Descriptions
The Prosecutor’s New Silent Witness
Cynthia Zimmer, JD (one hour)
Supervising Deputy District Attorney, Kern County District Attorney’s Office, Bakersfield, California
This presentation will explain how DNA has been used in criminal cases to convict gang murderers. Witnesses do not come forward in gang cases, but forensic science has enabled the state to have a silent witness. Advanced DNA statistical computing has opened new doors in the field of science and in the criminal justice system.
The Fickle Defender: Embracing Your Old Forensic Enemy to Defend Your New Client
Clinton Hughes, JD (one hour, ethics)
Senior Staff Attorney, DNA Unit, Legal Aid Society of New York City, New York
With the rise of forensic DNA technologies, defense attorneys face an old quandary with a new face: how to ethically and zealously represent clients in criminal cases using defenses that may run counter to past cases with past clients. Some prosecutors and scientists (and even a judge or two) will bristle at such apparent inconsistency. What must remain consistent, however, is that attorneys fulfill their obligation to effectively represent each individual client.
The Legal Ethics of Wrongful Conviction
Frances Watson, JD (one hour, ethics)
Professor & Director of the Wrongful Conviction Clinic, Indiana University McKinney School of Law, Indianapolis, Indiana
This presentation will identify and analyze the Rules of Professional Conduct which impact wrongful convictions, including the rules governing competence, scope of representation, candor to the tribunal, fairness to the opposing party, trial publicity, and special responsibilities of the prosecutor. The presentation will include application of the relevant Rules of Professional Conduct Consider to the specifics of the Pinkins and Glenn case studies. Darryl Pinkins and Roosevelt Glenn were exonerated in recent years as a result of newly discovered DNA evidence provided by modern probabilistic genotype computing.
Innocent Nightmare – 17 Years in Prison, Exonerated by Modern DNA
Roosevelt Glenn, exoneree (keynote)
Gary, Indiana
Roosevelt Glenn grew up in Gary, Indiana, enjoying sports and the outdoors. On January 2, 1990, he was arrested for a crime he did not commit. He was wrongfully convicted, and imprisoned for 16 years, 8 months, 5 days and 12 hours. His innocence was later proven by new TrueAllele® computing on old DNA evidence, leading to his exoneration. Author Glenn talks about how he endured a tragic failure of criminal justice.
DNA in Justice (and Injustice)
Greg Hampikian, PhD (half hour)
Professor & Director of the Boise Innocence Project, Boise State University, Boise, Idaho
DNA deserves its reputation as the master of identity. However, that reputation has also led to errors and bias that can wrongfully convince and convict. This session will cover some of the basic trouble spots in DNA analysis: contamination, complex mixture interpretation, bias and fear. Participants will see actual case examples of errors, and how they were detected.
Using Computer Technology to Overcome Bottlenecks in the Forensic DNA Testing Process and Improve Data Recovery from Complex Samples
John Donahue, MA (half hour)
DNA Technical Leader, Beaufort County Sheriff’s Office, Beaufort County, South Carolina
DNA testing has been utilized in criminal investigations for over 30 years. In that time, technological advances have improved the ability of laboratories to provide information to investigators and the courts. While early DNA testing required body fluids containing large quantities of DNA and months to complete the test, current testing allows laboratories to complete the test in a matter of hours using DNA from small items that contain only a few cells. However, these technological improvements have increased both the number of samples submitted to laboratories and the complexity of the DNA profiles obtained from these samples, often leading to delays in reporting. In many situations, these DNA profiles are too complex for accurate human interpretation, which can lead to results being reported as inconclusive. This presentation will detail the methods that a small crime laboratory has used to implement automation and computer technology to expedite the case workflow. By using computer technology as an automated component of the workflow, the laboratory is able to identify potential DNA matches quicker and develop more profiles for submission to CODIS. In addition, the laboratory can compare all of its DNA data to crime scene investigators and laboratory staff.
Failures in Forensic Science and DNA Evidence: What Every Lawyer Should Know About Science and the Law – A View From the Bench
Hon. James Ross, JD (half hour)
Judge, Court of Common Pleas of Beaver County, Beaver County, Pennsylvania
In this presentation, the speaker will discuss oversight and mistakes made by trial attorneys in cases involving scientific and DNA evidence. Judge Ross will draw upon his trial experience as an attorney, and observations as a trial judge. He will cite specific examples (although names of cases still pending will not be mentioned to avoid any public statement on a pending case, which is prohibited by the judicial canons). These case illustrations will attempt to portray the abuse or misuse of forensic evidence, and important evidence that practicing trial lawyers may miss, fail to recognize, or do not seek in the discovery process.
Mock Trial: From DNA Report to Closing Argument
Lyndsie Ferrara, PhD, Forensic Scientist, Duquesne University
Brian Kohlhepp, MA, Detective, Ross Township Police Department
Michael Machen, JD, Former Chief Public Defender, Allegheny County
Mark Perlin, PhD, MD, PhD, Chief Scientist, Cybergenetics
Hon. Kevin Sasinoski, JD, Judge, Court of Common Pleas of Allegheny County
Robert Schupansky, JD, Deputy District Attorney, Allegheny County
(one and a half hours)
A DNA report against a client can provoke a strong response – shock and denial, pain and anger, ultimately leading to resignation and plea bargain. But a lawyer need not abandon hope. While sometimes DNA is overwhelming, in other cases the biological evidence is limited, unpersuasive, problematic, or even exculpatory. A trial attorney is not a scientist, but can learn how to neutralize or overcome an opponent’s DNA evidence. This mock trial will take the participant through key steps – experts, motions and arguments – that can facilitate an effective response to DNA.