Monthly Archives: May 2016

Ballistics runs aground in TX. Its Forensic Comm ferrets out another mini-scandal

Posted on May 13, 2016 by csidds

This all started from a complaint filed by a solo lawyer from Texas. The complaint sounds strikingly similar to the Steve Chaney bitemark complaint that led to the shoot-down of the dentists training and teaching bitemarks at UTSA and elsewhere. … Continue reading →

Posted in criminal justice reform | Tagged , , , , , | 3 Comments

Another crime lab scandal arises from Virginia : Old school blood-typing failures

Posted on May 12, 2016 by csidds

On the heels of Keith Allen Harward’s 33 years of wrongful incarceration, Virginia is now tackling hundreds of cases over the decades containing more questionable forensic “science.” Harward’s erroneous identification from a bitemark is only the beginning. “The Innocence Project … Continue reading →

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Taking a look at forensic science fakery – The Country Dentist

Posted on May 10, 2016 by csidds

Lets get real, the connection between rigorous multiple studies in forensic science and what is done “in the field” can be described as inconsistently applied. Ive been exposed to a single Journal of Forensic Science article from 1984 that was … Continue reading →

Posted in AAFS, criminal justice reform, CSI, Dr. Michael West, Forensic Science, forensic testimony, junk forensic science | Tagged , , , , , | Leave a comment

MS Court hears substantial testimony about why bitemark conviction from 1992 was flawed

Posted on May 9, 2016 by csidds

  The following May 5th, 2016 newspaper article from the Columbus MS Dispatch outlines the dynamics of last week’s hearing in which Superior Court Judge Howard accepted voluminous evidence requested by the MS Supreme Court regarding bitemark and DNA evidence relevant … Continue reading →

Posted in AAFS, ABFO, Bite Marks, Bitemarks, criminal justice reform, Dr. Michael West, junk forensic science | Tagged , , , , , | Leave a comment

A rather chilling example of public drug-testing bills racing past forensic testing

Posted on May 2, 2016 by csidds

A decidedly poor application of  “forensic science” in the courts strikes again. Its obvious that legalizing pot in some states has taken criminalizing pot possession off their books and created a less than measured approach dealing with DUI stops. Multiple … Continue reading →

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Upgraded FBI dental system used to discover identities of missing persons @AmerDentalAssn

Posted on May 2, 2016 by csidds

Somewhat maligned prior to 2004, the dental ID portion of the NCIC (CJIS) Missing and Unidentified program was revamped to a much simpler data entry protocol and search parameters.  Integral to finding names of unknown deceased persons, law enforcement investigators must … Continue reading →

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