Cellphone Technology; Junk science? Lisa Roberts. Oregon; The science behind police use of cellphone records to place suspects near crime scenes is coming under increasing attack in the courts, the Washington Post reports. (Must Read. HL);

REMINDER: Sign on for  annual "Wrongful Convictions Day" launched by The Association in Defence of the Wrongly Convicted (AIDWYC) -  effective October 2, 2014.  (For background - and link - see  previous post):

 http://smithforensic.blogspot.ca/2014/06/wrongful-convictions-day-aidwyc.html

Harold Levy; Publisher; The Charles Smith Blog;

STORY: "Experts say law enforcement's use of cellphone records can be inaccurate,"  by  Tom Jackman, published by the Washington Post on June 27, 2014.  (Tom Jackman is a native of Northern Virginia and has been covering the region for The Post since 1998. In 2011 he launched The State of NoVa blog, a state strictly defined as the boundaries of four counties and one city: Arlington, Fairfax, Loudoun, Prince William and Alexandria."

GIST: "The use of cellphone records to place suspects at or near crime scenes is coming under attack in courts nationwide, challenging an established practice by federal and local law enforcement that has helped lead to thousands of convictions. Cellphone records are often used as evidence, relied upon to trace which cell tower was used to make or receive a call and then determine a caller’s whereabouts. But experts say that using a single tower to precisely locate where someone was at the time of a crime has severe limitations. And while defense lawyers are gradually recognizing the problems with such evidence, the FBI continues to rely heavily on the data in its investigations. The agency wants to expand its full-time team of 32 agents dedicated to the analysis of cell-site data, and it has trained more than 5,000 state and local police investigators in the basic methodology. The conflict between the growing awareness of cell records’ limitations and the FBI’s desire to expand their use is increasingly forcing the nation’s judges to parse the technical evidence and determine if it’s being used fairly.........“They’re using this stuff to put people in jail,” said Michael Cherry, a former Bell Labs and NASA consultant whose Falls Church, Va., company is pushing law enforcement and the defense bar to understand cellphone technology. “Lisa Roberts went through a nightmare,” said Cherry, who assisted the defense in both the Roberts and Chicago cases. “Complicated telephone technology is frequently oversold and under-defended in the courtroom.”".........In cases where judges have allowed the evidence, some juries have figured it out on their own. In Connecticut, prosecutors claimed that they could place an alleged kidnapper at the scene of the crime by his cellphone records, as well as testimony from his six co-defendants or informants. “Due to the junk science that the state introduced,” defense attorney Aaron Romano said, “it called into question the other witnesses against him.” His client was acquitted. In a 2009 murder case in Ocala, Fla., prosecutors tried to use cellphone records to show the defendant was near the crime scene. “We were just able to take on the science behind it,” public defender Nicole Hardin said. “You could be standing on one street and be picked up by a tower not in that radius or footprint. If there’s too much interference or it’s overloaded, it’s relatively unreliable.” The jury found her client not guilty."

The entire story can be found at:

http://www.washingtonpost.com/local/experts-say-law-enforcements-use-of-cellphone-records-can-be-inaccurate/2014/06/27/028be93c-faf3-11e3-932c-0a55b81f48ce_story.html?wpisrc=nl%5Fhdtop

See Innocence Project Lisa Roberts Page: "In addition, a defense expert re-investigated the cell phone records and concluded that cell phone tower data was not capable of pinpointing Roberts’s location. The defense expert said that the prosecution’s expert had not considered the wide area that the tower that picked up Roberts’s cell phone on the day of the crime was designed to cover, nor other variables such as the call load, network of the tower and the cell phone provider's software, all of which could have affected which tower picked up Roberts’s call. In April 2014, Judge Marsh granted the habeas petition and vacated Roberts’s guilty plea. The judge ruled that Roberts’s defense attorney was constitutionally ineffective because he failed to investigate the cell tower evidence. The judge held: “Despite the critical importance of the cell tower evidence, (Roberts’s attorney) failed to take reasonable steps to collect the relevant data and independently evaluate the reliability of the (prosecution’s) analysis before advising his client to plead guilty to manslaughter.”"

 http://www.oregoninnocence.org/roberts-lisa/

The entire story can be found at:

PUBLISHER'S NOTE: 

Dear Reader. Keep your eye on the Charles Smith Blog. We are following this case.
 
I have added a search box for content in this blog which now encompasses several thousand posts. The search box is located  near the bottom of the screen just above the list of links. I am confident that this powerful search tool provided by "Blogger" will help our readers and myself get more out of the site.

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 found at:

http://www.thestar.com/topic/charlessmith

Information on "The Charles Smith Blog Award"- and its nomination process - can be found at:
 
http://smithforensic.blogspot.ca/2013/12/the-charles-smith-award-presented-to_28.html
 
I look forward to hearing from readers at:

hlevy15@gmail.com.

Harold Levy: Publisher; The Charles Smith Blog; 

Sent from my iPad

Shaken baby Syndrome: Sue Luttner's of "On SBS" on how "The challenge ahead is how to unravel three decades of questionable convictions, and how to restructure child protection policies to stop the bulldozer.” (A very insightful perspective that is aptly entitled: "Shaken baby syndrome: Inadequate logic, unvalidated thoery, insufficient science." Must Read. HL);

TREATISE: "Shaken baby syndrome: Inadequate logic, unvalidated thoery, insufficient science," by Susan E. Luttner (Publisher of "On SBS") dated April 2014.

GIST:  “The physicians who have seen their opinions confirmed by decades of trial outcomes now believe that their model of infant head injuries has been proven. The problem is that the theory has been entrenched through legal decision, rather than proven through scientific investigation. Historically, courts have endorsed the theory. Fortunately more recently, courts have been more questioning, bringing medical decision-making more closely in line with science. The challenge ahead is how to unravel three decades of questionable convictions, and how to restructure child protection policies to stop the bulldozer.”

The entire treatise can be found at:

 http://www.argumentcritique.com/uploads/1/0/3/1/10317653/luttner.pdf

EDITOR'S NOTE:  My thanks to the Wrongful Convictions Blog for  drawing our intention to this important treatise at the following link: Blogger Phil Locke notes that:  "Sue Luttner maitains the blog OnSBS.  She is a long time observer and reporter of the state of SBS in the justice system.  We  have reblogged many of her articles here on the WCB. Ms. Luttner has recently had published a definitive, scholarly work that traces the origins of SBS, and explains why the hypothesis of SBS is scientifically questionable. If you are student of SBS at all, this is a must read. For me, the most cogent point the paper makes is that SBS evolved into being through massively flawed inductive reasoning, driven by statistically invalid anecdotal observations of extremely small populations.  SBS is just a collection of guesses and speculations canonized into a “diagnosis.”

http://wrongfulconvictionsblog.org/2014/06/29/new-treatise-on-sbs-shaken-baby-syndrome/

PUBLISHER'S NOTE: 

Dear Reader. Keep your eye on the Charles Smith Blog. We are following this case.
 
I have added a search box for content in this blog which now encompasses several thousand posts. The search box is located  near the bottom of the screen just above the list of links. I am confident that this powerful search tool provided by "Blogger" will help our readers and myself get more out of the site.

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 found at:

http://www.thestar.com/topic/charlessmith

Information on "The Charles Smith Blog Award"- and its nomination process - can be found at:
 
http://smithforensic.blogspot.ca/2013/12/the-charles-smith-award-presented-to_28.html
 
I look forward to hearing from readers at:

hlevy15@gmail.com.

Harold Levy: Publisher; The Charles Smith Blog; 

The System; Excellent Al Jazeera series on America's criminal justice system: Sunday July 29, 2014: Part 7: "Geography of Punishment."

REMINDER: Sign on for  annual "Wrongful Convictions Day" launched by The Association in Defence of the Wrongly Convicted (AIDWYC) -  effective October 2, 2014.  (For background - and link - see  previous post):

 http://smithforensic.blogspot.ca/2014/06/wrongful-convictions-day-aidwyc.html

Harold Levy; Publisher; The Charles Smith Blog;

PUBLISHER'S NOTE: What a terrible story for Al Jazeera to have to report: the conviction and imprisonment of three of its reporters in Egypt  - Peter Grest, Mohamed Fahmy and Baher Mohammed - after a mockery of a trial, for merely doing their job of  fearlessly reporting  the news. This blog has been  following an illuminating eight-part Al Jazeera series which has steadfastly stood up for the need for fairness and  due process in America's criminal justice system. How ironic it is that three of its reporters should be deprived of any sense of fairness and due process in a  clearly politically motivated prosecution before a kangaroo court. I add my voice to the voice of many others around the world who are calling for their immediate release and extending their prayers and support to their friends and families.

Harold Levy; Publisher; The Charles Smith Blog;

STORY: "Egypt sentences Al Jazeera journalists to years in prison Published by Al Jazeera on June 23, 2014.

PHOTO-CAPTION:  "Peter Greste, Mohamed Fahmy and Baher Mohamed sentenced to seven to 10 years; accused of aiding Muslim Brotherhood."

GIST: "An Egyptian court has sentenced two Al Jazeera journalists to seven years in prison and another to 10 years, on charges including aiding the Muslim Brotherhood and reporting false news. A judge delivered the verdicts Monday against Peter Greste, an Australian citizen; Mohamed Fahmy, a Canadian citizen; and Baher Mohamed, an Egyptian citizen. Al Jazeera has always rejected the charges against its journalists and maintains their innocence. The sentences sparked worldwide condemnation. ........In the journalists’ case, the prosecution produced a number of items as evidence including a BBC podcast, a news report made while none of the accused were in Egypt, a pop video by the Australian singer Gotye and several recordings on non-Egyptian issues.........“The only reason these three men are in jail is because the Egyptian authorities don’t like what they have to say,” Amnesty International said in a news release. The group’s observer at the trial, Philip Luther, said the prosecution “failed to produce a single shred of solid evidence linking the journalists to a terrorism organization or proving they had falsified news footage.” “Consigning these men to years in prison after such a farcical spectacle is a travesty of justice,” Luther said. “The Egyptian judiciary has proved time and time again that it is either unwilling or incapable of conducting an impartial and fair trial when it comes to those perceived to support the former president.”

The entire story can be found at:

 http://america.aljazeera.com/articles/2014/6/23/egypt-finds-al-jazeerajournalistsguilty.html

Episode 7 of "The System" which premieres this evening i - Sunday June 29, 2014 - is called "Geography of Punishment." Al Jazeera  America tells us: "Crime rates of previous decades continue to have a large impact on how the criminal justice system functions today. Proactive policing strategies such as “drug-free zone” laws and “stop-and frisk” were implemented with the best of intentions, but critics say they are not working, and are in fact causing more hardship – for the community and the state’s taxpayers – filling up prisons and infringing on civil rights. What can be done to repair the public’s trust in the system?"

Episode 8, which  premieres on Sunday July 6, 2014 at 9E/6P, is called "Prosecutorial Misconduct." Al Jazeera America tells us: "The 6th amendment to the US Constitution guarantees every American the right to a speedy and public trial before an impartial jury, and the right to a defense attorney.  What the 6th amendment doesn’t lay out are rules for law enforcement and prosecution. In this episode, we will highlight two cases: the ongoing efforts of parolee Derrick Hamilton to clear his name after twenty years for a murder conviction fraught with alleged police and prosecutorial misconduct and another in Queens that seems to have the earmarks of prosecutorial misconduct but is not yet proven."

PUBLISHER'S NOTE: 

Dear Reader. Keep your eye on the Charles Smith Blog. We are following this case.
 
I have added a search box for content in this blog which now encompasses several thousand posts. The search box is located  near the bottom of the screen just above the list of links. I am confident that this powerful search tool provided by "Blogger" will help our readers and myself get more out of the site.

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 found at:

http://www.thestar.com/topic/charlessmith

Information on "The Charles Smith Blog Award"- and its nomination process - can be found at:
 
http://smithforensic.blogspot.ca/2013/12/the-charles-smith-award-presented-to_28.html
 
I look forward to hearing from readers at:

hlevy15@gmail.com.

Harold Levy: Publisher; The Charles Smith Blog; 

Bulletin: Billy Wayne Cope: South Carolina; Defence takes comfort from Supreme Court demand for records from 2001 rape, murder. Cope denies even knowing the man convicted as his co-accused. Cope's lawyers say he was coerced into falsely confessing after he was subjected to a false polygraph test. The State;

REMINDER: Sign on for  annual "Wrongful Convictions Day" launched by The Association in Defence of the Wrongly Convicted (AIDWYC) -  effective October 2, 2014.  (For background - and link - see  previous post):

 http://smithforensic.blogspot.ca/2014/06/wrongful-convictions-day-aidwyc.html

Harold Levy; Publisher; The Charles Smith Blog;

STORY: "Supreme Court asks for records from 2001 rape, murder of Rock Hill girl," by reporter Jonathan McFadden,  published by "The State" on  June 26, 2014.

GIST:  "The U.S. Supreme Court has asked for more than 3,000 pages of trial notes, transcripts and evidence in the case of a Rock Hill man convicted of raping and killing his daughter more than a decade ago. The request gives a glimmer of hope to lawyers for Billy Wayne Cope that his long-awaited appeal of denials by South Carolina courts might be heard. Last year, the state Supreme Court rejected Cope’s appeal. It is that decision Cope has asked the U.S. Supreme Court to review. Prosecutors, however, questioned whether the justices’ order was a significant development with any bearing on whether the federal court would hear Cope’s appeal.........Prosecutors point out that Cope confessed three times to beating, raping and eventually strangling his daughter on Nov. 29, 2001. On Amanda Cope’s body, investigators found semen and saliva that belonged to James Edward Sanders, a convicted rapist who had been released from prison around the time the girl was killed. Jurors found both Cope and Sanders guilty in Amanda’s death after prosecutors argued the two men worked together to rape and kill the girl. Both are serving life in prison without the possibility of parole. Cope has been appealing his conviction for about a decade, denying prosecutors’ claims that he conspired with Sanders, much less that he even knew him. Instead, Cope says, Sanders broke into his house while he was asleep and killed his daughter. Cope’s lawyers say he was coerced into falsely confessing after he was subjected to a false polygraph test. Jurors also were not allowed to hear testimony about other crimes Sanders committed near Cope’s home around the same time, including assault, rape and burglary, lawyers say."

The entire story can be found at:

 http://www.thestate.com/2014/06/26/3532969/supreme-court-asks-for-records.html?sp=/99/132/154/157/

PUBLISHER'S NOTE: 

Dear Reader. Keep your eye on the Charles Smith Blog. We are following this case.
 
I have added a search box for content in this blog which now encompasses several thousand posts. The search box is located  near the bottom of the screen just above the list of links. I am confident that this powerful search tool provided by "Blogger" will help our readers and myself get more out of the site.

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 found at:

http://www.thestar.com/topic/charlessmith

Information on "The Charles Smith Blog Award"- and its nomination process - can be found at:
 
http://smithforensic.blogspot.ca/2013/12/the-charles-smith-award-presented-to_28.html
 
I look forward to hearing from readers at:

hlevy15@gmail.com.

Harold Levy: Publisher; The Charles Smith Blog; 

Bulletin: Alan Dale Smith: The Toronto Star reports that all of the evidence gathered in this "Mr. Big" sting case involving the dumping of a fake body has been ruled inadmissible. Judge Bruce Glass ruled that: "The officers in effect pushed the envelope with the use of a corpse to shake loose admissions from (Smith).”

REMINDER: Sign on for  annual "Wrongful Convictions Day" launched by The Association in Defence of the Wrongly Convicted (AIDWYC) -  effective October 2, 2014.  (For background - and link - see  previous post):

 http://smithforensic.blogspot.ca/2014/06/wrongful-convictions-day-aidwyc.html

Harold Levy; Publisher; The Charles Smith Blog;

STORY: "Judge throws out all evidence gathered in 'Mr. Big' case," by reporter Wendy Gillis, published by the Toronto Star on June 27 2014.

SUB-HEADING:  "Durham Regional Police operation "Project Fearless," involved the dumping of a fake body."

PHOTO-CAPTION:  "Alan Dale Smith, charged with first- degree murder in the 1974 death of Beverly Smith, leaves Oshawa Court Friday after an Ontario Superior Court judge dismissed all of the evidence gathered against him through a police tactic known as Mr. Big."

GIST: "An Ontario Superior Court judge has thrown out all evidence police gathered during an elaborate “Mr. Big” sting which charged a man for a 1974 murder, ruling their tactics were an abuse of process and breached the man’s Charter rights. Justice Bruce Glass ruled Friday the Durham Regional Police operation —“Project Fearless,” which at one point involved the dumping of a fake body — produced confessions from Alan Dale Smith so unreliable from you could “drive a Mack truck” through all the holes. “Working an admission to first-degree murder from a person when the person is functionally detained by police in deprivation of his right to remain silent or pushing him to incriminate himself improperly has a result that cannot be more serious for Mr. Smith,” Glass said. “The officers in effect pushed the envelope with the use of a corpse to shake loose admissions from (Smith).”........The confession was not voluntary,” Glass said, noting he did not believe the undercover operatives “set off on a course to be nasty.” But the judge did rule definitively that officers had used a controversial investigative tool known as the “Mr. Big” sting, something Durham police had earlier denied. The subterfuge involves convincing the target of an investigation he or she is consorting with criminals, and must confess to a serious crime to gain trust and entry into the criminal group..........The tactic emerged in the early 1990s in British Columbia. Between 1997 and 2004, 180 such investigations were conducted in that province alone. Critics say the tool goes beyond what should be allowed by police and produces unreliable information. “There is a real concern that the technique may cause innocent people to falsely confess, giving rise to a risk of wrongful confessions,” Toronto lawyer Peter Copeland writes (with co-authors Timothy Moore and Regina Schuller) in Deceit, Betrayal and the Search for Truth, the first major legal and academic study on the Mr. Big scenario. “The Mr. Big procedure is a fundamentally deceitful exercise,” they write."

The entire story can be found at:

http://www.thestar.com/news/crime/2014/06/27/judge_throws_out_all_evidence_gathered_in_mr_big_case.html

PUBLISHER'S NOTE: 

Dear Reader. Keep your eye on the Charles Smith Blog. We are following this case.
 
I have added a search box for content in this blog which now encompasses several thousand posts. The search box is located  near the bottom of the screen just above the list of links. I am confident that this powerful search tool provided by "Blogger" will help our readers and myself get more out of the site.

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 found at:

http://www.thestar.com/topic/charlessmith

Information on "The Charles Smith Blog Award"- and its nomination process - can be found at:
 
http://smithforensic.blogspot.ca/2013/12/the-charles-smith-award-presented-to_28.html
 
I look forward to hearing from readers at:

hlevy15@gmail.com.

Harold Levy: Publisher; The Charles Smith Blog; 

Bulletin: Paul Hildwin: 54; New York Daily News reports that this death row inmate's conviction has been overturned after 28 years behind bars thanks to DNA evidence. The State of Florida fought against DNA matching for 7 years. Florida is reported to have exonerated 24 inmates on death row, the highest reversal rate in the USA.

REMINDER: Sign on for  annual "Wrongful Convictions Day" launched by The Association in Defence of the Wrongly Convicted (AIDWYC) -  effective October 2, 2014.  (For background - and link - see  previous post):

 http://smithforensic.blogspot.ca/2014/06/wrongful-convictions-day-aidwyc.html

Harold Levy; Publisher; The Charles Smith Blog;

STORY: "Florida death row inmate's conviction is overturned after 28 years behind bars," by reporter Deborah Hastings,  published by the New York Daily News  on June 27, 2014.

SUB-HEADING: "Paul Hildwin will remain imprisoned  until prosecutors decide whether to retry him for murder DNA evidence shows that key evidence points to victim Vronzetti Cox's boyfriend.

PHOTO-CAPTION: "The murder conviction of death row inmate Paul Hildwin, seen here, was thrown out by the Florida Supreme Court on Thursday after DNA test results ‘collapsed the state’s case,’ the justices said."

GIST: "The Florida Supreme Court has reversed the murder conviction of a death row inmate who has spent the last 28 years in prison for allegedly killing a woman whose naked body was found in the trunk of her car. Paul Hildwin, 54, will remain on death row until prosecutors decide whether to retry him. The state's high court ruled 5 to 2 to vacate his conviction, saying DNA testing heavily influenced its decision. "We cannot turn a blind eye to the fact a significant pillar of the state's case, as presented to the jury, has collapsed," the high court announced Thursday.........According to the Innocence Project, which championed Hildwin's case, DNA testing done in 2003 excluded him as the source of semen and saliva found at the murder scene, which trial prosecutors wrongly claimed belonged to Hildwin. Lawyers for the project then argued for seven years to get the DNA results fed into a federal database to see if it matched any specimens on file. The samples matched the DNA of Haverty, who is currently incarcerated for the sexual assault of two minors. Hildwin's is the fourth case in little more than a year of a death sentence being reversed by the Florida Supreme Court because of new evidence. According to the Death Penalty Information Center, Florida has exonerated 24 inmates on death row, the highest reversal rate in the country."

The entire story can be found at:

http://www.nydailynews.com/news/national/florida-reverses-murder-conviction-death-row-inmate-article-1.1846689

 PUBLISHER'S NOTE: 

Dear Reader. Keep your eye on the Charles Smith Blog. We are following this case.
 
I have added a search box for content in this blog which now encompasses several thousand posts. The search box is located  near the bottom of the screen just above the list of links. I am confident that this powerful search tool provided by "Blogger" will help our readers and myself get more out of the site.

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 found at:

http://www.thestar.com/topic/charlessmith

Information on "The Charles Smith Blog Award"- and its nomination process - can be found at:
 
http://smithforensic.blogspot.ca/2013/12/the-charles-smith-award-presented-to_28.html
 
I look forward to hearing from readers at:

hlevy15@gmail.com.

Harold Levy: Publisher; The Charles Smith Blog; 

Bulletin: Former forensic psychiatrist loses appeal of five year term for sexual assault on patients. He is now attempting to appeal to the Supreme Court of Canada; Calgary Sun;

REMINDER: Sign on for  annual "Wrongful Convictions Day" launched by The Association in Defence of the Wrongly Convicted (AIDWYC) -  effective October 2, 2014.  (For background - and link - see  previous post):

 http://smithforensic.blogspot.ca/2014/06/wrongful-convictions-day-aidwyc.html

Harold Levy; Publisher; The Charles Smith Blog;

STORY: "Aubrey Levin's five-year sentence upheld by Alberta Court of Appeal." published by the Calgary Sun on June 24, 2014.

GIST: "Noting he committed an “egregious breach of trust” and abused his position of power over his patients, Alberta’s top court Tuesday upheld Dr. Aubrey Levin’s five-year sentence. “We cannot say that the global sentence of imprisonment for five years is unreasonable,” Justice Carole Conrad said, in handing down the court’s unanimous ruling. “Five years is not out of the range of reasonable sentences,” Conrad said.........Levin is appealing his three convictions to the Supreme Court, but the nation’s high court rarely hears sentence appeals."

 The entire story can be found at:

 http://www.calgarysun.com/2014/06/24/dr-aubrey-levins-five-year-sentence-upheld-by-alberta-court-of-appeal

See Wikipedia account:  "Aubrey Levin,  (born December 18, 1938)^[1] was a professor of clinical psychiatry at the University of Calgary until March 2010, when his license was suspended by the College of Physicians and Surgeons of Alberta,^[2] and a convicted sex offender. Levin was first licensed as a psychiatrist in South Africa in 1969. He was a Colonel in the South African Defence Force (SADF), as well as the chief psychiatrist at the Voortrekkerhoogte military hospital during the 1970s, during which time he was the attending psychiatrist at Greefswald, an isolated detention barracks where harsh conditions were supposed to 'cure' conscripts of supposed 'vices' and conscientious objections. He rose to notoriety for his work on an aversion therapy medical program which attempted to cure gays and lesbians of homosexuality.^[3] After the end of apartheid, South Africa's Truth and Reconciliation Commission heard testimony regarding the controversial nature of the aversion project Levin ran while in the SADF.^[4] Levin later left South Africa and was licensed by the College of Physicians and Surgeons of Saskatchewan, Canada, in 1995, and then by Alberta's college in 1998.^[5] In March 2010 the College of Physicians and Surgeons of Alberta suspended Levin's license^[6] over accusations of abuse after a male patient secretly filmed the psychiatrist allegedly making sexual advances.^[4]"

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aubrey_Levin

PUBLISHER'S NOTE: 

Dear Reader. Keep your eye on the Charles Smith Blog. We are following this case.
 
I have added a search box for content in this blog which now encompasses several thousand posts. The search box is located  near the bottom of the screen just above the list of links. I am confident that this powerful search tool provided by "Blogger" will help our readers and myself get more out of the site.

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 found at:

http://www.thestar.com/topic/charlessmith

Information on "The Charles Smith Blog Award"- and its nomination process - can be found at:
 
http://smithforensic.blogspot.ca/2013/12/the-charles-smith-award-presented-to_28.html
 
I look forward to hearing from readers at:

hlevy15@gmail.com.

Harold Levy: Publisher; The Charles Smith Blog; 

Houston Police crime lab; Peter Lentz; Houston Chronicle reports that "scores" of cases have been affected by the ousting of a Houston Police Department crime lab analyst - and that an investigation has found evidence of lying and tampering;

REMINDER: Sign on for  annual "Wrongful Convictions Day" launched by The Association in Defence of the Wrongly Convicted (AIDWYC) -  effective October 2, 2014.  (For background - and link - see  previous post):

 http://smithforensic.blogspot.ca/2014/06/wrongful-convictions-day-aidwyc.html

Harold Levy; Publisher; The Charles Smith Blog;

STORY: "Scores of cases affected after Houston Police Department crime lab ousted," by reporter Brian Rogers, published by the Houston Chronicle on June 19, 2014.

SUB-HEADING: "Investigation finds evidence of lying, tampering by tech."

GIST: "Scores of pending criminal cases and past convictions could be in jeopardy in the wake of revelations that a former Houston Police crime lab technician resigned after an internal investigation found evidence of lying, improper procedure and tampering with an official record. Former DNA lab technician Peter Lentz worked on 185 criminal cases, including 51 murders or capital murders, according to letters sent out by the Harris County District Attorney's Office and obtained by the Houston Chronicle through an open records request.........This is the latest in a series of problems to surface in recent months at HPD. A city-commissioned study showed the department failed to investigate 20,000 crimes with workable leads. Earlier this year, Harris County prosecutors identified nearly two dozen criminal cases that could be in jeopardy after they linked them to a Houston homicide detective fired for lying and conducting shoddy investigations. The disclosure about the technician's resignation comes as control of the perennially troubled lab was transferred in April from HPD to a civilian-led board of directors."

The entire story can be found at:

http://www.houstonchronicle.com/news/houston-texas/houston/article/Scores-of-cases-affected-after-HPD-Crime-Lab-5562835.php?t=f62052d3dab05374ef

See related post on "The Truth About Forensic Science," by Justin D. McShane; It's headed: "Another week, another forensic science scandal in Texas: HPD."... "Everything, they say, is bigger in Texas. It seems as if Texas has a new forensic science reported scandal every single week. The question is why? Why Texas? I have a theory: it’s the lawyers. Over the last 4 or so years, Texas has been on the forefront nationally in teaching its lawyers the science (or supposed science) behind forensic science. I doubt there are any other states in the US that have as many CLE program hours devoted to the science of being a criminal defense lawyer. This, of course, leads to having a generation of lawyers who apply scientific skepticism to results that are offered in court— as they should. This in turn forces the various laboratories to work harder and smarter so that they find their own mistakes rather than have them blow up in the courtroom. This all is a very good thing. Hopefully, other states will start to see the Texas impact that education in science has for defense lawyers and want to follow along or do better. So next time you see a Texas lawyer, be sure to thank her or him. I will."

The entire post can be found at"

http://www.thetruthaboutforensicscience.com/another-week-another-forensic-science-scandal-texas-hpd/

PUBLISHER'S NOTE: 

Dear Reader. Keep your eye on the Charles Smith Blog. We are following this case.
 
I have added a search box for content in this blog which now encompasses several thousand posts. The search box is located  near the bottom of the screen just above the list of links. I am confident that this powerful search tool provided by "Blogger" will help our readers and myself get more out of the site.

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 found at:

http://www.thestar.com/topic/charlessmith

Information on "The Charles Smith Blog Award"- and its nomination process - can be found at:
 
http://smithforensic.blogspot.ca/2013/12/the-charles-smith-award-presented-to_28.html
 
I look forward to hearing from readers at:

hlevy15@gmail.com.

Harold Levy: Publisher; The Charles Smith Blog; 

Wrongful Conviction Day: AIDWYC (The Association in Defence of the Wrongly Convicted) launches annual "Wrongful Conviction Day" - the 2d day of October - Invites others around the word to "sign on" and commemorate the day in their own way. (What a great idea! I'm in! Harold Levy. Publisher: The Charles Smith Blog.") Link provided makes it easy to "sign on."

PUBLISHER'S NOTE: What a great idea!  One day a year, effective October 2, 2014,  to commemorate the wrongfully convicted. An opportunity for organizations and individuals  around the world to highlight the dangers of wrongful convictions  - and the ways of preventing them - through their own programs and  in their own ways. These could range from a focus on particular cases,  to public forums aimed at attracting media attention, visits to schools,  law school seminars, whatever. The range of possibilities is endless. I will use this Blog to put the spotlight on those who are still behind bars  because of flawed science - and the need to do something about it. AIDWYC Director Ron Dalton sums this up very well when he says:

"As a wrongfully convicted person I feel it is very important to keep the issue before the public on a regular basis, we are hoping you share this goal and will allow us to add the name of your organization to the growing list of international supporters for this initiative. ....Thanks for your consideration of this project we look forward to building it together into an international day of recognition."

I hope you will sign on also -  and help spread the word about "Wrongful Conviction Day" as widely as possible.

By signing on you will be undertaking to commemorate October 2 annually as "Wrongful Conviction Day," to conduct whatever programs you see fit in order to achieve the day's objectives,  to permit AIDWYC to let others know you have signed on, to encourage other organizations to get involved, and to promote "Wrongful Conviction Day" as much as possible. 

To sign on just send a note to my good friend Win Wahrer  at:

win@aidwyc.org

Best wishes.

Harold  Levy.

Publisher: The Charles Smith Blog;

Dear Reader.

I have added a search box for content in this blog which now encompasses several thousand posts. The search box is located  near the bottom of the screen just above the list of links. I am confident that this powerful search tool provided by "Blogger" will help our readers and myself get more out of the site.

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 found at:

http://www.thestar.com/topic/charlessmith

Information on "The Charles Smith Blog Award"- and its nomination process - can be found at:
 
http://smithforensic.blogspot.ca/2013/12/the-charles-smith-award-presented-to_28.html
 
I look forward to hearing from readers at:

hlevy15@gmail.com.

Harold Levy: Publisher; The Charles Smith Blog; 

Han Tak Lee. Pennsylvania; Columbus Dispatch reports that the "arson science" has been discredited in his case - and in many others; “There was just no science behind” the old assumptions about arson", said Paul Cates of the Innocence Project... “A lot of this was just guesswork and voodoo.” (Must Read. HL);

STORY: "Arson science discredited," by reporter Michael Rubinkam, published by the Columbus Dispatch on June 23 2014.

GIST:The arsonist who killed Ji Yun Lee was especially cruel and calculating, dousing her small cabin in Pennsylvania’s Pocono Mountains with more than 60 gallons of gasoline and heating fuel and setting at least eight fires, ending at the front door to block any chance of escape. Then he watched calmly as the cabin turned into an inferno.  "That was the prosecution’s case against the victim’s father, Han Tak Lee, and it persuaded a jury to convict the South Korean immigrant of first-degree murder. He’s serving life without parole. But the arson science underlying his conviction turned out to be all wrong. This month — nearly 25 years after the blaze — a federal magistrate recommended that Lee be given either a new trial or released from prison outright. A federal judge must approve the recommendation. His case is one of dozens across the country to come under scrutiny because of entrenched but now-discredited beliefs about how arson can be detected. The Arson Research Project at the Monterey College of Law in California has highlighted at least 31 convictions based at least partly on debunked fire investigations, including that of a Texas man executed in 2004, and experts believe there are many more. “There was just no science behind” the old assumptions about arson, said Paul Cates of the Innocence Project, a group that works to overturn wrongful convictions, primarily through the use of DNA. “A lot of this was just guesswork and voodoo.”

 

The entire story can be found at: 

 

http://www.dispatch.com/content/stories/national_world/2014/06/23/arson-science-discredited.html

 PUBLISHER'S NOTE: 

Dear Reader. Keep your eye on the Charles Smith Blog. We are following this case.
 
I have added a search box for content in this blog which now encompasses several thousand posts. The search box is located  near the bottom of the screen just above the list of links. I am confident that this powerful search tool provided by "Blogger" will help our readers and myself get more out of the site.

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 found at:

http://www.thestar.com/topic/charlessmith

Information on "The Charles Smith Blog Award"- and its nomination process - can be found at:
 
http://smithforensic.blogspot.ca/2013/12/the-charles-smith-award-presented-to_28.html
 
I look forward to hearing from readers at:

hlevy15@gmail.com.

Harold Levy: Publisher; The Charles Smith Blog; 

Flawed science: Professor Alan Young (Osgoode Hall Law School) tells an "Ideas" conference that, "Wrongful convictions are just not the result of lying witnesses or circumstantial evidence... Even the most sophisticated science fails." Antonia Zerbisias. Toronto Star. (Must Read. HL);

STORY: "Ideacity 2014: Justice served, denied and derailed," by columnist Antonia Zerbisias,  published by the Toronto Star on June 20, 2014.

GIST: "Fresh off his victory at the Supreme Court of Canada where, in December, he won a landmark case decriminalizing prostitution, Young spoke at length of his pet cause, The Innocence Project, a movement which seeks to exonerate those imprisoned for crimes they did not commit. Wrongful convictions are just not the result of lying witnesses or circumstantial evidence, he insisted. Even the most sophisticated science fails. “Fifty-sex per cent of (the wrongful convictions) are the result of people in white lab coats,” he said, explaining that blood and hair analyses and even DNA tests, the so-called “gold standard,” have often proven to be unreliable. “God forbid that your son or daughter or yourself ever get caught up in the criminal justice system when it’s this dysfunctional,” he cautioned. “The legal system is set up to reach only a result, not a correct result.”.........In an interview with the Star, Young elaborated that his project at Osgoode Hall, unlike the innocence movement in the U.S., is underfunded. “This is extremely difficult work to do,” he admitted. “People just don’t believe that wrongful convictions happen so frequently in Canada and how systemic they are. “Criminal justice shows on television cause a lot of unrealistic expectations. Scientific analysis is far less accurate than television depicts.”"

The entire story can be found at:

http://www.thestar.com/news/canada/2014/06/20/ideacity_2014_justice_served_denied_and_derailed.html

PUBLISHER'S NOTE: 

Dear Reader. Keep your eye on the Charles Smith Blog. We are following this case.
 
I have added a search box for content in this blog which now encompasses several thousand posts. The search box is located  near the bottom of the screen just above the list of links. I am confident that this powerful search tool provided by "Blogger" will help our readers and myself get more out of the site.

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 found at:

http://www.thestar.com/topic/charlessmith

Information on "The Charles Smith Blog Award"- and its nomination process - can be found at:
 
http://smithforensic.blogspot.ca/2013/12/the-charles-smith-award-presented-to_28.html
 
I look forward to hearing from readers at:

hlevy15@gmail.com.

Harold Levy: Publisher; The Charles Smith Blog;