A Colorado man who has insisted on his innocence for 30 years will get a new trial because the forensic analyst’s testimony in his trial is no longer supported by scientific evidence. In order for someone to offer an expert opinion in court, the judge must be...
evidence
When does the use of jailhouse snitches violate people’s rights?
Once a person has a criminal defense lawyer, the government should only communicate through that lawyer. It should never go behind the lawyer’s back and attempt to continue to interrogate the client. Doing so is a violation of the Sixth Amendment’s right to counsel in...
Texas appeals court: common sex crime recidivism statistic is wrong
How likely is it that someone who committed a violent sex offense and murder at 18 will commit another one? It may be impossible to say. What we do know is that there is no evidence the likelihood is 80%, as was claimed by the prosecution in one 2006 Texas case. In...
‘Fog Reveal’ tool allows police to know your full location history
Do you want the police to keep a record of everywhere you’ve ever been? It would be awfully convenient for the police to have that information. Law enforcement could simply make a list of places where illegal things are likely to happen or where certain people are not...
Richard Glossip didn’t do it and we know who did. Why is he on death row?
In January 1997, Justin Sneed murdered an Oklahoma motel owner named Barry Van Treese. He has admitted as much. In exchange for more favorable treatment, Sneed agreed to implicate and testify against Richard Glossip, the motel’s manager. The prosecution’s theory was...
Should the police be allowed to access newborns’ DNA?
Our DNA contains a tremendous amount of sensitive, personal information. Not only about us, but about our family members. It can tell us who we’re related to, whether we have genetic disorders and even how likely we are to get certain cancers. According to one study,...
Why is discredited forensic science still being used as evidence?
In 2009, a committee of the prestigious National Research Council (NRC) published a report for Congress that shocked the entire criminal justice system. Congress had asked the NRC to evaluate the scientific underpinnings of commonly used forensic evidence and suggest...
Fatally flawed arson evidence means Tennessee man goes free
In February 1992, 24-year-old Lorie Lance died in a fire in Old Hickory, Tennessee. Her boyfriend, Claude Garrett, awoke to find his and Lorie’s living room on fire. He woke Lorie up and ran for the door, but Lorie suddenly turned and ran toward the back of the house....
Judge in ‘Serial’ murder case orders new DNA tests for defendant
In 2000, Adnan Syed was convicted of murdering his girlfriend and burying her body in a park in Baltimore. Although he was just 17 at the time of his girlfriend’s death in 1999, he was sentenced to life in prison. He has argued that he is innocent, but Maryland’s...
Wisconsin Supreme Court allows end-run around lack of warrant
When the founders decided to require warrants before the government could search someone, what rights were they trying to protect? They wanted to free Americans from an intrusive government seeking to take their liberty without due process. They wanted to protect our...