In State v. Carter, 237 N.C. App. 274 (2014) the NC Court of Appeals found that a trial court abused its discretion by admitting an officer’s testimony that narcotics indicator field test kits indicated the presence of cocaine on various items. The court cited State v. Ward, 364 N.C. 133, 142 (2010) which held that “expert witness testimony required …
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Draft Policy Recommendations by the National Commission on Forensic Science
The National Commission on Forensic Science has released six documents for public review and comment. The Commission’s recommendations, if adopted, will be recommendations to the Attorney General of the United States. However, they may become recognized as best practices for practitioners and courts dealing with forensic evidence. Attorneys or others who wish to comment on these recommendations …
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Stingrays and Privacy
The Florida Supreme Court recently issued an opinion holding that the Fourth Amendment protections apply to real time cell site location information. The court distinguishes real-time cell site location records from historical data, emphasizing that historical cell site location records are not at issue in this case. This real time location surveillance is done with …
NACDL Offers New Training Scholarship for Indigent Defense Attorneys
The National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers (NACDL) is offering a new program of scholarship assistance for indigent defense providers. The scholarships will be available to public defenders, contractors, and private appointed counsel to allow defenders to attend criminal defense training programs nationwide. These grant-supported scholarships will be awarded in the form of full or …
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What is in a State Crime Laboratory Lab Report?
Many attorneys have asked me what should be included in a lab report from the State Crime Lab. Often in District Court DWI cases or through discovery, defense attorneys receive only a 1-2 page report called a Lab Report. For each case that is analyzed by the State Crime Laboratory, the lab produces a Case …
Familial DNA Testing
by Emily Zvejnieks Familial DNA testing, an innovative yet highly controversial technique, is being used in several states. This blog post will provide an explanation of what familial DNA testing entails and briefly discuss its Fourth Amendment implications. In standard DNA testing where there is an unknown sample, that unknown sample may be compared against …
Shaken Baby Syndrome: How Bad Science Can Result in False Confessions
For the past decade, the theory of shaken baby syndrome has been under attack. See here and here. In January, the U.S. District Court of the Northern District of Illinois granted Defendant Jennifer Del Prete’s habeas corpus petition where her conviction for first degree murder was based on faulty evidence of shaken baby syndrome. Del …
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Cognitive Bias and Forensic Anthropology
A study looking at how the conclusions of forensic anthropologists may be influenced by extraneous information highlights the importance of protecting all scientists from potentially biasing information. Forensic anthropologists determine the gender, national origin, and age of a person at the time of death. In some cases this determination must be based solely on skeletal …
Stingrays: What defense attorneys need to know
Law enforcement agencies nationwide have been secretly using IMSI (international mobile subscriber identity) catchers to track suspects through their cell phones. Typically this surveillance occurs without a warrant or court order. Also called “Stingray,” this device tracks cell phones using the radiofrequency signals radiating from the phone. The device is a shoebox-sized receptor that mimics …
Using cell tower data to track a suspect’s location
With the recent U.S. Supreme Court decision Riley v. California, the topic of cell phone forensics is on the mind of many attorneys. Cell tower location tracking is a related area where investigators gather information about a cell phone’s location using data from cellular towers contained in phone records. Attorneys should be aware that location …
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Strategic Litigation at the Innocence Project: Fighting to Change the Law around the Leading Causes of Wrongful Conviction
by M. Chris Fabricant and Karen Newirth The Innocence Project is seeking partners to litigate test cases involving unreliable forensic sciences and eyewitness misidentification. Attorneys with cases of potential interest should contact the IP directly at the email address provided below. On the morning of November 3, 1984, 63-year-old Ione Cychosz was found dead in …
Meeting with lab analysts and forensic pathologists prior to trial
Lab analysts at the State Crime Lab and forensic pathologists and toxicologists at the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner (OCME) are available to discuss cases with attorneys prior to trial. These experts can provide important information about the tests that were performed, the limitations of those tests, and the possibility of doing additional testing. Attorneys and …
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Hinton v. Alabama: Effective Counsel and Forensic Expertise
by Sarah Turberville, Senior Counsel, Criminal Justice Program, The Constitution Project on Tuesday, February 25, 2014 This article is re-posted from the National Association for Public Defense (NAPD) March newsletter. Please view the NAPD newsletter, available here, for additional articles relevant to effective criminal defense. On February 24th, the United States Supreme Court issued a per curiam reversal in the case …
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Participants Needed for Online Study on Forensic Evidence
Professors Brandon Garrett and Gregory Mitchell of the University of Virginia School of Law are conducting research on how people evaluate forensic evidence, and are inviting lawyers to participate in this research. Participation is voluntary and anonymous and takes only a few minutes. The study involves a few questions about a hypothetical criminal case and …
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Director of North Carolina State Crime Laboratory position posted
The North Carolina State Crime Laboratory has posted the position of lab director. The lab is seeking a candidate with a Bachelor’s degree, preferably in the physical or biological sciences with eight years of laboratory experience. The posting is open through November 25, 2013. Here is a link to the posting which describes additional qualifications. …
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