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The Pseudoscientific Practice of Blood Spatter Analysis How the Desire for Convictions Drives Flawed Prosecutions
by Anthony W. Accurso
The forensic science known as Bloodstain Pattern Analysis (“BPA”)—a.k.a. blood spatter analysis—is undergoing significant development after being the object of intense criticism regarding its reliability in the context of criminal prosecutions. Despite being practiced for over 150 years, this field has undergone two periods of dramatic ...
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More from this issue:
- The Pseudoscientific Practice of Blood Spatter Analysis How the Desire for Convictions Drives Flawed Prosecutions, by Anthony Accurso
- Tennessee County Disproportionately Jails Black Children, and It’s Not Getting Better, by Jacob Barrett
- Digital Tyranny: Beware of the Government’s Push for a Digital Currency, by Nisha Whitehead, John W. Whitehead
- California Court of Appeal: Fifth Amendment Violation Where Police Use Two-Step Interrogation in Deliberate Strategy to Circumvent Miranda, by Richard Resch
- Seventh Circuit: Four-Year Delay in Filing Appeal Excused Habeas Exhaustion Requirement Because Any Further Attempts for Postconviction Remedies in State Court Would Have Been Futile, by Dale Chappell
- Ninth Circuit: IAC for Failure to Engage Mental Health Expert and Testing, State PCR Court’s Decision Contrary to Federal Law and Defective Factfinding, Habeas Relief Granted, by Dale Chappell
- Hawaii Supreme Court: Due Process Violation to Exclude Evidence of Victim’s BAC in Assault Case in Which Defendant Claims Self-Defense, by Matthew Clarke
- Sixth Circuit: Courts May Consider Nonretroactive Change in Law as One of Several Factors for Extraordinary and Compelling Circumstances for Compassionate Release, by Matthew Clarke
- Maryland Court of Appeals Announces Accepting Empaneled Jury Doesn’t Waive Prior Objection to Trial Court’s Refusal to Propound a Voir Dire Question, by Douglas Ankney
- United States Has Four Percent of the Global Population and Over Thirteen Percent of Global Deaths at the Hands of Law Enforcement, by Casey Bastian
- I, Robot, Am The LAW!, by J.D. Schmidt
- Thanks to Homeowner’s Private Security Camera Catching Cops’ Blatant Misconduct, He’s a Free Man, by Douglas Ankney
- SCOTUS Rejects Government’s Interpretation of the ACCA’s ‘Occasions Clause’ That Would Make It Possible to Become ‘a Career Criminal in the Space of a Minute’, by Richard Resch
- Kentucky Supreme Court: Officer’s History of Arresting Defendant on Multiple Occasions Constituted ‘Show of Authority’ That Defendant Was Not Free to Leave, Resulting in Unlawful Terry Stop, by Anthony Accurso
- Connecticut Supreme Court: Trial Court Abused Discretion by Limiting Self-Represented Defendant’s Direct Examination Regarding Risk of Injury to a Child, by Matthew Clarke
- Fifth Circuit Affirms Habeas Relief and New Trial Based on Counsel’s Failure to Interview State’s Key Eyewitness in Murder Case, by Dale Chappell
- Minnesota Supreme Court Announces Confession Must Be Corroborated by Independent Evidence Crime Occurred, Rejects Federal ‘Trustworthiness Standard’ for Corpus Delicti Rule, by Douglas Ankney
- Crushing Whistleblowers, by Jayson Hawkins
- California Court of Appeal Orders New Trial Due to Jurors Considering Potential Penalty During Guilt Phase of Deliberations, by Douglas Ankney
- Colorado Supreme Court Announces Parents’ Income That’s Unavailable to Defendant Who Lives With Them Expense-Free Not Included in Indigency Determination for Court-Appointed Counsel, by Matthew Clarke
- FOIA Request Reveals How the FBI Obtains and Analyzes Cellular Provider Data, by Anthony Accurso
- Vermont Supreme Court: Under Totality of Circumstances, Police Interview of Defendant in Store Parking Lot Was ‘Custodial Interrogation,’ Triggering Requirement for Miranda Warnings, by Anthony Accurso
- Facbook Reminds Police, No Dummy Accounts for Surveillance, by Anthony Accurso
- Government Drones Compromise National Security, yet the NYPD Uses Them, by Ashleigh Dye
- LASD Defends Practice of Stopping Latino Bicyclists, Says People Using Bikes for Transportation Are Generally Criminals, by Douglas Ankney
- News in Brief
- Discredited Narcotics Unit Revamped as Firearms Unit, by Douglas Ankney
More from Anthony Accurso:
- D.C. Circuit Holds Compelling Suspect to Unlock Cellphone With Thumbprint Is ‘Testimonial’ Act and Violates Fifth Amendment Privilege Against Self-Incrimination, Feb. 15, 2025
- $220,000 Settlement After Woman Dies in Ohio Jail From Drug Withdrawal, Feb. 15, 2025
- Colorado Supreme Court Holds Defendant Was in ‘Custody’ for Miranda Purposes Because She Had Hands Bagged and Zip Tied, Commanded Not to Remove Them, and Questioned Alone in Interrogation Room With Door Closed, Feb. 15, 2025
- First Circuit Holds No Emergency-Aid Exception to Warrant Requirement Where Police Have Information That Subject Is Already Deceased, Feb. 15, 2025
- Police Departments Are Now Using AI to Write Reports, Feb. 15, 2025
- Illinois Supreme Court Announces Odor of Burnt Cannabis Alone Is Insufficient to Establish Probable Cause for a Warrantless Vehicle Search, Feb. 1, 2025
- Mass Spectrometry Being Studied as Way to Analyze Overlapping or Weak Fingerprints, Feb. 1, 2025
- Georgia Supreme Court Grants Habeas Relief Where Both Trial and Appellate Counsel Provided Ineffective Assistance by Failing to Challenge Indictment for Residential Burglary That Failed to Allege Defendant Illegally Entered a ‘Dwelling’, Jan. 15, 2025
- Childhood Trauma Incidence Higher Among Those Incarcerated, Jan. 15, 2025
- Nevada Supreme Court Announces Incorporated Probable Cause Affidavit Cannot Broaden Scope of Warrant’s Description of Places and Persons to be Searched or Items to Be Seized, Dec. 1, 2024
More from these topics:
- HRDC Files Suit on Behalf of Florida Man Wrongfully Convicted and Incarcerated for 31 Years, Feb. 15, 2025. Wrongful Conviction, HRDC Litigation.
- U.S. Navy Exonerates Wrongly Convicted Black WWII Sailors, Feb. 15, 2025. Wrongful Conviction, Military, Racial Profiling, Racial/Ethnic Bias/Profiling.
- Philadelphia Agrees to $9.1 Million Settlement for Wrongful Murder Conviction, Feb. 15, 2025. Settlements, Wrongful Conviction, Wrongful Imprisonment, Murder/Felony Murder.
- Hawai’i Supreme Court Reverses Murder Conviction for Prosecutorial Misconduct Based on Prosecution’s Improper Statements During Closing Arguments, Feb. 15, 2025. Prosecutors, Wrongful Conviction, Prior Convictions - Expungement or Reversal of, Improper Comment.
- Texas Court of Criminal Appeals Grants Habeas Relief in ‘Shaken Baby Syndrome’ Case, Feb. 1, 2025. junk science, Habeas Corpus, Forensic Sciences, Child Abuse/Abusers, Evidence - Admissibility.
- 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.
- Nearly $12 Million Paid to Mentally Disabled Indiana Prisoner Wrongly Convicted of Murder, Jan. 15, 2025. Disabled Prisoners, Prison/Jail Murders, Settlements, Wrongful Conviction.
- Touch-Transfer DNA Remains Misunderstood and Still Poses High Risk of Wrongful Conviction, Dec. 15, 2024. DNA Testing/Samples, junk science, DNA Evidence/Testing.
- Las Vegas Jury Finds Detectives Fabricated Evidence Against Woman Who Spent 15 Years in Prison for Murder and Awards Her $34 Million, Dec. 15, 2024. Settlements, Wrongful Conviction, False Statements/Perjury, Evidence - Destruction/Fabrication/Manipulation of.
