Friday, August 18, 2017

Trump Regime's Forensic Science 'Reform': (7): Veracruz Post commentary: Jefferson Sessions’ program to lock up more Americans includes abundant use of junk forensic science. Mark Sumner..."In a landmark 2009 report, the National Academy of Sciences found that nuclear DNA testing was the only reliable forensic discipline; those based on expert analysis, as opposed to laboratory testing, weren’t really science at all. "In other words, most “expert forensic opinion” is just opinion. Error rates determined by the NAS showed that the majority of such would should not be accepted as definitive evidence. But for Sessions, anything that puts more Americans behind bars is just fine. He wants more money for bad tests, and less scrutiny for how they’re used. “I don’t think we should suggest that those proven scientific principles that we’ve been using for decades are somehow uncertain,” [Sessions] said during a 2009 Senate hearing on the National Academy of Sciences report. This would make more sense if Sessions had declared that leeches have been used for centuries, and he didn’t think anyone should suggest we should stop bleeding patients to address illness."


COMMENTARY:  "Jefferson Session's program to lock up more Americans includes abundant use of junk forensic science," by Mark Sumner, published by The Veracruz Post on August 10, 2017. (Mark Sumner is the author of the nonfiction work "The Evolution of Everything" as well as several novels including "Devil's Tower.)"

GIST: "Attorney General Jefferson Session has been making proclamations about “improving” the use of forensic science, but Mother Jones reports that Sessions’ idea of improvement means ignoring mountains of evidence and appointing a new senior adviser whose claim to fame is defending junk science. The appointment of Ted Hunt, a Missouri prosecutor, came amid a broader announcement of Justice Department initiatives to improve forensic science. As the new senior forensic adviser, Hunt will oversee a “forensic science working group” to create guidelines for forensic examiners to follow in court testimony. Junk science goes beyond climate change denial and anti-vaccine madness. For years, prosecutors have complained about the evidentiary expectations raised by television series and movies in which forensic analysts run DNA tests in seconds and pick out a killer with a single hair. But it turns out the worst practitioners of forensic science aren’t on the tube. They’re in the courtroom. "In a landmark 2009 report, the National Academy of Sciences found that nuclear DNA testing was the only reliable forensic discipline; those based on expert analysis, as opposed to laboratory testing, weren’t really science at all. "In other words, most “expert forensic opinion” is just opinion. Error rates determined by the NAS showed that the majority of such would should not be accepted as definitive evidence. But for Sessions, anything that puts more Americans behind bars is just fine. He wants more money for bad tests, and less scrutiny for how they’re used. “I don’t think we should suggest that those proven scientific principles that we’ve been using for decades are somehow uncertain,” [Sessions] said during a 2009 Senate hearing on the National Academy of Sciences report. This would make more sense if Sessions had declared that leeches have been used for centuries, and he didn’t think anyone should suggest we should stop bleeding patients to address illness. What the NAS study showed was not that the opinion-based evidence Sessions and other prosecutors had been using was “proven.” What it showed was something else entirely.........President Obama followed up the report by creating a DOJ task force to deal with problems of pseudo-science in tests and improve the quality of forensic tests. Naturally, Jefferson Sessions has destroyed that task force. The department’s new efforts include scrapping a group created by the Obama administration, the National Commission on Forensic Science, which brought together prosecutors, defense attorneys, crime lab chiefs, and scientists to create recommendations for improving the field. Instead, Sessions is turning this issue over to his expert, Hunt. Why Hunt? He was one of the commissioners on the previous group, and he had a very specific record. When Obama’s commission called for forensics experts to be more exacting in the language they used to describe the certainty of tests, Hunt voted against it; When Obama’s commission called for stricter standards on accrediting forensics labs, Hunt voted against it; When Obama’s commission called for labs to show more transparency in how tests were done, Hunt voted against it;  When Obama’s commission called for a scientific review of many widely used tests, Hunt … voted against it."

The entire commentary can be found at:

http://veracruzpost.com/2017/08/jefferson-sessions-program-to-lock-up-more-americans-includes-abundant-use-of-junk-forensic-science/

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/charlessmith. Information on "The Charles Smith Blog Award"- and its nomination process - can be found at: http://smithforensic.blogspot.com/2011/05/charles-smith-blog-award-nominations.html Please send any comments or information on other cases and issues of interest to the readers of this blog to: hlevy15@gmail.com. Harold Levy; Publisher; The Charles Smith Blog.