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Last updateFri, 10 Dec 2021 9pm

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FBI Lied In Over 95% of Hair Analysis Cases

The FBI has admitted that 26 of 28 hair analysts have lied under oath while testifying during criminal cases. So far this is true for 95% of the cases that have been reviewed, which is completely opposite of what shows like CSI and NCIS lead viewers to believe. 

Click here to read the story in The Washington Post.

Lost DNA Evidence

The Innocence Project has come across an issue of missing DNA evidence when trying to help those that are wrongfully incarcerated. In 30-40% of cases that initially had DNA evidence, the evidence is destroyed after the trial. This has led the Innocence Project to work to change the system to preserve DNA evidence,

 

Click here to read the article or watch the video.

The Crisis with Coroners and Medical Examiners

An investigation by ProPublica, Frontline and NPR shows that the United States' 2,300 coroners and medical examiners often put innocent people in prison, allowing guilty people to go free. 
 
Click here to read the story.

 

Crime Lab Creates Chaos

Chemist Annie Dookhan is accused of tampering with with drug and blood samples to make them weigh more or test positive. Details are still emerging about the mishandled evidence in as many as 40,000 cases over 10 years. According to Max Stern, "There's many people who for years have not been able to get jobs, not [been] be able to get driver's licenses, not [been] able to live in particular housing." He also states, "There are enormous consequences nowadays to drug convictions." Defense attorney John Martin says, "Any person who's been convicted of a drug crime in the last several years whose drugs were tested at the lab was very potentially a victim of a very substantial miscarriage of justice."

Click here to read the full story.

The Problem with Forensic Science

The popularity of television crime dramas like CSI and Law and Order lead us to believe that forensic science is an exact science. Unfortunately, not all forensic science is scientific. Here is an eye-opening story everyone should read from Frontline in partnership with ProPublica and other news organizations. Their report looks into the lack of standards dealing in both autopsies and forensic evidence. One of the stunning revelations from this in-depth investigation shows how easy it is to obtain a certificate to be a "Forensic Consultant".

Click here for the link to "No Forensic Background? No Problem"

Justice Department to Review Use of Forensic Evidence in Thousands of Cases (2)

The U.S. Justice Department has decided to review the use of forensics in thousands of cases because of flawed work that has been done by FBI laboratories since 1985.  Although the Justice Department has known about these problems for years, they only released those findings to the prosecutors. One man was executed because of this flawed work.

For more information, please read David Greenwald's story on Vanguard Court Watch of Yolo County.