David Gavitt: Michigan; The human cost of a wrongful conviction caused by old arson "science."

STORY: "Freed father: 'How can this happen? David Gavitt's arson murder conviction dismissed," by reporter Leon Hendrix, published on July 30, 2012, by WoodTV.

GIST: "After evidence from his case was reviewed by a new set of experts at the prompting of the University of Michigan Innocence Clinic, they came to a different conclusion from those who had studied the case in the 1980s. The fire that claimed the lives of Gavitt's family may not have been arson. It could have been an accident. With that new information in hand, prosecutors decided that there was not enough evidence to successfully re-charge Gavitt with the murders. His conviction was overturned and a judge ordered Gavitt released from prison. Moments after walking out of the prison doors, Gavitt headed to the cemetery to visit his family's graves for the first time."

The entire story can be found at:

http://www.woodtv.com/dpp/news/target_8/Freed-father-How-can-this-happen

PUBLISHER'S NOTE:

I am monitoring this case. 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.

Bulletin: Jeffrey Havard: Shaken baby syndrome death row case comes under attack. Link to new petition. Bruce Fischer. Ground Report.

STORY: "New petition asks US District Judge to grant death row inmate Jeffrey Havard a new trial," by Bruce Fischer, published on Ground Report on August 14, 2012.

GIST: "A new petition was recently started asking United States District Judge Keith Starrett to grant Jeffrey Havard a new trial. Jeffrey was wrongfully convicted in 2002 of murder by shaken baby syndrome and sexual molestation of six-month old Chloe Britt. He was sentenced to death by the State of Mississippi.........Jeffrey’s conviction was based on the testimony of an un-certified pathologist named Dr. Steven Hayne and the sexual molestation speculation of emergency room staff that testified the infant's dilated anus indicated sexual abuse. Jeffrey was denied independent experts to counter their claims and was found guilty in a trial that took less than two days. Since the time of Jeffrey’s trial, Dr. Hayne has been discredited for submitting faulty work on multiple cases and is now banned from performing autopsies in the State of Mississippi. Dr. Hayne later re-examined the case and has now stated in a signed declaration that evidence was not sufficient to conclude that a sexual assault occurred. Key points: 1. Anal dilation has given rise to suspicion of sexual abuse in other cases, and a clinical study was done to clarify the subject. Researchers found that anal dilation is a common artifact in accidental deaths involving severe brain injury. 2. Two forensic pathologists (Dr. Michael Baden as well as Alabama state medical examiner Dr. James Lauridson) have looked at the medical report and have concluded the infant's death was accidental. 3. Dr. Hayne has a bad reputation. He is discussed in a recent PBS Frontline episode about problems with forensic evidence and testimony: http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/real-csi/ 4. Earlier this year, the Mississippi Supreme Court denied Jeffrey's motion for post-conviction relief. The ruling was based on procedure, not facts. His next step is a federal appeal. If he loses that, he faces execution."

Click here for Jeffrey Havard's  petition.

The entire story can be found at:

http://www.groundreport.com/US/New-Petition-Asks-US-District-Judge-To-Grant-Death/2947567

PUBLISHER'S NOTE:

I am monitoring this case. 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.

Bulletin: Larry Swearingen: "Judge signals intent to rule against condemned inmate." Reporter Brandi Grissom; Texas Tribune.

STORY: "Judge signals intent to rule against condemned inmate," by reporter Brandi Grissom, published in the Texas Tribune on August 15m 2012.

PHOTO-Caption: Death row inmate Larry Swearingen during an interview at the Polunsky Unit in Livingston, Texas. He was sentenced to death for the murder of Melissa Trotter. He says he is innocent and that she was killed while he was already in jail for other offenses.

GIST: "Bill Delmore, assistant district attorney in Montgomery County, said Wednesday that state district Judge Fred Edwards told lawyers in an in-chambers meeting that he intends to rule in favor of the state, which disputes Swearingen’s claims of innocence. Edwards asked the district attorney’s office to prepare recommendations that will be sent to the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals, which will ultimately decide whether to grant Swearingen’s request for a new trial. “We expected a railroad job in the 9^th district court, and I believe we’re getting it,” said James Rytting, Swearingen’s lawyer, adding that Edwards made his decision before transcripts from a two-week-long hearing on the scientific evidence in the case were complete. “The judge, I believe, has had his mind set from the beginning.” Swearingen, 41, was convicted of kidnapping, raping and murdering 19-year-old community college student Melissa Trotter in Conroe after she disappeared on Dec. 8, 1998. Her body was discovered was discovered 25 days later, on Jan. 2, 1999, by hunters in the Sam Houston National Forest. Since Swearingen’s 2000 conviction, though, reports from more than a half-dozen scientists have concluded that evidence from Trotter’s decomposing body indicate that he wasn’t the killer. Her body, they reported, had not been dead for 25 days as prosecutors asserted. Their examinations of Trotter’s organs showed that she was killed while Swearingen was already behind bars for a different offense."

The entire story can be found at:

http://www.texastribune.org/texas-dept-criminal-justice/death-penalty/judge-signals-intent-rule-against-condemned-inmate/

PUBLISHER'S NOTE:

I am monitoring this case. 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.

Thomas Arthur: "Alabama says "no" to DNA testing as execution date approaches." Powerful commentary by Nancy Petro; Wrongful Convictions Blog;

STORY: "Alabama says "no" to DNA testing as execution date approaches, posted by Nancy Petro on the Wrongful Convictions Blog, on August 15, 2012.

GIST: "The state of Alabama has spent countless taxpayer dollars prosecuting and imprisoning Arthur…and successfully opposing DNA testing of the wig worn by the perpetrator. An article on the case in The Atlantic here suggests “the figure must be astounding–millions upon millions.” His lawyers are willing to pay for the testing if cost were somehow the issue. The case is complicated. No physical evidence connects Arthur to the crime, and another man eventually confessed. Arthur was convicted of the murder three times, but advocates say here that his court-appointed lawyers had never tried a capital case, were paid minimally, and were ill-prepared. Arthur has a history of violence. He was convicted of another prior murder. His daughter knows as well as anyone that he has been abusive. But she’s not sure that he committed THIS crime. Thomas Arthur is not a poster child for those opposed to capital punishment. But his case is a good ethics test for Alabama and, in turn, for America. We must be certain of a person’s guilt of the specific crime in question before any execution. It is unacceptable to execute someone without examining all evidence even if he or she is “a bad person.”"

The entire post can be found at:

http://wrongfulconvictionsblog.org/2012/08/15/alabama-says-no-to-dna-testing-as-execution-day-approaches/

PUBLISHER'S NOTE:

I am monitoring this case. 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.

DOJ/FBI probe into thousands of cases involving possibly questionable hair and fibre analysis. The Canadian (Manitoba) experience may well be useful.

Publisher's Note: In view of the recent decision of the U.S. Justice Department to review possible thousands of criminal cases which may have been tainted by dubious hair and fibre testing, the Canadian experience may well be of interest. An article by Professor Bruce MacFarlane on several miscarriages of justice which caused a review of hair analysis related cases in Manitoba sets out the background - and the results of the review beautifully. Click on the following link which will take you to a list of some of Professor MacFarlane's articles. Then click on the link to the last article on the list "Wrongful convictions: Determining culpability when the sands keep shifting." Once in the article scroll down to page 9B starting with the heading "Forensic microscopy: Hair comparison."

http://www.canadiancriminallaw.com/articles_toc.htm

PUBLISHER'S NOTE:

I am monitoring these issues. 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.

Dr. Freddy Patel; (2): His professional conduct is under scrutiny once again - at the Ian Tomlinson tribune; The Guardian;

STORY: "Ian Tomlinson tribunal: pathologist failed in main areas, says expert," by reporter Helen Carter, published in the Guardian on August 15, 2012.

GIST: "A disciplinary panel said on Monday that Patel was dishonest and "liable to bring his profession into disrepute". In his initial postmortem report, Patel said Tomlinson had died of coronary artery disease. But questions were raised after footage obtained by the Guardian showed Tomlinson being struck with a baton and falling to the ground and a second report was written by the pathologist. The panel said the cause of death determined by Patel in the case was wrong and it described his conduct as misleading. Findings identified a total of 68 failings in the case by the pathologist. The panel will determine if Patel's fitness to practise was impaired by reason of misconduct and/or deficient professional performance and will consider whether he should be allowed to continue as a pathologist, be suspended or struck off the medical register. The panel will review a 10-week suspension of Patel's registration, which was directed in May. An inquest jury found Tomlinson had been unlawfully killed, and a number of pathologists gave evidence that he died of internal bleeding. None of them agreed with Patel's opinion on the cause of death. The police officer who struck Tomlinson and pushed him to the ground, PC Simon Harwood, was last month cleared of manslaughter following a trial. The officer claimed he had used reasonable force. Last year, Patel was given a four-month ban for dishonesty and omitting key findings after examining the body of a murder victim who he said had died from natural causes."

The entire story can be found at:

http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/2012/aug/15/ian-tomlinson-tribunal-pathologist-failed

PUBLISHER'S NOTE:

I am monitoring this case. 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.

Dr. Michael West. (5): Publisher's View: Mississippi should order a thorough review of convictions based on "science" even he rejects.

PUBLISHER'S VIEW: (Editorial); Investigative journalist Radley Balko must feel vindicated by the recent admission of bite mark "specialist" Michael West that, "I no longer believe in bite mark analysis. This after the carnage West has wreaked in Mississippi's courts which, as Balko notes, "has put dozens of people in prison with bite mark testimony, including several on death row." (Eddie Lee Howard in Mississippi and Jimmie Duncan in Louisiana are still awaiting execution). Balko also notes that: "The office of Mississippi Attorney Jim Hood so far has so far refused to go back and reopen all the old cases in which West has testified. Hood should have done that a long time ago. For that matter, the same goes for Hood’s predecessors. And the Mississippi Supreme Court. We’ve known for nearly 20 years now that this guy was a fraud. Hell, we’ve had video evidence. Lots of it. No much cared. Because, as one former Mississippi prosecutor told me, “Nobody wants to be the one to unravel that ball of yarn.”" That was all before West's candid admission that he no longer believes in bite mark analysis. Given that admission, it is imperative that Mississippi, and other states that have used West to obtain convictions conduct a thorough review, with the cooperation of innocence organizations, similar to the review of arson cases based on old and outdated arson "science" which is currently being conducted in Texas. If there is no political will to take this necessary step the federal government should step in.

Harold Levy: Publisher. The Charles Smith Blog.

PUBLISHER'S NOTE:

I am monitoring this case. 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.