North Carolina Office of Indigent Defense Services
// by Sarah Olson
April 2016 U.S. Department of Justice protocol for medical forensic examinations of children. See requirements for documentation and photography. For the interview portion of the investigation, attorneys should be aware of the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD) Investigative Interview Protocol.
National Protocol for Sexual Abuse Medical Forensic Examinations – PediatricRead More
// by Sarah Olson
The 2016 PCAST Report found that “firearms analysis currently falls short of the criteria for foundational validity, because there is only a single appropriately designed study to measure validity and estimate reliability. The scientific criteria for foundational validity require more than one such study, to demonstrate reproducibility. Whether firearms analysis should be deemed admissible based on …
// by Sarah Olson
Swedish Agency for Health Technology Assessment 2016 review of the available scientific evidence finding: There is limited scientific evidence that the triad and therefore its components can be associated with traumatic shaking (low quality evidence). There is insufficient scientific evidence on which to assess the diagnostic accuracy of the triad in identifying traumatic shaking (very …
// by Sarah Olson
Chicago Tribune article uses a case example to demonstrate the dangers of using DNA evidence that has very little probative value. New technology is allowing DNA analysis to be performed on very small amounts of DNA which may generate incomplete genetic profiles that may or may not be meaningful in a case.
Weak DNA evidence could undermine justice, experts sayRead More
// by Chris Liu-Beers
Today, the court of appeals reversed a defendant’s drug convictions because the indictments identified the controlled substances in question using terms that are widely used to describe the drugs, but that are neither the chemical names listed in the controlled substance schedules nor – according to the court – “trade names” for the drugs. Because …
// by Sarah Olson
In this research study, as many as 22 particles were found to have undergone tertiary transfer via a series of handshakes following a firearm discharge. Significant numbers of particles were also recovered from bystanders, with as many as 36 being detected on a sample taken from an individual who was in the proximity of a …
// by Sarah Olson
Feb. 2015 Ted Talk video by Dr. Greg Hampikian covers forensic DNA errors including statistical and interpretation errors and contamination issues.
// by Sarah Olson
4-part Washington Post series on the flawed “science” of bite mark analysis
The path forward on bite mark matching – and the rearview mirrorRead More
// by Sarah Olson
// by Sarah Olson
A guide to the legal issues presented by the collection of digital evidence in criminal cases, written mainly for North Carolina judges, lawyers, and officers. This book addresses how such evidence may be obtained and the rules that govern its use in court and is available for purchase.
// by Sarah Olson
// by Sarah Olson
// by Sarah Olson
This National Institute of Justice publication was prepared by SWGFAST in 2011. All 15 chapters are available for free online. This publication sets standards for fingerprint identification and addresses issues such as bias and reliability of the technique
// by Sarah Olson
// by Sarah Olson
The National Academy of Sciences issued a landmark report evaluating the scientific research on memory and eyewitness identification in October 2014. The report provides recommendations for improving police identification procedures and for how courts should handle eyewitness evidence. The report is available for purchase or free download.
Identifying the Culprit Assessing Eyewitness Identification (2014)Read More