QUOTE OF THE DAY: "Health Minister Shannon Fentiman said up to 103,000 samples may need to be retested and would form part of the historical review of cases — which totals about 37,000 — including murder and sexual assaults. She said staff at the lab "really did away with scientifically sound methodology" and that they "sacrificed that for speed". "It should never have occurred," Ms Fentiman said. "It was never scientifically validated."
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QUOTE TWO OF THE DAY: "Dr Kirsty Wright said she was "happy the truth about Project 13 had finally come to light". "However, I simply don't trust the Queensland lab to be able to retest those Project 13 samples," Dr Wright said. "I think the Commissioner's finding of no accountability of any of the Project 13 scientists is a real punch in the guts for all of the victims that have suffered over nine years because of this catastrophic failure.”
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STORY: "Second inquiry into Queensland forensic DNA lab finds Project 13 was 'fundamentally flawed, ' By Ciara Jones, Alex Brewster, and Kelsie Iorio.
GIST: "A report into practices at Queensland's trouble-plagued forensics lab has found a controversial DNA method was fundamentally flawed and may have resulted in offenders escaping conviction over a period of nine years.
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Key points:
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Findings from a second report into Queensland's state-run DNA lab have been revealed -
Up to 103,000 samples may be retested at the discretion of police and legal experts -
Health Minister Shannon Fentiman said Queenslanders should have full confidence in the lab
GIST: "More than 103,000 DNA samples may need to be be retested as a result of the second commission of inquiry, which was made public by Health Minister Shannon Fentiman and Attorney-General Yvette D'ath after being presented at Cabinet.
The inquiry into the QHFSS [Queensland Health Forensic and Scientific Services] laboratory, headed by retired Federal Court judge Annabelle Bennett, examined what's known as Project 13 – a 2008 report by seven scientists that recommended the use of an automated DNA testing system, rather than extracting it manually.
This was despite the automated method yielding up to 92 per cent less DNA than the manual technique.
"It is apparent that the … method was introduced at the QHFSS laboratory without having been scientifically validated," Dr Bennett found.
"The reporting of such experiments as were carried out was haphazard at best.”
Dr Bennett found an "understandable desire" by scientists for "efficiency and to overcome a testing backlog appears to have superseded the need for scientific accountability and scientific integrity".
"Matters such as a lack of line of sight over the whole process from sample to final profiling, inadequate reporting … and a lack of assurance and quality control all contributed to what could be described as a potentially devastating outcome for the criminal justice system, including victims and their families," she found.
"This reflects a systemic failure in the governance of the QHFSS laboratory.”
Up to 103,000 samples may need retesting
Dr Bennett recommended crime scene samples between 2007 and 2016 be reviewed, noting that "no faith can be placed over the whole of the period" the method was used.
"It goes without saying that the evidence available for criminal trials may thus have been compromised and convictions that could otherwise have been secured did not occur," she found.
Health Minister Shannon Fentiman said up to 103,000 samples may need to be retested and would form part of the historical review of cases — which totals about 37,000 — including murder and sexual assaults.
She said staff at the lab "really did away with scientifically sound methodology" and that they "sacrificed that for speed".
"It should never have occurred," Ms Fentiman said.
"It was never scientifically validated."
The six-week inquiry was launched in October by Health Minister Shannon Fentiman after lobbying from forensic scientist Dr Kirsty Wright, the mother of murdered Mackay woman Shandee Blackburn and the state Opposition.
For Vicki Blackburn, whose daughter Shandee was murdered in Mackay in 2013, the report's findings are little vindication.
Ms Blackburn believes if DNA samples had been tested adequately, her daughter's killer would have been caught by now.
"There's nothing in [the report] ... that we didn't expect," Ms Blackburn said.
"For all victims that may have been involved in the ramifications of Project 13, to have this out publicly, for why their cases have failed, is very important — however, I think it's only the first step.
"It's such a massive failure of this lab and the justice system – it can't be explained away by bad science or bad management."
Dr Kirsty Wright said she was "happy the truth about Project 13 had finally come to light".
"However, I simply don't trust the Queensland lab to be able to retest those Project 13 samples," Dr Wright said.
"I think the Commissioner's finding of no accountability of any of the Project 13 scientists is a real punch in the guts for all of the victims that have suffered over nine years because of this catastrophic failure.”
First inquiry misled, but not deliberately
Ms Fentiman said the report found that Dr Linzi Wilson-Wilde, the current head of Forensic Science Queensland, "did not draw attention to the deficiencies of Project 13" in her evidence before the first inquiry, which led to the establishment of the second one.
Ms Fentiman said the report found Dr Wilson-Wilde did not mislead the first inquiry deliberately, but that she did fail to highlight the full extent of Project 13's failures.
No adverse findings were made against Dr Wilson-Wilde in the second report.
Dr Bennett found there was not enough evidence to find one individual responsible for the method's failings.
"We know that the managing scientists and leaders at the lab were really the biggest contributing factor for why the lab had so many failures over so many years," Ms Fentiman said.
Ms Fentiman said Queenslanders "should continue to have faith in the lab and have faith in our criminal justice process”.
Three years of delays
Ms Fentiman said some of the retrospective forensic testing was being outsourced to places like New Zealand and the UK, but that more resources were needed to get through the large backlog.
She estimated it would take about three years to review all the cases.
Attorney General Yvette D'Ath said the implementation of Queensland's own forensic science institute would see the state "not just leading this country, but, we hope, world-leading as far as our DNA testing and laboratory services".
"We said this body was to commence on July 1 next year, and we need to put the legislative framework in place for them," she said.
The Queensland Sexual Assault Network's Angela Lynch said further delays in the court system could cause victims to withdraw their proceedings.
"Victims of sexual violence who are currently going through the court processes are feeling the impacts of this because the court system is under pressure, there's already current delays and this is going to add to that," Ms Lynch said.
"Those increased delays have an enormous impact … we know if the wait is too long, it increases the chances that [victims] may well withdraw from proceeding through the formal processes.”
Opposition Leader David Crisafulli said greater transparency for victims was needed.
"I still don't think [the government] get it, they don't get the magnitude of these failings and that there are tens of thousands of people desperately searching for answers," Mr Crisafulli said.
A 2022 inquiry found "serious" failures at the lab, caused by a series of factors including "mismanagement", cultural problems and "dishonesty by senior managers."
Former judge Walter Sofronoff's 506-page report recommended a retrospective review of thousands of Queensland crimes dating back to January 2008.
He was particularly damning of the lab's managing scientist Cathie Allen, accusing her of lying and of significant failures in scientific oversight spanning years."
The entire story can be read at:
PUBLISHER'S NOTE: I am monitoring this case/issue/resource. 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/120008354894645705/47049136857587929
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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YET ANOTHER FINAL WORD:
David Hammond, one of Broadwater’s attorneys who sought his exoneration, told the Syracuse Post-Standard, “Sprinkle some junk science onto a faulty identification, and it’s the perfect recipe for a wrongful conviction.
