October 17, 2008
Forensic Problems Nothing New - But Still Shocking
The LA Times is reporting that the LA Crime Lab's fingerprint analysis is responsible for implicating innocent people in crime due to faulty "science."
They describe a messy crime lab where evidence sits around in piles, is disorganized, or worse.
Think that can't happen elsewhere? If it can happen in one of the largest metro crime labs in the world, it can happen anywhere. And the fact is that flawed science and process in crime labs is not limited to fingerprints. It stretches to drug identification, alcohol analysis in DUI cases, DNA analysis and more.
Even worse than the sloppy procedures that result in flawed "evidence," is the fact that the crime lab technicians regularly come to court and testify that their process is flawless. There is no testimony more powerful than the State's experts', and none more trusted by juries in criminal cases.
Like every other report of mismanagement and sloppiness in crime labs, this one will fade in our memories, and we will be right back to allowing junk science to convict innocent people. The only way to effectively combat it is for juries and prosecutors to exercise a healthy skepticism. Defense attorneys generally already have it.
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Comments on Forensic Problems Nothing New - But Still Shocking »
A good point.
The qualtity of work varries at different crime labs.
I am familiar with only one finger print crime lab, that of the Fairfax County Police Department. When I was a regular observer there, 10 years ago, they were very professional and any findings were double and triple checked by multiple examiners.
Apparently this is not the case in all labs.