I have been monitoring the work of The Boston Globe and others about this. It is simply so very shocking. It is beyond alarming. It is, simply put, the single worst forensic science laboratory scandal in recorded history. I give you Annie Dookhan. I predict that this scandal is only going to get worse. Much, […]
This only makes sense in the bizzarro world of Texas DPS: No proof, but we prosecute!
One of the tenants of the criminal justice system is that everyone accused is presumed innocent. That means that everyone starts out in the courtroom with a not guilty. It remains a not guilty throughout the trial no matter how many witnesses come forward or what they say. It remains so even in the jury […]
Steven Barnes talks about the nightmare of innocence at the 2012 ACS Fall meeting (Forensic Science, Chemistry and the Law)
On August 20, 2012, the American Chemical Society at its biannual meeting held a special Presidential Seminar called “Innocence! The Work of the Innocence Project.” It was funded by The McShane Firm, LLC and presented through the Chemistry and the Law Division and the Forensic Science, Chemistry and the Law subdivision. At the presentation, were three exonerees. […]
Fingerprints and the idea of uniqueness
Recently published was a thought provoking article about the idea of uniqueness of fingerprints. I thought it was so thought provoking that I have reproduced it here in its entirety. What do you think? Why Fingerprints Aren’t Proof Fingerprint matching is a vital investigative tool. But despite its legendary aura of infallibility, courtroom claims of […]
American Chemical Society Science & the Congress Project
The American Chemical Society in conjunction with The Innocence Project held a symposium that was funded by The McShane Firm, LLC entitled “Forensic Science Chemistry and the Law: Innocence! The Work of the Innocence Project” on August 20, 2012 at the ACS National Meeting in Philadelphia. The ACS is continuing to push for legitimate science […]
When it rains, it pours: St Paul crime laboratory
In an article published today by the Minnesota Public Radio, we hear an unusual story about the St. Paul crime laboratory. It’s not unusual in that there is a crime laboratory failure, unfortunately and sadly that is at least a once a week occurrence. But what makes the report unusual is that the report speaks of […]
Raymond Santana talks about the nightmare of innocence at the 2012 ACS Fall meeting (Forensic Science, Chemistry and the Law)
On August 20, 2012, the American Chemical Society at its biannual meeting held a special Presidential Seminar called “Innocence! The Work of the Innocence Project.” It was funded by The McShane Firm, LLC and presented through the Chemistry and the Law Division and the Forensic Science, Chemistry and the Law subdivision. At the presentation, were three exonerees. […]
The illusion of choice: The Limits of Science—and Scientists
It must be tough to be a testifying witness in any trial. It must be incredibly difficult to be a testifying expert witness at trial. There is pressure to have the answers. There is pressure to preform in keeping with one side or the other’s theory of the case. There is pressure. At some point, […]
Readability versus trueness
People mistake readability with trueness all the time. Imagine a full-sized live elephant gets on scale. The scale reads “113 pounds.” Not a single one of us would have any difficulty rejecting that measurement. We intuit that it is wrong. Really wrong. It’s not feasible. It’s not plausible. There is no way it could be. […]
The McShane Firm uses DNA to Free the Falsely Accused
It was a little past midnight on January 28. 2012. It was a “normal” night. A horrible crime was about to happen. A good police officer trying to do his duty to protect and serve the community of Harrisburg, Pennsylvania was about to be assaulted. He saw a car that was violating the law. He […]
Is forensic science truly scientific?
There is a fundamental question before us today: In the world of forensic science as practiced today, is it truly scientific? Or does forensic science create a veneer of science that whitewashes what in reality is science fiction? We have blogged on it before: The scientific framework of forensic science is it wrong? The scientific method […]
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