Ethics - Page 11 of 17 | The Truth About Forensic Science

Oooooh I’m telling your mama! What do you do when an analyst or a crime laboratory is fraudulent or grossly negligent in what they do?

On April 24, 2012, in Ethics, Ethics: Scientist, by Justin J. McShane

What do you do when an analyst or a crime laboratory is fraudulent or grossly negligent in what they do? As there is no meaningful forensic oversight in the United States today, we truly operate in a land not unlike the American Wild Wild West. As the great American West was being tamed, it was […]

More on Enzymatic Assay for Determination of BAC in a forensic context

On April 17, 2012, in Chemistry, Enzymatic Testing, Equipment, Ethics, Ethics: Scientist, Identification, by Justin J. McShane

Enzymatic Immunoassay (EIA) is a quick and indirect means of determining ethanol content. It’s original development was strictly for the purposes of a very quick determination of whether or not there was the possibility that there was ethanol in a patient. It was designed for the clinical emergency environment where we need a very quick […]

The importance of t0 in forensic chromatography

On April 3, 2012, in Chemistry, Equipment, Ethics, Ethics: Scientist, GC-FID & GC/MS, In The Courtroom, Laboratory Procedure, by Justin J. McShane

If you are bored and want to have a little fun, call up your local crime laboratory, ask for someone who preforms their chromatography (it doesn’t matter if it is liquid chromatography or gas chromatography). When you get that person ask them a simple question: What’s the t0 (pronounced “t subzero”) for your method that […]

Why per se Driving Under the Influence of Drug Based Prosecution is Not Scientific and How Probation Violations for Marijuana Use May Be Wrong

On March 13, 2012, in Chemistry, Equipment, Ethics, Ethics: Scientist, Identification, In The Courtroom, Laboratory Procedure, Pharmacology, by Justin J. McShane

I cannot imagine that a single rational and sane person cares for drug impaired drivers to be on the road among us driving what amounts to a guided missile weighing about 3,000 to 5,500 pounds or more. As has been shown time and again, a drug intoxicated driver can be a weapon of mass destruction. […]

Score one for Science: The DRE program is found to be unreliable and not admissible

On March 8, 2012, in Ethics, Ethics: Lawyer, Ethics: Scientist, In The Courtroom, Pharmacology, by Justin J. McShane

As I have blogged before DUID cases should be very difficult to prosecute due to the pharmacological differences among us. In this six part post we started to explore all of this: Part 1. Introduction Part 2. Pharmacokinetics Part 3. Pharmacodynamics Part 4. Bioavailabilty Part 5. “Free versus Bound Drug“ Part 6. Elucidating Pharmacodynamic Effect […]

Guest Blog Post From Dr. Frederic Whitehurst PhD JD: Of moos and clucks-the myth of FTIR identification

On March 8, 2012, in Chemistry, Contextual Bias, Equipment, Ethics, Ethics: Scientist, Identification, In The Courtroom, Infrared Spectroscopy, Solid Drug Dose, by Justin J. McShane

Of moos and clucks-the myth of FTIR identification By: Frederic Whitehurst, J.D., Ph.D. [1] OK, so we will now discuss moos and clucks. Which is the basis for the problem with Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FTIR) in forensic science. [2] If you close your eyes in a stock yard you can’t tell what moo came […]

Zero is not a valid data point for calibration purposes

On March 6, 2012, in Chemistry, Equipment, Ethics, Ethics: Scientist, Identification, In The Courtroom, Laboratory Procedure, Metrology, by Justin J. McShane

When the quantitative measurement really matters to determine guilt, we have to understand how that measurement is achieved. In the case of the analysis of biological samples that are tested, quantitation of an unknown is derived from a calibration curve. The proper construction of the calibration curve is a crucial component of quality control. It […]

Guest Blog Post From Dr. Frederic Whitehurst PhD JD: Circuitous thought-the myth of reliable and valid marijuana identification in the courtroom

On March 1, 2012, in Chemistry, Contextual Bias, Equipment, Ethics, Ethics: Scientist, Identification, In The Courtroom, Solid Drug Dose, by Justin J. McShane

Circuitous thought-the myth of reliable and valid marijuana identification in the courtroom By: Frederic Whitehurst, J.D., Ph.D. [1] As scientists we all agree that the hallmarks of science are validity and reliability. What do we mean by that? Well, the government scientist has to agree that his method of answering a question put to him […]

The myth of the neutral scientist doing forensic science

On February 28, 2012, in Contextual Bias, Ethics: Scientist, General Information, In The Courtroom, Laboratory Procedure, by Justin J. McShane

One of the most ridiculous claims that I hear in court is a claim by a forensic technician or expert witness (regardless of what particular discipline he or she is from) that somehow he or she is a neutral and detached scientist doing science, and therefore he or she has no bias whatsoever. This total […]

The Confrontation Clause: Who has to show up in court and why

On February 24, 2012, in Ethics, Ethics: Lawyer, In The Courtroom, Lectures, by Justin J. McShane

The below is a full lecture on the Confrontation Clause and the explanation of the “Primary Purpose Rule,” the “Particular Witness Rule,” and an examination of all of the current cases as decided or pending before the United States Supreme Court. This lecture is presented from a practical point of view for the benefit of […]

The definition of courage and personal integrity

On February 21, 2012, in Ethics, Ethics: Lawyer, by Justin J. McShane

The life of a criminal defense attorney is not glamorous. Typically, it’s far from it. We are derided by society for simply existing. When we take on socially controversial cases or causes or category of accused, we become the embodiment of that case or cause or that category and frequently become the focal point of […]

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