Thursday, November 5, 2020

Jason Flom: This music producer previously launched a top-notch podcast on wrongful convictions (Wrongful convictions with Jason Flom) - he has branched into the highly relevant world of forensic science with an offshoot called 'junk science' - and it's really worth checking out. HL...It is described on the series website as: "A hard look at the pseudo-sciences like arson, bite-mark identification, blood splatter, and ballistics that are sometimes used to put innocent people behind bars."


PUBLISHER'S NOTE: Information on the recently launched Podcast sub-series can be found in the following  article headed, 'Jason Flom, the music executive with an ear for injustice,' by Reporter Andrew Limbong, published by NPR (All Things Considered)  on October 20, 2020, at the link below.

GIST: "Flom recently launched offshoots of Wrongful Conviction that examine how bad science and false confessions can leave people wrongly incarcerated. The wider goal of the show, he says. is to create a more thoughtful pool of jurors, who will more skeptical of the arguments made by prosecutors."

This 'offshoot' is called 'Junk Science.'

It is described on the series website as: "A hard look at the pseudo-sciences like arson, bite-mark identification, blood splatter, and ballistics that are sometimes used to put innocent people behind bars. Host Josh Dubin, Innocence Project Ambassador-Advisor and famed attorney leads investigators and experts on a critical and often shocking exploration of these forensic rabbit holes, offering his unique perspective on how junk science has played a role in many of his own  life or death courtroom battles."

The website can be accessed at:

https://www.wrongfulconvictionpodcast.com/junk-science

The NPR article can be accessed at:

https://www.npr.org/2020/10/20/925508789/jason-flom-wrongful-conviction-music-executive-criminal-justice

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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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FINAL, FINAL WORD (FOR NOW!): "Since its inception, the Innocence Project has pushed the criminal legal system to confront and correct the laws and policies that cause and contribute to wrongful convictions.   They never shied away from the hard cases — the ones involving eyewitness identifications, confessions, and bite marks. Instead, in the course of presenting scientific evidence of innocence, they’ve exposed the unreliability of evidence that was, for centuries, deemed untouchable." So true!
Christina Swarns: Executive Director: The Innocence Project;
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https://www.npr.org/2020/10/20/925508789/jason-flom-wrongful-conviction-music-executive-criminal-justice