In this appeal, the Court considers whether expert testimony regarding Shaken Baby Syndrome/Abusive Head Trauma (SBS/AHT) is sufficiently reliable to go before a jury in two separate cases — State v. Nieves and State v. Cifelli. The defense in both cases moved to exclude the testimony, challenging the scientific basis and reliability of the theory that shaking alone, without some other impact to the head, can cause the symptoms associated with SBS/AHT. The NJ Supreme Court held the State did not meet its burden in establishing the reliability of SBS/AHT testimony here.
North Carolina Office of Indigent Defense Services