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DNA Contamination Threatened Conviction of Innocent Man
by Kevin Bliss
The NYC Medical Examiner’s office (“ME”) reviewed the DNA analysis procedure in a burglary case that was the only evidence used to charge Darrell Harris with the crime. They found that the DNA sample could have been contaminated, but only after Harris lost his job and $25,000 ...
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More from this issue:
- Changing Perception, Changing The Law, by Jean Trounstine
- California Supreme Court Finds IAC, Vacates Conviction in LAPD Officer’s Murder Case (Again) – 36 Years Later, by Dale Chappell
- Ninth Circuit Opens Door for Savings Clause Relief, Recognizes ‘Actual Innocence’ for Mandatory Career Offender Sentences, by Dale Chappell
- Seventh Circuit: Trial Judge Violated 5th Amendment by Modifying Instructions to Allow Jury to Convict on Offenses Not Charged in Indictment, by Douglas Ankney
- Attacking the Guilty Plea: The Ineffective Assistance of Counsel Standard, by Dale Chappell
- Suspending the Constitution: Police State Uses Crises to Expand Its Lockdown Powers, by John W. Whitehead
- SCOTUS: ‘Serious Drug Offense’ Under ACCA Is Self-Defining, Match with Equivalent Federal Offense Not Required, by Dale Chappell
- Kansas Supreme Court Holds Threat of Violence Statute Violates First Amendment to Extent it Criminalizes ‘Reckless’ Conduct, by Dale Chappell
- SCOTUS: Advocating for Shorter Sentence Sufficient to Preserve Claim that Sentence Imposed Greater Than Necessary to Comply With 18 U.S.C. § 3553(a), by Douglas Ankney
- New York Court of Appeals Orders Resentencing Because Trial Court Relied on Testimony from Improperly Unsealed Record, by Douglas Ankney
- California Court of Appeal: Senate Bill 1437 Abrogates ‘Natural and Probable Consequences Doctrine’ in Attempted Murder Prosecutions and Applies Retroactively to Cases on Appeal, by Douglas Ankney
- Sixth Circuit: Cardiologist’s Right to Due Process Violated Where District Court Ordered Government to Not Disclose Third Party’s Expert Evaluation of Medical Care Provided by Him, by Douglas Ankney
- En Banc Ninth Circuit Provides Guidance on When Amended Habeas Petition ‘Relates Back’ to Original Claims to Avoid Dismissal as Untimely, by Dale Chappell
- First Circuit: Home Search Affidavit Failed to Establish Nexus of Crime and Evidence, by David Reutter
- First Circuit: Securing a Weapon Not Used in Offense Is Not Exigent Circumstance Permitting Warrantless Entry and Search of Suspect’s Home, by Anthony Accurso
- Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court Reverses Murder Conviction Due to Insufficient Evidence, by Douglas Ankney
- Second Circuit Holds Denial to Proceed Under Pseudonym by Magistrate Judge Is Immediately Appealable, by Dale Chappell
- Fifth Circuit Settles In-Circuit Confusion, Holds Implicit Extension of Time to File State Appeal Tolls AEDPA Clock to File Federal Habeas Petition, by Dale Chappell
- Pennsylvania Prosecutors Cash in on Low-Level Drug Crimes, by Edward Lyon
- Former Florida Deputy Jailed for Fabricating Drug Evidence, by David Reutter
- Prosecutors Overrepresented Among Federal Judges, by Jayson Hawkins
- ‘Travel Papers’ and the Pandemic Patriot Act 2.0, by Daisy Luther, The Organic Prepper
- FBI ‘Assessing’ Black Americans, by Jayson Hawkins
- California Supreme Court: Refusing to Testify Insufficient to Constitute Accessory After the Fact, by Anthony Accurso
- Seventh Circuit: Unsupported CI Statements Insufficient to Justify Higher Drug Quantity for Sentencing, by Dale Chappell
- Ninth Circuit: Proposition 47 Creates New, Intervening Judgment to Allow Another Federal Habeas Petition Attacking Entire Case, by Dale Chappell
- Seventh Circuit Vacates Sentence for Failure to Explain Extreme Departure of Guidelines Range, by Anthony Accurso
- Coronavirus: Will Courts Continue To Operate, Preserving the Rule of Law?, by Austin Sarat, Professor of Jurisprudence and Political Science, Amherst College, The Conversation
- Repeat Offenders May Be the Result of Different Brain Composition, by Michael Fortino, Ph.D
- Washington Supreme Court Announces PRP Petition ‘Final’ Upon Issuance of Certificate of Finality to Allow Tolling of Federal Habeas Clock, by Dale Chappell
- Hawaii Lawmakers Propose Transparency from Prosecutors, by David Reutter
- New Fingerprint Test Can Distinguish Whether Person Ingested Cocaine or Only Touched It, by Douglas Ankney
- Wyoming Supreme Court Finds IAC Where Counsel Failed to Challenge Prolonging of Traffic Stop After Citation Completed, by Anthony Accurso
- North Carolina Supreme Court Announces Defendant Can Forfeit Right to Counsel by Egregious Misconduct; Trial Court May Forgo Compliance with N.C.G.S. § 15A-1242, by Douglas Ankney
- Report: LAPD Engaged in Racial Profiling in Traffic Stops, by Kevin Bliss
- Fingerprint Analysis: High Stakes, Low Qualifications, by Jayson Hawkins
- California Supreme Court: Defendant Doesn’t Forfeit Claim for Failing to Object to Expert’s Testimonial Hearsay at Trial That Occurred Before Sanchez Was Decided, by Anthony Accurso
- Big Brother Is ... Tracking You, by Douglas Ankney
- Georgia Supreme Court Reverses Dismissal of Second State Habeas Petition, by Douglas Ankney
- DNA Contamination Threatened Conviction of Innocent Man, by Kevin Bliss
- Sealed Records Open for View, by Kevin Bliss
- Citizens in California Can No Longer be Prosecuted for Refusing to Risk Their Lives Assisting Police, by Douglas Ankney
- News Websites Rethink Using Mugshots as Click-Bait, by Dale Chappell
- Advanced DNA Technology Helps Free Innocent Georgia Man After Nearly 18 Years in Prison, by Edward Lyon
- In the Criminal Justice System, Big Brother Gets Bigger Every Day, by Douglas Ankney
- City of Grand Rapids to Pay Marine $190,000 After He Was Unlawfully Detained as ‘Illegal Foreign National’, by Douglas Ankney
- California’s Killer Cops, by Douglas Ankney
- ‘Constitutional Crisis’ Still Exists Despite California Supreme Court Ruling on Opening Access to Law Enforcement Brady Lists, by Dale Chappell
- Complexity and Lack of Standardization Makes Crime Statistics Less Useful, by Matthew Clarke
- Chicago’s ‘Despicable’ Red-Light Camera System Exposed, by Douglas Ankney
- New York Police Department Plays Loose with Freedom of Information Act Laws, by Kevin Bliss
- How to Clear Your Record of Marijuana Charges in Illinois, by Dale Chappell
- Could a Second Chance be the Answer?, by Kevin Bliss
- Wrongfully Convicted NY Man Freed After 24 Years, by Jayson Hawkins
- News in Brief
- Chicago Police Department Ordered to Release 49 Years of Misconduct Files, by Matthew Clarke
More from Kevin Bliss:
- After Florida Appellate Court Holds Crimes of ‘Attempt’ Eligible for Incentive Gain Time, Supreme Court Refuses Review, Jan. 15, 2025
- LGBTQ+ Detainees at Rikers Island Suffer Under Mayor Adams, Sept. 15, 2023
- Government Watchdog Adds BOP to List at “High Risk” of Mismanagement, Sept. 15, 2023
- At Massive and Corrupt Philippine Prison, Contraband Includes Jacuzzis and Horses, Sept. 15, 2023
- Second Circuit Affirms $600,000 Punitive Damage Award to New York Prisoner Brutally Beaten by Guards, Sept. 15, 2023
- Maryland Sheriff Charged with Illegally Procuring Machine Guns from ATF, Sept. 15, 2023
- Voting Rights Restoration for Virginia Ex-Felons Once Again Subject to Governor’s Whim, Sept. 15, 2023
- Prison Profiteer Who Chairs Christian Seminary Board Called Not Very ‘Christlike’, Aug. 15, 2023
- Menstruation Weaponized Against Women in Prison, Aug. 15, 2023
- Idaho Revives Firing Squads, Aug. 15, 2023
More from these topics:
- Study: DNA Transfer in Social Settings, Feb. 15, 2025. DNA Testing/Samples, Forensic Sciences, DNA Evidence, DNA Evidence/Testing.
- Study Reveals Best DNA Recovery Spots on Drug Baggies, Feb. 15, 2025. DNA Testing/Samples, War on Drugs, DNA Evidence/Testing.
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- Colorado Bureau of Investigation Admits Over 1,000 Cases Affected by DNA Test Misconduct, Feb. 1, 2025. Judicial Misconduct, DNA Testing/Samples, junk science, Forensic Sciences.
- Seeking Justice for Two: The DNA Scandal That Shook a Community, Jan. 15, 2025. DNA Testing/Samples, junk science, Wrongful Conviction, DNA Evidence/Testing.
- Touch-Transfer DNA Remains Misunderstood and Still Poses High Risk of Wrongful Conviction, Dec. 15, 2024. DNA Testing/Samples, junk science, DNA Evidence/Testing.
- Scent of Death Evidence Admitted at Indiana Murder Trial, Dec. 15, 2024. junk science, Forensic Sciences, Murder/Felony Murder, Authencity/Authentication.
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