North Carolina Office of Indigent Defense Services
Why and how to use a Mitigation Specialist in a non-capital case Attorneys who represent clients in capital cases are familiar with the requirement that someone be able to recognize the presence of mental health and psychological impairments serve as a member of the defense team. These professionals, mitigation specialists, are qualified by training and …
Working with a Mitigation Specialist in a non-capital caseRead More
NC Indigent Defense Services, the Duke Law Center for Criminal Justice and Professional Responsibility, and the Duke Law Center for Science and Justice are pleased to announce the sixth annual CLE, “Whiskey in the Courtroom: Evolving Trends in Forensic Science.” Whiskey 6 will take place on March 6, 2020 at Duke Law School. Forensic science experts …
Sixth Annual Whiskey in the Courtroom: Evolving Trends in Forensic ScienceRead More
Forensic clinicians may face challenging conditions when conducting evaluations in the correctional setting. By working together to ensure adequate testing conditions, attorneys and forensic experts can address some of these challenges. It is incumbent on the forensic clinician to consider how examination results can be affected by various factors that are especially relevant to forensic …
Forensic assessment checklist for conducting evaluations in the correctional settingRead More
Attorneys have asked me what discovery should be available from the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner in cases where an autopsy was performed by that office. The Autopsy Report is a public record. It can be requested through the OCME website, or it can be provided through discovery. Photos, videos, or audio recordings of …
What records are available in a death investigation case?Read More
The question of how to have forensic evidence tested or re-tested by an independent laboratory comes up in my case consultations. This post will outline the general process of requesting that evidence be independently tested in a court-appointed case, and I am happy to talk with attorneys about their specific cases and help weigh the …
Like many other experts, medical examiners use terms of art which might be confusing for non-experts. The use of the term “homicide” to classify a death might confuse jurors and attorneys alike. It may, therefore, be worthwhile to take steps to ensure that a medical examiner’s testimony conveys the proper information despite using a potentially …
Below is an offer of support from Chris Fabricant at the Strategic Litigation department at the Innocence Project in NY. The Strategic Litigation department at the Innocence Project works to address the leading contributing causes of wrongful conviction: unvalidated and misapplied forensic science, eyewitness misidentification evidence, and false confessions. We are writing to express our …
Friday, January 10, 2020NC Judicial Center, 901 Corporate Center Drive, Raleigh, NCSponsored by NC Indigent Defense Services5.0 hours of General CLE Credit anticipated The NC Office of Indigent Defense Services will offer a continuing education program that is designed to enhance the knowledge of criminal defense attorneys regarding the use of expert testimony to communicate …
Originally posted on Nov. 12, 2019 on the North Carolina Criminal Law blog. The advent of cannabis legalization across the country has led to a proliferation of new types of cannabis products. There are skin patches, food and drinks (for humans and pets), vaporizer or “vape” cartridges (or “carts”), and different concentrate or extract products (“dabs”, “wax” or “shatter”, among other names). [Click …
Carts, Wax, and Oh, My: The New World of Marijuana ExtractsRead More
Oct. 2019 – United States District Judge found that in a case involving interpretation of a complex DNA mixture where the relevant contributor contributed 7% of the DNA in the mixture, the STRmix software report did not meet the Daubert reliability standard for admissibility as evidence.
MI federal judge disallows testimony about DNA mixture interpretationRead More
As forensic labs are transitioning to a new method of interpreting DNA mixtures using software-driven probabilistic genotyping methods, attorneys will need to become familiar with the changes that are coming to lab reports and testimony. The Mecklenburg County Public Defender’s Office is hosting a free to attend CLE on DNA Mixture Interpretation: Conventional and Software-driven Probabilistic …
Originally posted on the Envista Forensics Blog on Oct. 7, 2019 by Larry Daniel, Spencer McInvaille, Eric Grabski The amount of cell phone record location information being admitted as evidence in trial is occurring at an unprecedented rate. Juries across the U.S., and globally are being presented with call detail record analysis as evidence of …
Are There Really Flaws in Cell Phone Location Evidence?Read More
In 2010, Michael Ryan was convicted of first degree murder and sentenced to death for a 2007 homicide. While the case was on direct appeal and as a result of the Motion for Appropriate Relief hearing, an order issued by Judge W. Erwin Spainhour granted Michael Ryan a new trial in 2017. The State appealed …
Granting of new trial in capital case with unreliable DNA evidence affirmedRead More
October 19 (1 pm to 5 pm) and October 20 (all day – 9 am to 5 pm). Forensic evidence, from DNA to fingerprints to ballistics, has never been more important in criminal cases. Actually litigating scientific evidence in the courtroom can be challenging and requires some specialized skills. Duke University School of Law is …
On Friday, August 30, 2019, a group of 20 attorneys, investigators, and law students visited the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner (OCME). The group met with Dr. Michelle Aurelius, who became the Chief Medical Examiner following Dr. Deborah Radisch’s retirement earlier this summer. The group also met with Brad Brecher, the Agency Legal Consultant …
