forensic experts

12 Stories

Pair Wrongfully Convicted of Murder to Get $25M Payout

Connecticut settlement involves forensic expert Henry Lee, accused of fabricating evidence

(Newser) - Connecticut's attorney general has agreed to a $25.2 million settlement with two men who spent decades in prison for murder, based partly on evidence presented by famed forensic scientist Henry Lee that a judge later found was fabricated. Ralph "Ricky" Birch and Shawn Henning were convicted in...

Crime Labs Often Reach Dubious Conclusions
Forensic Scientists Often
Produce Dubious Results
LONGFORM
May 28, 2022 4:00 PM CDT

Forensic Scientists Often Produce Dubious Results

For decades, flawed and fabricated evidence has been used to convict innocent people

(Newser) - G. Michele Yezzo worked for 32 years as a forensic scientist in Ohio. She resigned in 2009, after being reprimanded by her supervisor for "interpretational and observational errors" that "could lead to a substantial miscarriage of justice." By then, Yezzo had amassed a 449-page personnel file loaded...

Forensic Expert Suggests Epstein Was Murdered
Forensic Expert
Suggests Epstein
Was Murdered
UPDATED
Oct 30, 2019 9:35 AM CDT

Forensic Expert Suggests Epstein Was Murdered

Neck fractures imply homicidal strangulation: Dr. Michael Baden

(Newser) - A forensic pathologist hired by Jeffrey Epstein's brother says the financier may have been murdered inside his Manhattan prison cell on Aug. 10. "There's evidence here of homicide that should be investigated," Dr. Michael Baden, a former New York City medical examiner who witnessed the autopsy,...

Sorry, Dexter: Blood Spatter Analysis May Be Bogus

ProPublica looks at how one man nearly single-handedly created the field

(Newser) - It looks like unassailable science when presented on shows like Dexter or CSI, and, far more significantly, in countless courtrooms across the nation. But as a report in ProPublica explains, the science behind blood-spatter analysis may not be as sound as people think. The story looks at how one man,...

FBI Gave Bad Forensics Testimony for Years

Hair-comparison experts 'overstated' the facts, FBI admits

(Newser) - Impressed when an FBI forensic expert testifies in court? Jurors likely are too, but the FBI's hair-comparison unit actually gave unscientific testimony against criminal defendants for more than 20 years before 2000, according to the FBI and the Justice Dept. Among the FBI's 28 microscopic hair experts, 26...

Autopsy: Chilean Leader Allende Died of Suicide

New findings put to rest 37-year debate

(Newser) - After 37 years, a new autopsy has confirmed that former Chilean president Salvador Allende killed himself with an assault rifle, and was not murdered by troops storming the presidential palace as leftists like Fidel Castro claimed. Forensic analysis showed that his head injuries were inflicted by a single AK-47 and...

Casey Anthony Trial: Was a Heart-Shaped Sticker Placed Over Caylee's Mouth?
Caylee's Killer May Have Put Heart Sticker Over Her Mouth
Casey Anthony Trial
Jun 13, 2011 5:44 PM CDT

Caylee's Killer May Have Put Heart Sticker Over Her Mouth

Forensics expert found dime-sized residue on duct tape

(Newser) - A heart-shaped sticker might have been affixed to the duct tape placed over Caylee Anthony's mouth, according to the testimony of a forensic examiner in the murder trial of mom Casey Anthony. Residue in the dime-sized shape of a heart was observed on the duct tape, reports People, and...

Video Games to Help CSI Teams Solve Crimes

Gaming platform will recreate crime scenes

(Newser) - The real-life counterparts of forensics experts on all those CSI shows will soon be getting a helping hand from the world of video games. A team at North Carolina State University is adapting the platform behind games like FusionFall and VooDude to recreate crime scenes, allowing investigators to play out...

Notes Scoured for Watergate Key
 Notes Scoured 
 for Watergate Key 
Nixon's missing 18 1/2 minutes
Nov 19, 2009 8:47 AM CST

Notes Scoured for Watergate Key

Hope to fill in gaps with cutting-edge forensics

(Newser) - Forensic scientists think their latest tools could solve one of the enduring mysteries of American politics: what was said in the 18 1/2 minutes missing from the Watergate tapes? The answer may lie in the yellow notepad on which Nixon's chief of staff, HR Haldeman, took notes on his meeting...

Crime Labs Employ Shoddy Science: Report

Experts will call for independent agency to oversee forensics

(Newser) - The country's crime labs are seriously deficient, according to a new report that's expected to shake up the field of forensics, the New York Times reports. Evidence portrayed as incontrovertible is often far from it, says the report, which Congress commissioned from the National Academy of Sciences. Forensic analysis often...

Scots Build Replica of Bach's Head
Scots Build Replica of Bach's Head
Mar 1, 2008 8:40 PM CST

Scots Build Replica of Bach's Head

Rendering is based on a cast, portrait, and papers from his time

(Newser) - Forensic artists have re-created Johann Sebastian Bach’s head based on a cast of his skull and documents from the composer’s time, the BBC reports. The model, built at Scotland’s Dundee University, is “the most complete face that can be built from the available reliable information,”...

Spector's Cash His Best Defense
Spector's Cash His Best Defense
Sep 27, 2007 1:22 PM CDT

Spector's Cash His Best Defense

It was money, not celebrity, that aided the producer’s case

(Newser) - Phil Spector’s money mattered more than his celebrity in convincing two jurors of his innocence in this week’s mistrial on second-degree murder charges. Several jurors had never heard of the record producer—so it was his ability to hire a pricey team of lawyers, forensic experts, and private...

12 Stories