GIST: "MPs and peers have launched an inquiry into the state of forensic science – amid concerns that mistakes are leading to innocent people being wrongly convicted.
The Westminster Commission on Forensic Science will question experts, lawyers, police investigators and victims of miscarriages of justice. It will set out its findings in a report, expected in 2024.
The inquiry will be co-chaired by Baroness Black of Strome, a forensic anthropologist and cross-bench peer, and Professor Angela Gallop, a leading forensic scientist. It has been established by the All-Party Parliamentary Group on Miscarriages of Justice (APPGMJ), a group of parliamentarians with an interest in the area.
At the same time, the APPGMJ is establishing five sub-committees to focus its work on key areas of concern. As well as the sub-committee on science and the courts, which will oversee the Westminster Commission on Forensic Science, separate sub-committees will look at the criminal appeals system, legal policy, the legal profession, and the role of the media.
The Coalition government scrapped the state-owned Forensic Science Service in 2012 and police forces now do their own analysis or contract it out to private labs. A report by the Lords Science and Technology Committee in 2019 found that that forensic science was underfunded, with too little research being carried out, and that Legal Aid cuts meant defendants could not always hire their own experts to challenge prosecution forensic evidence.
Barry Sheerman, the Labour MP who co-chairs the APPGMJ, said: “Our reputation as the global gold standard for forensic sciences has been badly tarnished over the last decade. Today we launch an investigation into the state of the sector and we do that as a result of our concern that the innocent are being wrongly convicted. The Westminster Commission on Forensic Science will shine a light on the sector and how its ‘products’ are used, and make recommendations to drive up quality and reliability in this important but overlooked corner of the justice system.”
Sir Bob Neill, the Conservative MP who co-chairs the APPGMJ and also chairs the Commons Justice Committee, said that forensic science had been at the heart of notorious miscarriages of justice including the cases of the Birmingham Six and the Guildford Four. He said: “The misapplication of forensic science can and often has resulted in the wrongful conviction for many years of the innocent. But pioneering forensic approaches can lead to wrongful convictions being overturned and justice restored.”
Members of the Westminster Commission on Forensic Science include Professor Carole McCartney of Leicester Law School; former detective chief superintendent Steve Wilkins; Katy Thorne KC; DNA expert Dr Philip Avenell; and Neil Denison, director of Yorkshire and Humberside Regional Scientific Support Services."
The entire story can be read at:
https://insidetime.org/parliamentarians-to-investigate-forensic-science/PUBLISHER'S NOTE: I am monitoring this case/issue/resurce. 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;
SEE BREAKDOWN OF SOME OF THE ON-GOING INTERNATIONAL CASES (OUTSIDE OF THE CONTINENTAL USA) THAT I AM FOLLOWING ON THIS BLOG, AT THE LINK BELOW: HL:
https://www.blogger.com/blog/post/edit/120008354894645705/4704913685758792985
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: "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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