Defense attorneys may decide to make a motion for independent testing of forensic evidence in cases where either the State has chosen not to complete forensic testing of an item of evidence or where the State has tested the item and the defense would like it to be re-tested. This issue has come up more …
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Post on new fees for forensic expert testimony
School of Government Professor Jessica Smith authored an informative post entitled Imposing Fees for Forensic Expert Testimony — Is It Constitutional? on the North Carolina Criminal Law blog this morning. The post looks at a new $600 fee imposed on defendants when a State Crime Lab or a local crime lab analyst testifies at trial regarding …
New State Crime Lab limits on items of evidence to be tested
The North Carolina State Crime Lab has released new Evidence Submission Guidelines (See Special Notice #3, starting on p. 6 of 71), effective for items of evidence submitted on or after September 1, 2013. Of special note are new limits on the number of items of evidence that law enforcement may submit in cases. The …
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Changes to Protocols for DNA Interpretation
Recently, the State Crime Lab has undergone several rounds of changes and updates to their protocols and standard operating procedures (SOPs) for the analysis and interpretation of DNA evidence. Attorneys should be aware of these changes and that only cases worked on or after the effective date will be subject to the new policies. Previously-worked …
Defense attorney taps into the NSA’s surveillance of telephone metadata in hopes of finding exculpatory evidence
Among the documents leaked by Edward J. Snowden to the Guardian in June 2013 was an April 2013 order by the FISA Court directing Verizon to provide the National Security Agency (NSA) records of “telephony metadata” for all foreign calls between the U.S. and other countries and all domestic calls within the U.S, including local …
Substitute Analyst cases update
The NC Supreme Court decided several cases in June that dealt with the admissibility of testimony by substitute forensic analysts. The lead case in this series is State v. Ortiz-Zape, a case in which a forensic chemist testified for the state regarding the results that a non-testifying analyst produced using the gas chromatograph mass spectrometer …
Evening at the School of Government, Part III: Firearms 101
We are excited to announce “Firearms 101,” the third program in our Evenings at the School of Government series. This series, cosponsored by the UNC School of Government and NC Office of Indigent Defense Services, consists of free presentations on forensic evidence and other criminal law topics that are designed to enhance the knowledge of criminal …
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Accessing Scientific Journal Articles
For attorneys trying to access scientific journal articles related to the forensic evidence in their cases, purchasing these articles online can be cost-prohibitive at around $30 per article. If someone in your office has an affiliation with a university, such as an intern, paralegal, or assistant who is pursuing another degree, they may be able …
Techniques for Collecting and Analyzing Fingerprints
Fingerprint evidence left behind by a suspect or victim may identify who was at a crime scene and what he or she touched. However, it is important for defense attorneys to know, and to inform the jury, that the techniques used to locate and identify fingerprints are far from a perfect science. An understanding of …
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Can Non-Testifying Defense Experts Be Subpoenaed by the State?
As defense attorneys prepare for trial they frequently reach out to experts to determine the strengths and weaknesses of their client’s case and to gain a better understanding of the evidence. In fact, proper preparation for a trial often demands that an attorney assemble information by speaking with experts in an effort to comprehend the …
Can Non-Testifying Defense Experts Be Subpoenaed by the State?Read More
Reports of Problems with Polygraph Test
A recent piece of investigative journalism by Marisa Taylor of McClatchy Newspapers has created even more skepticism about the already scientifically-questionable polygraph test. Although polygraph test results are not admissible as evidence in most U.S. courts, the results of a polygraph test play a major role in the police investigation, often times helping the police …
NIJ Study of Near Misses and Wrongful Convictions
The National Institute of Justice recently released their study Predicting Erroneous Convictions which examines why some innocent people are wrongfully convicted while others are acquitted, using a case comparison method rather than a traditional “case study” method. Researchers at American University who compared a group of 260 cases that occurred between 1980 and 2012 where …
Forensics@NIST 2012 videos available online
The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) is a non-regulatory federal agency dedicated to advancing measurement science, standards, and technology. NIST manages grants for technological research, works with employers and private contractors, and maintains a laboratory for in-house research in a wide variety of fields, including forensic science. Each year, NIST holds a conference …
Dogs – 1, Defendants – 1
Today, the U.S. Supreme Court decided the second of two dog sniff cases before it this term. In Florida v. Jardines, the Court held that taking a drug-sniffing dog on the front porch of a house is a search for purposes of the Fourth Amendment. The Court held that the front porch is within the …
BBC Knowledge Explainer DNA
Here is a 3-minute video that explains the basics of DNA’s form and function. It’s part of the BBC’s online Explainer documentary series. Though the focus of this short animated film is not forensic DNA analysis, it gives important information that attorneys or jurors need to understand before attempting to understand forensic DNA analysis. Attorneys …