JS 115 Use of DNA to establish innocence

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JS 115 Use of DNA to establish innocence

• Announcements
• Final 12/13/06- 1715-1930 here in MH 324
• Summary of Validation
• II. Use of DNA to establish innocence
• Convicted by Juries, Exonerated by Science
• http//www.ncjrs.org/pdffiles/dnaevid.pdf
• b. Innocence project

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Summary 1

• Validation is a process by which a procedure is
  evaluated to determine its efficacy and
  reliability for forensic casework analysis and
  includes
• Developmental Validation
• Internal Validation
• Developmental Validation
• Developmental Validation is the acquisition of
  test data and determination of conditions and
  limitations of a new or novel DNA methodology for
  use on forensic samples
• Internal Validation
• Internal Validation is the accumulation of test
  data within the laboratory to demonstrate that
  established methods and procedures perform as
  expected in the laboratory

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Summary 2

• Validation includes the following types of tests
• Sensitivity
• Reproducibility
• Inter-laboratory tests
• Non-human tests
• Mixtures
• Stutter studies
• Non-probative cases
• validation of forensic DNA testing to a certain
  extent can be standardized but inflexible
  absolute numbers will probably not be accepted

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Use of DNA to establish innocence
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Study findings

• 28 cases tried in 14 states and DC. Illinois,
  NY, VA, Wva, PA, CA, MD, NC, Conn, KS, OH, Ind,
  NJ and Texas
• All 28 involved sexual assault
• Mid to late 80s
• Prison time served 197 years, average of 7 years
  among 28 defendants- Range 9months to 11 years

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Evidence presented

• Eyewitness ID- All except homicides involved
  victim ID both prior and at trial
• Defendants presented alibi defense corroborated
  by friends and family
• Use of forensic evidence- majority involved
  non-DNA tested forensic evidence- comparison of
  non-victim blood, semen or hair
• Prosecution experts testified on non-DNA evidence
  strength

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Alleged government malfeasance or misconduct

• 8 cases alleged government misconduct
• perjury testimony
• Withholding exculpatory evidence
• Intentionally erroneous lab tests

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Evidence discovered after trial

• Most cases DNA test results represented newly
  discovered evidence after completion of the trial
• DNA testing- Nearly all defendants had tests done
  by private laboratories. Blood from defendant
  and samples from victim and evidence-
  corroborated by prosecution retesting
• 8 labs RFLP, 17 PCR 2 used both

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Preservation of evidence

• Evidence in some cases had deteriorated to a
  point where DNA testing could not be performed
• Chain of custody in some also demonstrate a lack
  of adherence to proper procedures

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DNA laboratory survey

• 23 of the 21,621 cases DNA tests excluded
  suspects
• FBI report 20 inconclusive and 20 exclusions

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Policy Implications

• Reliability of eyewitness testimony- Need for
  improved criteria for evaluating the reliability
  of eyewitness ID
• Reliability of Non-DNA analyses of Forensic
  Evidence vs DNA testing- Many cases relied on
  non-DNA analysis of blood or hair
• Competence and Reliability of DNA lab procedures-
  Accreditation (ASCLD-LAB)
• Preservation of Evidence- Need to preserve and
  maintaing CoC.
• Training of DNA forensic Uses-Juries will expect
  it and prosecutors and defense attorneys must be
  trained

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Innocence Projecthttp//www.innocenceproject.org/

• National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers-
  NACDL members, Barry Scheck and Peter Neufeld,
  co-chairs of the NACDL DNA Task Force and
  founders of the Innocence Project at the Cardozo
  Law School in New York have spearhead the plight
  of the innocent imprisoned.
• Scheck and Neufeld utilize volunteer law students
  and attorneys to review hundreds of cases of
  people who say they have been falsely convicted,
  usually of rape or murder, and, when appropriate,
  arrange for DNA tests that may support their
  claim of innocence.
• 187 innocent prisoners have been exonerated with
  new DNA tests and evidence which excluded them as
  participants in the crimes for which they had
  been convicted.

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Innocence Project
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The Innocence Project (www.innocenceproject.Org)

• Major accomplishments
• Exonerations 187, since 1992
• Access to DNA testing 37 states allow access
  for post conviction DNA testing.
• Federal legislations
• Convicts may apply for post conviction DNA
  testing Preserve evidence.
• Quality lawyers for the indigent in death penalty
  cases.
• Increased compensation for exonerated.
• Independent auditing of crime labs

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The Innocence Project (www.innocenceproject.Org)

• Major accomplishments cont.
• Eyewitness identification reform.
• Independent crime lab audits
• State crime lab oversight
• Death penalty suspension (New York).
• Jury instructions Eyewitness identifications

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The Innocence Project (www.innocenceproject.Org)

• Post conviction DNA exoneree facts
• Total of 187 post conviction DNA exonerations.
• 14 were on death row.
• Since 1989, many people were indicted or
  arrested, until pretrial DNA test proved their
  innocence.
• 21 states have passed compensation laws (although
  they vary from state to state).

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The Innocence Project (www.innocenceproject.Org)

• Major causes for wrongful convictions (according
  to IP experience)
• Mistaken eyewitness identification.
• Misapplication of forensic technology.
• False confessions
• Jailhouse informants
• Bad legal representation.

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The Innocence Project (www.innocenceproject.Org)

• The Innocence Project took something very old,
  a prisoner's claim of innocence, and paired that
  with something very new, forensic DNA testing.
• Due to our groundbreaking use of DNA technology,
  the Innocence Project has helped inspire the
  establishment of many of the over 30 other
  organizations dedicated to innocence work
  throughout the nation.

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Innocence Project Implicationshttp//www.pbs.org/
wgbh/pages/frontline/shows/burden/view/

• Federal suggestions (Huff, 2004)
• Innocence Protection Act
• Enable convicted offenders to prove their
  innocence through DNA tests.
• Providing proper legal services for death penalty
  convictions.
• Compensation.
• Raising public awareness.

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Innocence Project Implications

• Psychological (Grounds, 2004)
• Some of the exonerates experience significant
  psychiatric and adjustment difficulties (p.178)
• Lacking communication skills - stay alone and
  single.
• Lose direction in life.
• Lose ability to work.
• Lost time.

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Innocence Project Implications

• Social (Huff, 2004)
• Loss of public trust in the justice system.
• The true perpetrators are still free
• Recidivism.

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Summary

• DNA testing can be used to exonerate those
  wrongly accused.
• In the NIJ study 28 defendants served a total of
  197 years before DNA testing proved them innocent
• Policy implications include evaluation of
  eyewitness testimony, non-DNA evidence analysis,
  DNA Lab and expert competency, DNA training for
  prosecution and defense attorneys and
  preservation of evidence
• 187 cases have been processed by the Innocence
  Project group
• Societal implications are significant

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clip

• http//www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/shows/burd
  en/view/