Major Development: Brooklyn, New York; Andrew Peaks; Jaquan Collins; Judges tosses two types of DNA evidence regualarly used in New York City; (Low copy number DNA testing and the Forensic Statistical Tool); Justice Mark Dwyer says these techniques don’t belong in the courtroom if forensic scientists are unable to agree that these tests are reliable." Brooklyn DA Ken Thompson says the two methods "are instrumental in prosecuting homicides and sexual assaults, and have helped to exonerate people who have been wrongfully convicted." Legal Aid Society's DNA team which brought the challenge argued that both forms of evidence are unreliable and the margins of error are too high. Exclusive story by reporter Shayna Jacobs. New York Daily News. (Must Read. HL);

STORY: Judge tosses out two types of DNA evidence used regularly in criminal cases," by reporter Shayna Jacobs, published by the New York Daily News on January 5 2015.

SUB-HEADING: "Exclusive: Justice Mark Dwyer has ditched the results of low copy number DNA testing and Forensic Statistical Tool from the cases of Andrew Peaks and Jaquan Collins, who are charged in unconnected violent felonies in Brooklyn. Local prosecutors say the DNA tests have help prosecute dangerous criminals and exonerate those found to be innocent. But Dwyer said these techniques don’t belong in the courtroom if forensic scientists are unable to agree that these tests are reliable."

PHOTO CAPTION:  "Judge Mark Dwyer said his opinion on the two DNA tests 'will hardly be the last word."

GIST: "A Brooklyn judge has stirred up controversy by tossing out two types of DNA evidence regularly used in criminal cases throughout the city, the Daily News has learned. Justice Mark Dwyer has thrown out the results of low copy number DNA testing, which generates profiles from minuscule samples, and Forensic Statistical Tool, a program designed by the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner's forensic biology lab that scores the chances a person's DNA is part of a complex sample. The practices have helped prosecutors throughout the city win convictions and have also been used to exonerate innocent defendants, sources say. In barring the evidence in two Brooklyn Supreme Court cases, Dwyer decided the procedures are not generally accepted in forensic science and do not have a place in the courtroom. "To have a technique that is so controversial that the community of scientists who are experts in the field can't agree on it and then to throw it in front of a lay jury and expect them to be able to make sense of it, is just the opposite of what the 'Frye standard' is all about," Dwyer said, referring to low copy number testing and case law on admissibility. He added that "the descending chorus" opposed to the city-developed Forensic Statistical Tool "was strong enough that I can't say the Frye test has been satisfied," he added."........

Brooklyn DA Ken Thompson decried the ruling as a step backward in the "CSI" age of crime-fighting, saying the two methods "are instrumental in prosecuting homicides and sexual assaults, and have helped to exonerate people who have been wrongfully convicted." The DA added that "the relevant scientific community has already embraced such technologies."........The Legal Aid Society's DNA team, which brought the challenge, argued that both forms of evidence are unreliable and the margins of error are too high. Their win came after a joint hearing in the cases of Andrew Peaks and Jaquan Collins, charged in unconnected violent felonies in Brooklyn. Prosecutors say Peaks, 29, choked, sexually abused and robbed a woman in the hallway of her apartment building in July 2010. When she dropped her purse in the frightening ordeal, Peaks scooped it up and left a baseball cap behind, the DA said. The hat stored DNA samples that were "suitable for direct comparison only" through Forensic Statistical Tool analysis that illustrated the likelihood Peaks --charged in a similar violent attack on another woman weeks later -- was a major male donor. Collins, 33, an accused gunman, allegedly left behind a small amount of DNA on a bike he rode during a non-fatal shooting in August 2010. The sample, which was low copy number tested, was found to be "consistent" with Collins's DNA profile. Prior to Dwyer's ruling, city judges have said the two methods are admissible. Higher courts are expected to examine the issues and judges at Dwyer's level are not bound by the ruling."

The entire story can be found at:

http://www.nydailynews.com/new-york/nyc-crime/judge-tosses-types-dna-testing-article-1.2065795

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;