Thursday, July 25, 2013

Publisher's note; Time for a seasonal break. Back in a few weeks. Keep in touch. Harold Levy. Publisher. The Charles Smith Blog.

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                                                    PUBLISHER'S NOTE: Dear Readers; I will be taking a seasonal  break over the nex...
Wednesday, July 24, 2013

FBI review: U.S. Review of FBI forensic microscopic hair analysis testimony errors includes 27 death penalty convictions; Review led to an 11th-hour stay of execution in Mississippi in May. Results could be a factor in death penalty debate; (Must Read. HL);

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STORY:  "U.S.  reviewing 27 death penalty convictions for FBI forensic testimony  errors," by reporter Spencer S. Hsu,  published...
Tuesday, July 23, 2013

Bulletin; John Huffington: Baltimore; Released from prison following a review of his his petition for a writ of actual innocence after serving 32 years of two life sentences; Federal agent who testified with certainty that hairs recovered from one of the victims had belonged to Huffington had since been discredited; Baltimore Sun.

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STORY: "John Huffington released from prison Monday," by reporter David Anderson, published by the Baltimore Sun on July 23, 2013...

Annie Dookhan: Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court permits courts to continue freeing defendants who are challenging their convictions in Dookhan case; Mass. American Civil Liberties Union legal director says it well: "You can't rest a conviction on fraud."

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STORY: "Staying of jail terms upheld by Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court: Rules in cases tied to lab abuses," by reporter Pet...

The Innocence Game: NPR Interview with author Michael Harvey - author of "the Innocence Game, a thriller based on Northwestern University's Innocence Project; (The antagonists are detectives, prosecutors and forensic scientists "who hope to further their careers by increasing their conviction rates." (Sound familiar? HL); WUWM. NPR. 89.7.

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STORY: "The Innocence Game," by Michael Harvey,  based on Bonny North's  interview with author Michael Harvey, publis...
Monday, July 22, 2013

FBI review of cases tainted by flawed FBI microscopic hair testimony; A worthwhile repeat of former FBI Director William Session's compelling commentary on why the many individuals still in jail, possibly convicted wrongfully due to faulty, and highly influential, FBI testimony, must be afforded the opportunity to prove their innocence;

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PUBLISHER'S VIEW:  On June 11, 2013,  I posted a commentary by former FBI Director William Sessions commending the FBI  for taking the...
Sunday, July 21, 2013

FBI review: Grits for Breakfast points out a troubling gap: Cases possibly tainted by the testimony of state and local technicians who the FBI trained on microscopic hair analysis.

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POST:  "Federal hair microscopy review should be replicated at state level,' published by Grits for Breakfast on July 18, 2013.  ...