● Stephen Cordner, a retired professor of forensic pathology who heads the international program of the Australia-based Victorian Institute of Forensic Medicine.
● Jack Crane, the former state pathologist for Northern Ireland.
● Deborah Davis, a professor of psychology at the University of Nevada at Reno who has served for decades as an expert witness on eyewitness memory, interrogation and confession, sexual consent communications, and forensics.
● Itiel Dror, a Harvard-educated expert in human cognition and decision-making who serves at University College London.
● Michael Freeman, a consultant in forensic medicine and forensic epidemiology and a professor at Maastricht University in the Netherlands.
● William C. Thompson, professor emeritus at the University of California at Irvine, where he has held academic appointments in criminology, psychological science and law.
● Alfredo E. Walker, a registered forensic pathologist in Ontario."
Nota Bene: Stephen Cordner and Jack Crane both had connections with the Goudge inquiry into many of Charles Smith's cases. Cordner wrote a paper for the inquiry on "A mode; forensic pathology service," and Crane reviewed several cases.
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GIST: "Maryland Attorney General Brian E. Frosh has selected an independent panel of experts from around the world to decide how to investigate police custody deaths overseen by the state’s former chief medical examiner, who testified for the defense in former police officer Derek Chauvin’s trial in the killing of George Floyd.
Frosh (D) announced in May that his office, in consultation with Republican Gov. Larry Hogan’s chief legal counsel, was launching a review of cases handled between 2002 and 2019, when David Fowler was chief medical examiner. Fowler served as a key witness for Chauvin, whose high-profile trial this year ended with a jury convicting the former Minneapolis officer of murder and manslaughter in Floyd’s death.
Fowler declined to comment on Thursday, saying he has not seen the attorney general’s announcement. He has previously defended the work the office did while he was chief medical examiner.
The selection of the “design team” is the first step in the probe.
The panel’s seven members, who have national and international expertise in forensic pathology and behavioral science, will develop the process for reviewing in-custody death determinations.
Raquel Coombs, a spokeswoman for Frosh, said in a statement that the team will “shape the scope and methodology of the audit, including the manner in which cases for review will be selected.” She said once the design team finishes its work, Frosh will select the members that will conduct the audit.
Fowler’s involvement in the Chauvin trial led to talks in Frosh’s office about reviewing the former medical examiner’s work, Coombs said. The ultimate decision to open a probe came after an open letter written by D.C.’s former chief medical examiner Roger Mitchell, who said Fowler’s testimony was “baseless” and “revealed obvious bias.”
In his testimony, Fowler broke with the Hennepin County medical examiner, among others, to classify Floyd’s death as “undetermined” and not a homicide. A bystander’s video recording showed Floyd pinned under Chauvin’s knee for more than nine minutes.
Fowler testified that the primary cause of Floyd’s death was cardiac arrhythmia during police restraint due to underlying heart disease. He also said that Floyd’s drug use and exposure to carbon monoxide from the police car contributed to his death.
Fowler said his “opinion was formulated after the collaboration of thirteen other highly experienced colleagues in multiple disciplines” and wrote that “our evaluation set an ethical standard for the work needed in sensitive litigation.”
It remains unclear how many cases the audit will review or how long the process will take.
Frosh’s office declined to comment further Thursday, instead referring to the attorney general’s previous comments in May, when the attorney general promised a “professional and independent audit.”
The panel members are:
● Stephen Cordner, a retired professor of forensic pathology who heads the international program of the Australia-based Victorian Institute of Forensic Medicine.
● Jack Crane, the former state pathologist for Northern Ireland.
● Deborah Davis, a professor of psychology at the University of Nevada at Reno who has served for decades as an expert witness on eyewitness memory, interrogation and confession, sexual consent communications, and forensics.
● Itiel Dror, a Harvard-educated expert in human cognition and decision-making who serves at University College London.
● Michael Freeman, a consultant in forensic medicine and forensic epidemiology and a professor at Maastricht University in the Netherlands.
● William C. Thompson, professor emeritus at the University of California at Irvine, where he has held academic appointments in criminology, psychological science and law.
● Alfredo E. Walker, a registered forensic pathologist in Ontario."
The entire story can be read at:
