-edged tool in forensic fire engineering investigations. Professional standards of care recommend that fire modeling’s primary use is in examining multiple hypotheses for a fire as opposed to determining its origin. This paper covers the current acceptable benefits of computer fire models, historical and pending legal case law, and methods to use modeling results within expert reports and testimony. Particular issues reviewed are the use of animations versus simulations, evidentiary guidelines, and authentication using verification and validation studies.

Author Biographies

David J. Icove, Ph.D., P.E., DFE (NAFE 899F), University of Tennessee

David J. Icove is the UL Professor of Practice at The University of Tennessee, Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, Knoxville, Tennessee. He is a retired Federal law enforcement agent and the co-author of several textbooks on fire investigation, including Kirk’s Fire Investigation, considered one of the leading expert treatises in the field.

He is a Certified Fire Investigator, a Registered Professional Engineer, and a Fellow in the Society of Fire Protection Engineers (SFPE) and a Diplomate in the National Academy of Forensic Engineers (NAFE).

https://www.eecs.utk.edu/people/faculty/icove/

Thomas R. May, M.S., J.D., Law Office of Thomas R. May

Thomas R. May is a forensic investigator, published author, and educator. He has a B.S. in Fire and Safety Engineering Technology from the University of Cincinnati, an M.S. in Forensic Science from the University of New Haven, and a J.D. from Cleveland-Marshall College of Law at Cleveland State University.

A retired firefighter with the City of Cleveland, Ohio, he later served as a forensic fire investigator with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers in Operation Task Force Safe, supporting the Multi-National Forces in Iraq. He is an Adjunct Professor in the College of Justice and Safety at Eastern Kentucky University.

A licensed attorney, he is admitted to practice law in the State of New Mexico, as well in the Federal Tenth Circuit, United States Court of Appeals.

https://www.tommaylaw.com/

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