Author Archives: csidds

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About csidds

Dr. Michael Bowers is a long time forensic consultant in the US and international court systems.

FORENSIC FOCUS | Links to Science, News Trends and the Law

FORENSIC FOCUS LINKS: Monday Feb 17, 2014 FORENSIC CASES, RESEARCH AND TRAINING with some criminal justice. 1. Register for Tuesday Feb 18 webcast presentations at the AAFS annual meeting. Topics are NIJ funding grantees forensic projects and DIY funding opportunities. … Continue reading

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Forensic Focus Picks – ADVANCED FORENSIC REFORM BILL INTRODUCED – Science, News Trends and the Law

The response to my last blog expanding  to multi-disciplinary forensic science topics has been encouraging. Trends are evolving rapidly in the external scrutiny of forensics by media and Congressional/governmental entities. There is still a paucity of forensic research to report … Continue reading

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Forensic Focus Picks – Science, News Trends and the Law

What’s trending today. The biggest problem with forensic science is that’s there is almost NO information about research. What you see is what there is. Fingerprints. French researchers announce much higher resolutions available for physical analysis. They will still need … Continue reading

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FORENSICS | Richardson Bite Mark case exposes ABFO experts’ assurances as folly

Originally posted on FORENSICS and LAW in FOCUS @ CSIDDS | News and Trends:
Being “tough on crime” is a cliche used by some involved in politics, law enforcement, and used by certain forensic practitioners. I prefer the phrase “smart on crime.”…

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FORENSICS | The Hon. Harry T. Edwards, co-chair of the NAS 2009 report on forensics, speaks to the Commission on Forensic Science

Last week, Judge Edwards had a few comments regarding the tasking challenges facing the newly constructed Committee on Forensic Science. He’s the fellow who has spoken so clearly on the aftermath of the NAS forensic report that voiced scientific disappointment … Continue reading

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Bitemarks and Wrongful Executions: Law Prof Considers the Connection

A law professor has an impressive blog post that elaborates on the dangers of bad forensic science leading to executions of innocent defendants.  Read it here. He also has a few things to say about bitemark identification. A recent bitemark … Continue reading

Posted in AAFS, ABFO, Bad Forensic Science, Bitemarks, Forensic Science, National FOrensic Science Commission, wrongful convictions | Tagged , , , , | 3 Comments

FORENSICS | Nature (prestigious science magazine) releases “Faulty Forensics Under Fire” about Bitemark Unreliabilty

The Nature piece starts with this picture and a following caption.  “There is little evidence that bite marks on a crime victim’s skin allow reliable identification of the perpetrator.” For those who think the National Commission on Forensic Science is … Continue reading

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FORENSICS | Review of questionable research on bite marks. US taxpayers’ $715,000 funded it.

In a recent post, I promised to do a review of this promised-to-be-published “paradigm proof” from a Marquette University news release which revealed a “silver bullet” forensic cure to bite marks’ spotty history. The caption for the news release is … Continue reading

Posted in AAFS, ABFO, Bad Forensic Science, Bitemarks, Forensic Science, junk forensic science, National FOrensic Science Commission, wrongful convictions | Tagged , , , , , , | 1 Comment

FORENSICS | National Commission on Forensic Science Publishes Bowers’ Comments on Bite Mark Accreditation

On Friday, January 31, 2014, the NCFS published their agenda for its one and one-half day meeting starting next week.  The Commission allowed public comments regarding the panel’s tasks and accepted  C. Michael Bowers DDS JD documentation regarding the status of … Continue reading

Posted in AAFS, ABFO, Bite Marks, Bitemarks, exoneration, Forensic Science, junk forensic science, National FOrensic Science Commission, William Richards Exoneration Case, wrongful convictions | 2 Comments

FORENSICS | THE SILVER BULLET? : $715,000, three year long research project promises to support admissibility of BITE MARK IDENTIFICATION

Too bad the chief investigator has a history of being involved in the wrongful conviction of  Robert Lee Stinson in WI. He reports (with other contributors, all are Marquette University faculty; mostly dentists)  results that support the bite mark “match” he … Continue reading

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