Federal Court Rejects Evidence of Forensic Video Analyst as Opinion “Largely Based on Conjecture and Speculation”
In Melton v. Klee, 2019 WL 1315723, the United States District Court, Eastern District of Michigan, Southern Division, considered a pro se petition for a writ of habeas corpus following the petitioner’s conviction for assault with intent to rob while armed. The petitioner’s conviction arose from the attempted robbery of the victim outside her home in Michigan. During the...
Recommendations for Expert Image Comparison Evidence in the United Kingdom in Light of the FSR Regulatory Notice “Image Enhancement and Image Comparison: Provision of Opinion”
Introduction I attended the meeting of the Forensic Digital Media Analysis Working Group, organized and presented by the Chartered Society of Forensic Sciences, in Birmingham, UK on October 21, 2019. One of the topics discussed was the state of general image comparison evidence in the UK in light of the FSR’s Regulatory Notice 01/2019...
FSR responds to “Evaluation of the Forensic Science Regulator’s recommendations regarding image comparison evidence”
In my August 26, 2019 article posted on this website, I included the evaluation I conducted of the UK Forensic Science Regulator’s directives to change image comparison evidence in the UK. The Regulator recently responded to my article and her response has been published in Forensic Science International: Synergy. Her response can be...
“Evaluation of the Forensic Science Regulator’s recommendations regarding image comparison evidence”
I have recently published an article in the scientific journal Forensic Science International: Synergy. Here is the abstract: Expert image comparison evidence can be a vastly helpful tool in the search for the truth, a central tenet of the criminal justice system. This evidence assists the court in determining the relationship between a...
Order in Court! The Value of Practical Moot Court Training
One of the most common sentiments expressed about the Courtroom Testimony for Expert Witnesses course is this: “The part I feared the most was the moot court and the part I got the most benefit from was the moot court!” A courtroom testimony course that does not have a practical component lacks a valuable...
Audio Interview: Keys to Effective Expert Witness Testimony
The Excellence in Training Academy (excellenceintrainingacademy.com), a resource dedicated to law enforcement training, interviewed me recently on the subject of expert witness testimony. In this hour-long interview, we cover a number of topics that are of value to expert witnesses and those aspiring to become an expert witness. In addition to the other content on...
In Search of the Truth: Why Experts Matter
During my career as a Crown Prosecutor, my goal has been to ascertain the truth as to what happened in any given incident because it is only upon discovering the truth that we can strive for justice, however illusive that goal may be to achieve in practice. In search of the truth, it...
Chicago Murder Prosecution Falters When Expert Fails to Stay Within His Lane
Currently, a murder trial is underway in Chicago wherein former Chicago police officer Jason Van Dyke is charged with unlawfully killing Laquan McDonald by shooting him 16 times. The shooting was captured on police dashcam video. The prosecution called FBI forensic video analyst Mark Messick who had enhanced the video evidence and inserted...