"Today, that fight was dealt a devastating blow with Attorney-General Cameron Dick releasing the innocence test results which showed the blood sample taken from the murder scene was 45 billion times more likely to have originated from Mr Davis than any other person chosen randomly from the Australian Caucasian population."
THE COURIER MAIL;
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
BACKGROUND: Shane Davis was convicted by a Supreme Court jury in Brisbane in November 1991 of the murder of South African tourist Michelle Joanne Cohn at a Surfers Paradise apartment block on Boxing Day in 1990. He was sentenced to life in prison, but has always maintained his innocence and has even refused the opportunity of parole several times during the past five years. His case has been reviewed and championed by the Griffith University's Innocence Project which has raised serious questions about the DNA used by the prosecution in the case against him. DNA was in its infancy when he was convicted.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
"NEW tests have smashed Queensland's first case of DNA innocence testing after analysis found a convicted killer was 45 billion times more likely to be linked to blood from the scene," the Courrier-Mail story published earlier today under the heading, "DNA evidence confirms Shane Davis is guilty of murdering Michelle Cohn," begins.
"Shane Davis, who was jailed in 1991 for the murder of South African tourist Michelle Cohn, has for two decades insisted he was not guilty and his case was taken up by Griffith University's Innocence Project," the story continues.
"They noted his conviction was based on outdated DNA testing procedures and launched an eight-year fight to have the DNA evidence re-tested."
Today, that fight was dealt a devastating blow with Attorney-General Cameron Dick releasing the innocence test results which showed the blood sample taken from the murder scene was 45 billion times more likely to have originated from Mr Davis than any other person chosen randomly from the Australian Caucasian population.
The story can be found at:
http://www.couriermail.com.au/news/queensland/dna-evidence-confirms-shane-davis-is-guilty-of-murdering-michelle-cohn/story-e6freoof-1225898635303
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
BRISBANE TIMES REPORT: (Earlier today);
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
DNA retesting for murderer completed;
"Retesting of DNA material in the case of convicted murderer Shane Sebastian Davis shows it is 45 billion times more likely to belong to Davis than any other Caucasian.
Davis, a Wolston Correctional Centre inmate, was convicted by a Supreme Court jury in November 1991 of the murder of Michelle Cohn in December 1990.
His case was the first such DNA retesting in Queensland and it went ahead only after a successful eight-year campaign by Griffith University's Innocence Project.
Attorney-General Cameron Dick on Thursday said the test results showed DNA samples taken from the crime scene were 45 billion times more likely to have originated from Davis than any other person in Australia's Caucasian population.
"This retesting was allowed to ensure that the interests of justice are maintained and that the integrity of our legal system is upheld," Mr Dick said.
"The government is committed to ensuring that our justice system remains fair, open and accountable, and the retesting of Mr Davis's DNA reaffirms that commitment.
"The implications of the test results are now a matter for Mr Davis and his legal advisers to consider."
Two swabs of blood taken from the crime scene were retested, as was a new DNA sample from Davis.
Mr Dick said the DNA retesting had been conducted between July 8 and July 21 at Genetic Technologies Corporation in Melbourne.
The forensic testing report from Genetic Technologies Corporation states: "these findings, when considered in isolation from other information, provide extremely strong support for the proposition that the DNA profile obtained from both portions of swabs and the reference sample from Shane Sebastian Davis originate from the same source".
New Queensland government policy will be released early next year that will set boundaries on when cases can be reopened.
It comes after the Victorian Director of Public Prosecutions reviewed all cases over the past five years because of doubts about DNA tests.
It led earlier this month to the release of Farah Jama, who was sentenced in 2008 to six years' jail for rape."
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
PUBLISHER'S NOTE: The Toronto Star, my previous employer for more than twenty incredible years, has put considerable effort into exposing the harm caused by Dr. Charles Smith and his protectors - and into pushing for reform of Ontario's forensic pediatric pathology system. The Star has a "topic" section which focuses on recent stories related to Dr. Charles Smith. It can be accessed at:
http://www.thestar.com/topic/charlessmith
For a breakdown of some of the cases, issues and controversies this Blog is currently following, please turn to:
http://smithforensic.blogspot.com/2010/07/new-feature-cases-issues-and.html
Harold Levy: Publisher; The Charles Smith Blog; hlevy15@gmail.com;
