David Camm: Bulletin: Deliberations: Day Two; October 24, 2013. There is a verdict. Announcement expected at 12.30 PM. Follow developments on Marissa Alter's Twitter site - thanks to WLKY at the link provided in the post. (Link also provided to Courier-Journal report. (Also to be regularly updated.)

The verdict is to be announced at 12.30 PM.  Marissa Alter is tweeting on a regular basis at:

https://twitter.com/WLKYMarissa

The Courier-Journal coverage of the verdict can be found at the link below - and will be up-dated regularly.

 http://www.courier-journal.com/article/20131024/NEWS02/310240026/David-Camm-jury-has-reached-verdict

PUBLISHER'S NOTE:

Dear Reader. Keep your eye on the Charles Smith Blog. We are following this case.

I have added a search box for content in this blog which now encompasses several thousand posts. The search box is located  near the bottom of the screen just above the list of links. I am confident that this powerful search tool provided by "Blogger" will help our readers and myself get more out of the site.

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

I look forward to hearing from readers at:

hlevy15@gmail.com; 

David Camm: Indiana; Travis Kircher's interviews with Frank and Janice Renn (Parents of Kim Camm and grandparents of Brad and Jill Camm) and Sam Lockhart (David Camm's uncle and unwavering supporter); WDRB: (Must Read. HL);

POST: "Frank and Janice Renn: Q and A," by Travis K. Kircher, published by the David Camm Blog on October 21, 2013. Parents of Kim Camm and the grandparents of Brad and Jill Camm; (First of a series of interviews with some of the individuals involved in the proceedings);

GIST: "Frank and Janice kindly agreed to speak with us by phone over the weekend, and allowed us to post the audio of that conversation. The transcript is included below.  "Travis: The defense has brought up new evidence in this third trial. There was Charles Boney's testimony…it's the first time we've heard him testify in David Camm's trial. There was the "Touch DNA" evidence by Dr. Eikelenboom and IFS. And we heard from some experts who criticized the investigation, who weren't there in the second trial. Was there ever a moment where you heard this evidence and you thought, "Maybe we're wrong. Maybe he is innocent?" Frank: Well, that never did cross my mind. New evidence comes in, which is good. But, I just always have problems with that – I know it's new – Touch DNA. But how accurate is it? I understand it's only like 20 percent accurate anyway. I mean, how do you go back 13 years and find Touch DNA on something?"

The entire post can be found at:

 http://www.wdrb.com/story/23749208/david-camm-blog-frank-and-janice-renn-q-a

POST: "Sam Lockhart: Q and A,"  by Travis K. Kircher, published by the David Camm Blog on October 23 2103. (David Camm's uncle and unwavering supporter from the outset);

GIST: "Travis: And you're speaking of [Robert] Stites there? "Sam: That's right. When Stites was hired to come in, and Stan Faith reported him to be a world renowned blood stain pattern analyst and called him "Professor Stites" – which he was not – the detectives: Mickey Neal, Jim Biddle, Darrell Gibson, Sean Clemmons, all thought he was an expert. And when he told them there was high velocity impact spatter on Dave Camm's shirt, then they thought that was really high velocity impact spatter. Mickey Neal actually asked him, "Are you sure?" And he said he was 90 percent sure. Neal said, "Well that's not good enough," so he went and called Rod Englert, his boss, and described it over the phone. Englert then said, "You need to call it. Go ahead and make the call." So he did, and that's when they arrested him…of course the murders happened on Sept. 28, 2000, and Englert never looked at that shirt until Jan. 2001. So Dave Camm's arrest was based on a fraudulent probable cause affidavit from the very beginning. Once that arrest was made, the state now was committed – they were pot committed (I'm gonna use a term they use playing poker) – to keep Dave Camm as guilty. And they did everything they possibly could in order to get a guilty verdict – including some things that was illegal to bring into the trial, but the judge let it in. Of course…we got it reversed because they basically cheated."

The entire post can be found at:


http://www.wdrb.com/story/23770490/david-camm-blog-sam-lockhart-q-a

 PUBLISHER'S NOTE:

Dear Reader. Keep your eye on the Charles Smith Blog. We are following this case.

I have added a search box for content in this blog which now encompasses several thousand posts. The search box is located  near the bottom of the screen just above the list of links. I am confident that this powerful search tool provided by "Blogger" will help our readers and myself get more out of the site.

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

I look forward to hearing from readers at:

hlevy15@gmail.com;

Gerard Richardson; New Jersey; He seeks to vacate his 1994 murder conviction on the basis of DNA testing of a never tested bite mark swab which points to an unknown male and excludes him as a match. Star-Ledger.

STORY: "With new DNA evidence, convicted murderer files motion to vacate conviction in 1994 killing,"by reporter Bill Wichert, published by the Star-Ledger on September 18, 2013.

PHOTO-CAPTION:  "Gerard Richardson is seeking to overturn his murder conviction in the 1994 killing of an Elizabeth woman in light of new DNA evidence showing he did not leave a bite mark on the victim.New Jersey Department of Corrections."

GIST:  "Defense attorneys for a man convicted in the 1994 killing of an Elizabeth woman filed a motion today to vacate the murder conviction based on new DNA evidence suggesting he did not leave a bite mark on the victim. Gerard Richardson, 48, formerly of Elizabeth, is seeking a new trial in light of testing on a portion of a swab taken from the bite mark, where analysts found the DNA profile of an unknown male. Richardson, who was convicted in 1995, is serving a 30-year prison sentence for the murder of 19-year-old Monica Reyes. “The new DNA results provide previously unobtainable scientific proof that Monica Reyes was murdered by a third party and that Gerard Richardson did not commit this crime,” according to a brief filed by Richardson’s attorneys from the New York-based Innocence Project, a nonprofit legal clinic dedicated to exonerating wrongfully convicted people through DNA testing......... At Richardson’s trial in November 1995, a large part of the state’s case rested on the bite mark found on Reyes’ lower back. A forensic odontologist testifying on the state’s behalf said the bite mark matched Richardson’s teeth, but a defense expert argued that no such match existed. No DNA testing was used at the time of the trial. After earlier rounds of DNA testing – including one instance when the specimen was contaminated by an analyst’s DNA – the defense secured a court order in January to analyze a portion of the bite mark swab that had never been tested. Those test results, which were outlined in a July report by Forensic Analytical Sciences, found the DNA profile of an unknown male on the bite mark swab and excluded Richardson as a match."

The entire story can be found at:

http://www.nj.com/somerset/index.ssf/2013/09/based_on_dna_evidence_convicted_murderer_files_motion_to_vacate_conviction_in_1994_killing_of
 _elizab.html

 See: "Innocence Project says DNA exonerates suspect convicted in '94 Bernards murder; DNA may toss murder verdict." ........."After a Somerset County jury convicted Gerard Richardson in 1995 of the heinous murder of a 19-year-old Elizabeth woman, he remained defiant. He refused to admit that he had raped, pummeled and strangled Monica Reyes and left her for dead in a ditch of a private residential road in Bernards before shoving a 100-pound boulder over her head. "I'm never going to admit to something I didn't do," he declared before his sentencing in 1996. "And I'm going to keep fighting until I get my freedom back.""

http://www.app.com/article/20130903/NJNEWS14/309030005/Innocence-Project-says-DNA-exonerates-suspect-convicted-in-94-Bernards-murder?nclick_check=1

 PUBLISHER'S NOTE:

Dear Reader. Keep your eye on the Charles Smith Blog. We are following this case.

I have added a search box for content in this blog which now encompasses several thousand posts. The search box is located  near the bottom of the screen just above the list of links. I am confident that this powerful search tool provided by "Blogger" will help our readers and myself get more out of the site.

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

I look forward to hearing from readers at:

hlevy15@gmail.com;

Sonja Farak: Massachusetts; Court is trying to figure out "when" her evidence tampering began - and why she went from being a professional chemist to a criminal. The Republican;

STORY: Northhampton judge pegs timeframe for Sonja Farak's alleged drug tampering," by reporter Buffy Spence,  published by the Republican on October 23, 2013.

GIST: "Hampden Superior Court Judge C. Jeffrey Kinder said Wednesday he is prepared to conclude drug tampering alleged to be carried out by chemist Sonja Farak began “at least as early” as summer 2012. “That’s the key word - ‘at least,’” defense lawyer Jared Olanoff said. Lawyers for 15 convicted drug defendants are arguing any drug testing done by Farak during the years she worked at the state lab in Amherst cannot be trusted. They are seeking new trials for their clients, citing Farak’s participation in drug testing in the cases......... Ryan said in the three days of hearings everyone has spent a considerable amount of time trying to determine when Farak “went from being a professional chemist to being a criminal.” Farak was arrested in January after members of the Amherst crime lab contacted state police to report a discrepancy in their inventory. The laboratory is charged with storing and analyzing substances seized by police that could be drug evidence."

The entire story can be found at:

http://www.masslive.com/news/index.ssf/2013/10/judge_to_decide_whether_former.html

 PUBLISHER'S NOTE:

Dear Reader. Keep your eye on the Charles Smith Blog. We are following this case.

I have added a search box for content in this blog which now encompasses several thousand posts. The search box is located  near the bottom of the screen just above the list of links. I am confident that this powerful search tool provided by "Blogger" will help our readers and myself get more out of the site.

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

I look forward to hearing from readers at:

hlevy15@gmail.com;

Chavis Carter; Arkansas; Theresa Rudd, his mom, has filed a wrongful death lawsuit. One of the many grounds includes an allegation that "after Carter was found in the back seat, the police car was washed down, destroying any evidence needed for furthur or an outside investigation, and almost immediately put back into service." (Must Read. HL.);

STORY: "Chavis Carter's mom files wrongful death lawsuit" by reporter Monica Land, published by The Grio on October 23, 2013.

GIST:  "Theresa Rudd wants answers. More specifically, she wants to know the truth as to how her son, 21-year-old Chavis Carter, died and she’s willing to go to court to find out. Nearly one year after Carter was found with a fatal gunshot wound to the head, Rudd filed a wrongful death lawsuit against the City of Jonesboro, Arkansas; as well as Keith Baggett and Ronald Marsh, the two police officers present when Carter was shot and Jonesboro police chief Michael Yates. Arkansas officials claim Carter shot himself on the night of July 28, 2012 while sitting in the back of a police cruiser – and with his hands cuffed and double-locked behind his back. An initial investigation by the Jonesboro police determined that Carter committed suicide. Yates said Marsh was reprimanded and temporarily suspended for failing to properly search Carter. He has since been reinstated. The internal investigation found no wrongdoing on the part of the other officer, Keith Baggett, Yates said.
Statements from eyewitnesses, text messages, video and physical evidence established that Baggett didn’t violate any policy or procedure. “Based upon these facts and circumstances I made the decision to return them to active duty status,” Yates told The Associated Press in an email. “I’m so mad. I’m hurt,” Rudd told WREG TV. “I have accepted the fact that he’s gone. But I want to know what happened.”"

The complaint also alleges:

• The officers found a plastic bag in the truck containing a “white substance” and only question Carter about its contents. Carter denies any knowledge of the bag and asks officers to fingerprint the bag.

• Despite being a “few feet” away from the police car, the two officers claimed that neither heard the gunshot that took Carter‘s life.

• One of the officers admittedly picked up the gun reportedly used in Carter’s death. But once a fingerprint analysis was done, there were no fingerprints on the weapon. Not the officer’s. Not Carter‘s.

• Carter was alive when officers found him in the back of the squad car and that one of the officers used his personal cell phone to take at least four pictures of Carter while he “was still breathing.“

• In their initial police reports, both Baggett and Marsh stated they each called dispatch and requested an ambulance because they saw Carter was still alive. Marsh said he took the pictures for “documentation.”

• After Carter was found in the back seat, the police car was washed down, destroying any evidence needed for further or an outside investigation, and almost immediately put back into service.

• Once Carter was transported to the hospital, “members of the Jonesboro Police Department ordered all hospital personnel out of the room and remained alone with Chavis Carter’s body for an unknown period of time.”

• One of the officers, Ronald Marsh, was in possession of an audio recording device “used to record” all his “interactions with individuals with whom he made contact” with that night. But Marsh claims the memory card for the device was “lost” somewhere between the scene of Carter’s death and the police station which is only about a mile apart.

Jonesboro Police have declined to comment on the allegations raised in the lawsuit.

The entire story can be found at:

http://thegrio.com/2013/10/23/chavis-carters-mom-files-wrongful-death-lawsuit/

 PUBLISHER'S NOTE:

Dear Reader. Keep your eye on the Charles Smith Blog. We are following this case.

I have added a search box for content in this blog which now encompasses several thousand posts. The search box is located  near the bottom of the screen just above the list of links. I am confident that this powerful search tool provided by "Blogger" will help our readers and myself get more out of the site.

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

I look forward to hearing from readers at:

hlevy15@gmail.com;

Kendrick Johnson: Georgia; His parents have petitioned a judge to order a coroner's inquest. They believe Kendrick's death in a high school gym was a homicide. USA Today;

STORY: "Kendrick Johnson's parents demand   coroner's inquest," by reporter Natalie DiBlasio, published by USA Today on October 22, 2013.

GIST: "The parents of Kendrick Johnson, the student-athlete found dead in a rolled-up gym mat, are petitioning a Georgia judge to order a coroner's inquest into their son's death, the couple's lawyer said Tuesday. Kenneth and Jacquelyn Johnson believe the surveillance video taken inside the Lowndes High School gym will show what happened to their son. So far, only a short clip of the video has been made public. Johnson, 17, was found dead Jan. 11. An autopsy conducted by the Georgia Bureau of Investigation indicated Kendrick accidentally suffocated inside the mat while trying to retrieve his sneaker.........Benjamin Crump, the lawyer who helped focus national attention on the 2012 shooting death of Trayvon Martin by neighborhood watch volunteer George Zimmerman, said the discovery raises questions about why Johnson's organs went missing and couldn't be examined in the follow-up autopsy the family requested. "When you think about it logically, it seems to be some kind of conspiracy to conceal the truth about what happened to Kendrick and who did it to him," Crump said. Crump said he believes the findings of an inquest would support the family's belief that Johnson's death was a homicide. In a press conference Tuesday, lawyers said there are at least four video cameras in the gymnasium, one of which was aimed toward the corner where Kendrick's body was found. Officials have said they must wait for consent from other minors in the video before they can release it. The U.S. attorney's office has the video and is reviewing the case."

The entire story can be found at:

http://www.freep.com/usatoday/article/3150569

PUBLISHER'S NOTE:

Dear Reader. Keep your eye on the Charles Smith Blog. We are following this case.

I have added a search box for content in this blog which now encompasses several thousand posts. The search box is located  near the bottom of the screen just above the list of links. I am confident that this powerful search tool provided by "Blogger" will help our readers and myself get more out of the site.

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

I look forward to hearing from readers at:

hlevy15@gmail.com;

Annie Dookhan: Massachusetts; Judge says she would impose a maximum five years sentence on her guilty plea. Associated Press;

STORY: "Judge: 5 years max for Mass. chemist Annie Dookhan if she pleads," by reporter Steve LeBlanc, published by Associated Press on October 23, 2013.

GIST:  "Annie Dookhan faces a long list of criminal charges, including tampering with evidence, obstruction of justice and perjury for allegedly faking test results at a state lab shut down in August 2012 after a state police investigation. Prosecutors are seeking up to seven years if Dookhan pleads guilty. Dookhan's lawyer has asked for leniency, saying his 35-year-old client is terrified of going to jail and leaving her son, who has health issues. Dookhan has pleaded not guilty to 27 criminal charges. Superior Court Judge Carol Ball said that while sentencing guidelines recommend one to three years, the magnitude of the harm done by Dookhan dictates a harsher sentence. Ball said she would also impose two years of probation if Dookhan pleads guilty. Ball said that Dookhan, of Franklin, appears to be a "tragic and broken person" undone by her own ambition who should have foreseen the catastrophic consequences of her behavior. "Innocent persons were incarcerated, guilty persons have been released to further endanger the public, millions and millions of public dollars are being expended to deal with the chaos Ms. Dookhan created, and the integrity of the criminal justice system has been shaken to the core," Ball wrote.........Prosecutors said the fallout from Dookhan's alleged actions has cost the state hundreds of millions of dollars to assess the scope of the tainted evidence and mitigate the effect on thousands of people charged with drug offenses during the nine years Dookhan worked at the lab. State officials have estimated that Dookhan tested samples involving more than 40,000 defendants. Dookhan told state police she engaged in "dry labbing," when she would assemble a large collection of samples from different cases, test only a few, but label all of the samples as positive for illegal drugs. Prosecutors said Dookhan's alleged actions have led to a public mistrust in the criminal justice system by harming the role of government witnesses and undermining the integrity of evidence."

The entire story can be  found at:

http://www.masslive.com/news/boston/index.ssf/2013/10/judge_5_years_max_for_mass_che.html

 
PUBLISHER'S NOTE:

Dear Reader. Keep your eye on the Charles Smith Blog. We are following this case.

I have added a search box for content in this blog which now encompasses several thousand posts. The search box is located  near the bottom of the screen just above the list of links. I am confident that this powerful search tool provided by "Blogger" will help our readers and myself get more out of the site.

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

I look forward to hearing from readers at:

hlevy15@gmail.com;

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