PASSAGE OF THE DAY: "Prosecutors who may have used Kopera as an expert witness have lists of cases to go over, all because Kopera may have forged initials and signatures of coworkers on documents. "We thought we were done with this. Unfortunate we have to go through this effort again to take a look at all these cases," Shellenberger said. In 2007, Kopera's suicide sparked a similar check of cases statewide when it was revealed he lied about his academic credentials."
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STORY: "Thousands of cases in jeopardy following questions into former MSP firearms expert," by news anchor and reporter Barry Simms, published by WBAL TV on February 28, 2020.
GIST: "There
are 4,000 criminal cases across Maryland are now under review after new
questions about the credibility of a former Maryland State Police
firearms expert. Joseph Kopera testified at thousands of trials.
He retired and took his own life in 2007 when it was revealed he lied
about his academic credentials. Now investigators are looking into
whether he also forged initials of other employees to cover his work. For Maryland prosecutors, public defenders and state police this has
been a "here we go again" type of situation, and a man who is serving
life without parole is hoping this investigation will help overturn his
conviction. Jeffrey Ebb Sr. was convicted of two counts of
felony murder and other charges in the November 1992 triple shooting and
attempted robbery at Brodie's Barbershop in Catonsville. James Brodie
and a shop patron were killed, while a third man was wounded. Ebb
received life without parole. During his trial, Kopera testified about a
9-mm semi-automatic pistol allegedly used in the crime. WBAL-TV 11 News asked Baltimore County State's Attorney Scott Shellenberger if it is one of the cases under review. "I would imagine he is on the list and that will be one we will look at," Shellenberger said. Shellenberger said his office has a list of 425 cases in which the former MSP firearms and tool marks examiner testified. Prosecutors
who may have used Kopera as an expert witness have lists of cases to go
over, all because Kopera may have forged initials and signatures of
coworkers on documents. "We thought we were done with this.
Unfortunate we have to go through this effort again to take a look at
all these cases," Shellenberger said. In 2007, Kopera's suicide
sparked a similar check of cases statewide when it was revealed he lied
about his academic credentials. Maryland State Police told the 11 News I-Team in a statement: "Reviews
have been completed on all Kopera cases from 2007, 2006, 2005 and 2003.
Cases from 2004 are currently undergoing review. In total, more than
450 cases have been reviewed so far, which is a little more than 10% of
the case files MSP plans to review. Examiners found 50 cases where
initials had been forged indicating the match of evidence had been
verified or the case file had been reviewed. There still have been no
cases identified in which Kopera's examination results were incorrect.
The current review has found only violations of department policy and
procedure." "We're looking for whether what he had to say had any significance in leading to a guilty plea," Shellenberger said. "If
there is a case with lots of other evidence an eyewitnesses, that case
tends to be one that won't be overturned," said public defender Becky
Fel. Maryland State Police also said they do not know when this
review will be completed, but it remains a daily priority for the
forensics sciences division.""
The entire story can be read at:
The entire story can be read 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/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;
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FINAL WORD: (Applicable to all of our wrongful conviction cases): "Whenever there is a wrongful conviction, it exposes errors in our criminal legal system, and we hope that this case — and lessons from it — can prevent future injustices."
Lawyer Radha Natarajan:
Executive Director: New England Innocence Project;
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