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"Reformers have for years recommended that all forensic labs be independent from law enforcement and prosecutorial agencies' and this is a key reform promoted by The Justice Project (2008). But fixing these problems is only half the answer' because half of the wrongful convictions attributed to misleading forensic evidence involved deliberate forensic fraud' evidence tampering' and/or perjury.
From "The Elephant in the Crime Lab," by co-authored by Sheila Berry and Larry Ytuarte; Forensic Examiner; Spring, 2009;
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STORY: "Lovelace files lawsuit after acquittal," by reporter Matt Hopf, published by The Herald-Whig on May 11, 2017.
PHOTO CAPTION: "Curtis Lovelace and his wife, Christine, and sons
Larson, Logan and Lincoln leave the Sangamon County courtroom where
Lovelace had just been found not guilty of first-degree murder on
Friday, March 10, 2017.
GIST: "Two months after
being found not guilty in connection with the death of his first wife,
Curtis Lovelace has filed a federal lawsuit for damages.........The suit claims that evidence was fabricated to implicate Curtis
Lovelace in the Feb. 14, 2006, death of his first wife, Cory, and that
exculpatory evidence that his attorneys said helped prove his innocence
was initially withheld. This included emails not provided in discovery
during the first trial. This included an email from prosecution
witness Dr. Scott Denton, a forensic pathologist. In the email, Denton
said that unless Dr. Jessica Bowman, who performed the autopsy on Cory
Lovelace, amended her report from “undetermined,” reasonable doubt would
exist in the case. Special prosecutors handling the case said they never were given the information. “In fact, during the course of his
investigation Detective Gibson revealed numerous pieces of exculpatory
information and information that confirmed that Cory Lovelace was not
the victim of murder,” the lawsuit read. “Despite this, Gibson persisted
in his investigation. Ultimately, in an effort to bring charges against
Curtis Lovelace, the above-named individual defendants restored to
fabricating evidence, coercing witnesses, presenting false information
to the grand jury to obtain an indictment, withholding and concealing
exculpatory evidence and other unlawful acts in an effort to frame Mr.
Lovelace for a crime he did not commit.” The suit does not list a monetary amount that the Lovelaces are seeking. A former Adams County assistant state's
attorney and former Quincy School Board president, Lovelace was found
not guilty on March 10 by a Sangamon County jury on one count of
first-degree murder. A jury in Adams County couldn't reach a verdict
after two days of deliberations in February 2016......... The Lovelaces are being represented by Chicago
attorney Jon Loevy of the law firm Loevy & Loevy. Tara Thompson,
also with the firm, is an attorney in the case, as well. Both represented Curtis Lovelace in the retrial as part of the Exoneration Project out of the University of Chicago."
The entire story can be found at:
PUBLISHER'S NOTE: I am monitoring this case/issue. Keep your eye on the Charles Smith Blog for reports on developments. 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/
