Thursday, September 28, 2017

DNA Series: (4): Jens Soering, Virginia: Sheriff, Forensic Experts Say Convicted Murderer is Innocent, Based on DNA Analysis, reports Forensic Magazine senior science writer Seth Augustine..."He’s absolutely excluded,” said J.E. “Chip” Harding, the sheriff of Albemarle County, in a press conference Wednesday announcing their findings. “I am convinced Mr. Soering did not kill Derek and Nancy Haysom and was not present at the scene when the murders took place.” Instead, two unknown strangers left trails of their own blood through the crime scene, the Bedford County home of the Haysoms, sometime on the evening of March 30, 1985."

COUNTDOWN: FOUR DAYS TO WRONGFUL CONVICTION DAY;

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STORY: "Forensic Experts Say Convicted Murderer is Innocent, Based on DNA Analysis," by senior science writer Seth Augenstein, published by The Forensic Magazine on September 28, 2017.
 
GIST: The criminal accusations were sensational, the stuff made for TV. The son of a diplomat stood accused of slaughtering his girlfriend’s parents in their blood-streaked Virginia home because they disapproved of him. Together, the young lovers went on the lam internationally for almost a year before they were caught. Indeed, the trial of Jens Soering was the first to take place in front of live TV cameras in the U.S., and the proceedings were seen by millions. Since his 1990 conviction on two first-degree counts of murder, Soering has been behind bars, while his erstwhile girlfriend Elizabeth Haysom has been serving time since her 1987 guilty plea to two counts of being an accessory to murder before the fact. But now a sitting Virginia sheriff and a group of forensic experts argue Soering could not have committed the crime, based on new considerations of old evidence “discovered” right in the 1980s investigative file. They are publicly pushing for a full pardon for the now 51-year-old man, and for his deportation back to Germany. “He’s absolutely excluded,” said J.E. “Chip” Harding, the sheriff of Albemarle County, in a press conference Wednesday announcing their findings. “I am convinced Mr. Soering did not kill Derek and Nancy Haysom and was not present at the scene when the murders took place.” Instead, two unknown strangers left trails of their own blood through the crime scene, the Bedford County home of the Haysoms, sometime on the evening of March 30, 1985. (Read the entire story at the link below to discover how the reevaluation of the case—and the push for a pardon of the man convicted of the killings—began with a surprising discovery, right in the investigative case file.)
 https://www.forensicmag.com/news/2017/09/sheriff-forensic-experts-say-convicted-murderer-innocent-based-dna-analysis

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.