PUBLISHER'S NOTE: "I adopt the immortal words of the formidable Ohio
criminal defence lawyer/blogger Jeff Gamso..."JUST TEST THE
FUCKING DNA."
http://gamso-forthedefense.blogspot.com/2018/05/what-is-truth-said-jesting-pilate.html
Harold Levy: Publisher: The Charles Smith Blog.
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PASSAGE OF THE DAY: "The decision came 11 days after Avery’s attorney Kathleen Zellner
filed a motion to stay the appeal in order to conduct new tests,
specifically using the ANDES Rapid DNA system, to determine whether the
damaged bone fragments from the quarry are human. If the remains from
the gravel pit are determined to be Halbach’s, Zellner argues, the new
evidence would dispute the prosecution’s argument that both the murder
and burning of the body occurred at Avery’s residence. The court’s decision does not prevent Avery’s team from testing the
bone fragments at a later date. However, the judges said Avery’s current
appeal must run its course before the “new issue” of scientific testing
can be raised,
Zellner told Newsweek. Zellner said in the Dec. 17 motion, which she posted online this
week, that Rapid DNA technology could yield new information from the
bones—which forensic anthropologist Leslie Eisenberg previously said
were “possibly human”—despite their degraded condition. Included with
the motion was an affidavit by Richard F. Selden, founder of ANDE, which
developed the Rapid DNA tool, proposing that the evidence be tested at
ANDE’s Waltham, Mass. facility. Selden also wrote that, based on having viewed photographs of the
gravel pit bones, he believes the system could be successful in yielding
results, even from the charred and calcined samples, and without
consuming all of the fragments."
---------------------------------------------------------------
STORY: "Halbach Murder: Court Rejects Defense Motion to Test Quarry Bones With Rapid DNA," by Associate Editor Laura French, published by Forensic Magazine on December 4, 2018. (Laura (French) manages the
Forensic (Magazine) website, as well as the daily
e-newsletter and all social media. She writes a weekly column titled,
"Virtual Case Notes," in which she speaks to cybersecurity experts about
the latest hack and other happenings in the digital forensic world. In
addition to cybersecurity, Laura writes about forensics in social media,
forensic in trials, and breaking news.)
PHOTO CAPTION: "In
this March 13, 2007 file photo, Steven Avery listens to testimony in
the courtroom at the Calumet County Courthouse in Chilton, Wis. Avery
was convicted of first-degree intentional homicide in a case featured on
the Netflix series "Making a Murderer."
GIST: "Steve
Avery’s appeal in the Teresa Halbach murder case will continue forward
without new scientific testing of bones found in a quarry near his
property, the Wisconsin Court of Appeals ruled on Dec. 28. Avery is
currently serving a life sentence without the possibility of parole
after he and his then-teenage cousin were convicted of first-degree
murder in the 2005 killing of Halbach, whose remains were first found in
a burn pit behind Avery’s garage. The decision came 11 days after Avery’s attorney Kathleen Zellner
filed a motion to stay the appeal in order to conduct new tests,
specifically using the ANDES Rapid DNA system, to determine whether the
damaged bone fragments from the quarry are human. If the remains from
the gravel pit are determined to be Halbach’s, Zellner argues, the new
evidence would dispute the prosecution’s argument that both the murder
and burning of the body occurred at Avery’s residence. The court’s decision does not prevent Avery’s team from testing the
bone fragments at a later date. However, the judges said Avery’s current
appeal must run its course before the “new issue” of scientific testing
can be raised,
Zellner told Newsweek. Zellner said in the Dec. 17 motion, which she posted online this
week, that Rapid DNA technology could yield new information from the
bones—which forensic anthropologist Leslie Eisenberg previously said
were “possibly human”—despite their degraded condition. Included with
the motion was an affidavit by Richard F. Selden, founder of ANDE, which
developed the Rapid DNA tool, proposing that the evidence be tested at
ANDE’s Waltham, Mass. facility. Selden also wrote that, based on having viewed photographs of the
gravel pit bones, he believes the system could be successful in yielding
results, even from the charred and calcined samples, and without
consuming all of the fragments. Selden noted the use of Rapid DNA in the
recent California “Camp Fire” aftermath, during which testing of
remains, including those in burnt and skeletal conditions, yielded
identifications in about 85 percent of cases. The system generated most
of these DNA identifications within seven days, he added. Now that the court has denied the defense’s request for a stay,
Zellner has until Feb. 1 to file her full brief for the current appeal. A
Sheboygan County Circuit Court judge previously denied a motion to add a
CD Zellner said contained exculpatory evidence into the record in
September,
the Appleton Post-Crescent reported. The same judge rejected Avery’s requests for a new trial in 2017,
according to the Associated Press. Avery and his cousin Brendan Dassey were convicted in 2007, in
separate trials, of first-degree murder and both sentenced to life in
prison. (Avery was given no chance of parole; Dassey will be eligible
for parole in 2048.) Years prior to Halbach’s murder, Avery had been
wrongfully convicted of sexual assault and attempted murder and served
18 years in prison before being exonerated by DNA evidence and released
in 2003. Both Avery and Dassey were subjects of the Netflix documentary series
“Making a Murderer,” which began streaming its second season this past
October. The series was met with a wave of support for the convicts,
including
petitions for Avery to be pardoned, which were signed by hundreds of thousands after the series premiered in December 2015. Dassey has no pending appeals after the U.S. Supreme Court declined to hear his case this past June,
as reported by the AP.
A federal judge had previously overturned his conviction, in
2016—however, a federal appeals court disagreed with that decision, and
reinstated his conviction the following year."
The entire story can be read at:
https://www.forensicmag.com/news/2019/01/halbach-murder-court-rejects-defense-motion-test-quarry-bones-rapid-dna?et_cid=6569116&et_rid=979655504&type=headline&et_cid=6569116&et_rid=979655504&linkid=https%3a%2f%2fwww.forensicmag.com%2fnews%2f2019%2f01%2fhalbach-murder-court-rejects-defense-motion-test-quarry-bones-rapid-dna%3fet_cid%3d6569116%26et_rid%3d%%subscriberid%%%26type%3dheadline
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;
