Saturday, August 27, 2016

Dr. Roberto Bayardo: Texas: KXAN reporters David Barer and John Hinkle present a remarkable portrait of a controversial chief medical examiner with failing memory, now over 80, who examined thousands of sudden, violent and unusual deaths in Travis County and dozens of other smaller Texas counties and can still be called to court to testify - even decades later to testify. Great heading for the KXAN story: "Body of Evidence: Forgotten Forensics." As chief medical examiner for nearly 30 years, Dr. Roberto Bayardo examined thousands of sudden, violent and unusual deaths in Travis County; KXAN..."“I’ve been losing my memory,” Bayardo said. “If you don’t show me something that was written or said, I can’t tell you if it was true or not.” According to records obtained from 45 counties around the state, the McKinney case was among at least seven murder or manslaughter cases Bayardo has testified in since his 2006 retirement. It is not clear if, or to what extent, prosecutors have examined Bayardo’s memory since his retirement. However, according to Sam Bassett, a veteran Central Texas defense attorney, using Bayardo’s testimony at this point could present problems in court. Bassett, who chaired the Texas Forensic Science Commission, said key testimony could be at stake if a witness's memory is compromised while giving testimony. A faltering memory could lead to inaccuracies and a jury being misled on important scientific opinion and data, he said. “The risk of a failing memory is it basically eliminates that person’s testimony, as to the events at the time he testified.” — Sam Bassett “The risk of a failing memory is it basically eliminates that person’s testimony, as to the events at the time he testified,” he said.