The University of Michigan has created a new database, “Data for Defenders.” The database includes briefs, motions and transcripts related to forensic science and social science in court. It’s relatively small at the moment but will be added to over time. Additionally, the website contains information about incorporating social science into criminal defense practice.
Resources
Webinar: Neurocriminology: A Review for Legal Professionals
Webinar: Excessive Sugar Consumption and Criminality: A Neurocriminological, Clinical, and Forensic Perspective
Webinar: Excessive Sugar Consumption and Criminality: A Neurocriminological, Clinical, and Forensic Perspective
Don’t Plead to Weed Webinar
Free webinar offered by Emancipate NC
Biomechanics of Head Injuries and Applications to Criminal Cases
Free to attend 90 minute live webinar sponsored by NC Indigent Defense Services
<strong>Biomechanics of Head Injuries and Applications to Criminal Cases</strong>Read More
State v. McCrorey, 291 N.C. App. 650 (2023)
Court of Appeals decision finding that circumstantial evidence supported the conclusion that defendant sold fentanyl instead of heroin to the victim. The court also noted “[w]hile the evidence does not foreclose the possibility that fentanyl may not have been the sole cause of [the victim’s] death, there is ample evidence to support a conclusion that …
Bitemark Analysis: A NIST Scientific Foundation Review
The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) has reviewed the scientific foundations of bitemark analysis, a forensic technique in which marks on the skin of a biting victim are compared with the teeth of a suspected biter and found that the field is not supported by sufficient data. NIST has published its findings in …
Bitemark Analysis: A NIST Scientific Foundation ReviewRead More
2023 Western North Carolina Death Investigation Conference
Live full-day webinar
April 22, 2023
Offered by Northwest Area Health Education Center (AHEC), a program of Wake Forest University School of Medicine
2023 Western North Carolina Death Investigation ConferenceRead More
Webinar: Forensic Lab Quality Systems
Free to attend webinar offered by IDS and Mecklenburg County Public Defender’s Office
The Effect of Legal Hemp on Drug Dog Sniffs
Jeff Welty posted a 2-part series on the effect of legal hemp on drug dog sniffs on the SOG’s blog, North Carolina Criminal Law. They are linked here: Part 1 Part 2
The “Magnificent Seven Errors” in Forensic Autopsy Practice: The Italian Context
This article provides a framework for identifying potential errors in death investigations. Attorneys should consider whether any of these are potential issues in their homicide cases. The types of errors identified are: oversights in autopsy technique, incorrect collection of photographic and video material, unauthorized attendance at the autopsy, missing/mistaken reporting at any stage of the …
The “Magnificent Seven Errors” in Forensic Autopsy Practice: The Italian ContextRead More
State v. Graham, 882 S.E.2d 719 (2023)
Error to admit CMPD expert testimony regarding fingerprint evidence where testimony lacked detail about methodology used and failed to demonstrate reliable application of his procedure to the facts.
State v. Hudson, 721 S.E.2d 763 (2012) (unpub)
NAS Report concluded that the ACE-V method of latent fingerprint analysis is likely not as reliable as often portrayed, however the Court of Appeals found that the NAS Report did not conclude that fingerprint evidence is too unreliable to be admitted at trial. On appeal, defendant did not show failure to challenge the general method …