"IN THE WEEK OF THE JUDGMENT IN THE ANGELA CANNINGS CASE - WHICH HAS LED TO A REVIEW OF 258 CONVICTIONS WHERE COT DEATH EXPERTS TESTIFIED - THIS RAISED FRESH QUESTIONS ABOUT EXPERT EVIDENCE, HE ADDED.
MR STURMAN SAID: "THIS IS ANOTHER EXAMPLE OF THE DANGERS OF THE POLICE FOLLOWING SCIENTISTS TOO CLOSELY WHEN THE SCIENTISTS ARE BUILDING A SCIENCE NOT FOLLOWING A SCIENCE.""
SEAN O'NEILL: THE TELEGRAPH;
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The Telegraph story by reporter Sean O'Neill ran under the heading, "Expert evidence flaws clear 'earprint killer'" on January 23, 2004;
"A man convicted of murder on the basis of an earprint was acquitted at a retrial yesterday after the expert evidence that jailed him was shown to be flawed," the story began.
"The collapse of the case against Mark Dallagher, which made legal history in 1998 when he became the first man to be convicted of murder by earprint evidence, is another blow to the credibility of expert witnesses," the story continued;
"The handful of convictions obtained using earprint identification techniques may now have to be re-examined.
Dallagher, 31, was cleared at the Old Bailey of murdering 94-year-old Dorothy Woods after a DNA analysis of earprints left at the murder scene undermined expert testimony that they were made by him.
A jury at Leeds Crown Court had found him guilty in 1998 after Cornelis van der Lugt, a Dutch former policeman turned earprint expert, said he was "absolutely convinced" that Dallagher had made the prints found on Miss Woods's window.
The prosecution claimed that Dallagher, a convicted burglar, had left the prints while listening at the window before breaking into the house in Huddersfield in May 1996.
But following an appeal, a retrial and a fresh police investigation the Crown said it had "anxieties" about the case and was offering no evidence against Dallagher.
James Sturman, QC, defending, said Dallagher was the victim of "a grotesque miscarriage of justice" who had spent almost six years in prison and always maintained his innocence.
"The killing of Dorothy Woods was a wicked crime that had nothing to do with Mark Dallagher," said Mr Sturman.
In the week of the judgment in the Angela Cannings case - which has led to a review of 258 convictions where cot death experts testified - this raised fresh questions about expert evidence, he added.
Mr Sturman said: "This is another example of the dangers of the police following scientists too closely when the scientists are building a science not following a science."
Sir Stephen Mitchell, the judge, said "this most unfortunate saga" was now at an end.
"It was the most terrible killing and the centrepoint of the evidence was the earprint - scrutiny and examination of earprints was then in its infancy," he added.
The judge said it was "refreshing" that West Yorkshire police had carried out a new inquiry leading to Dallagher's acquittal.
He recorded a not guilty verdict and wished Dallagher well.
The defendant, who was in court with his fiancee, Karen De'ath, thanked the judge.
Outside court, Neil O'May, Dallagher's solicitor, said his client wanted police to pursue the case to find the real killer.
"DNA evidence flatly contradicts the original prosecution case because the DNA found was not Mark Dallagher's," said Mr O'May.
"Mr Dallagher has been very angry about the way he has been prosecuted and the reliance on so-called expert earprint evidence.
"This is another case where a serious miscarriage of justice has occurred because of unreliable science."
West Yorkshire police admitted that new evidence "challenges the science of earprint identification". A police spokesman said: "Having re-examined the case the force has not found any evidence to lead to the prosecution of any other suspects for the murder of Dorothy Wood.
"Therefore we consider the matter closed until any further admissible evidence comes to light.""
Harold Levy...hlevy15@gmail.com;
