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LS201 Syllabus

Forensic Science & Miscarriages of Justice:

Reforming the Forensic Science Community

Note: Craig Cooley, MS is a guest instructors of Knowledge Solutions LLC.
He can be reached at: c-cooley@law.northwestern.edu

For administrative information regarding this course
please contact us via our request form.

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Lecture 1: Introduction

  1. Forensic science and the legal system
  2. Historical aspects of forensic science
  3. Forensic science: The beneficial cases
  4. The New Trend: Wrongful & questionable convictions attributable to erroneous or fraudulent forensic science (Introductory Material for Week Two)

Lecture 2: Miscarriages of Justice & Forensic Science

  1. Crime Lab Scandals & Mishaps
    • Case Studies
      • FBI lab
      • Houston lab
      • West Virginia lab
      • Pennsylvania lab
      • Ft. Worth lab
      • Phoenix lab
  2. Miscarriages of Justice & Erroneous Forensic Science
    • Case Studies
      • Hair Identification Cases
      • Bite Mark Cases
      • Fingerprint Cases
      • Burn Pattern Cases
  3. Wrongful Convictions & Incompetence
    • Cases Studies
      • Arnold Melnikoff
      • Concepcion Bacasnot
  4. Wrongful Convictions & Forensic Fraud
    • Case Studies
      • Fred Zain
      • Ralph Erdmann
      • Joyce Gilchrist
      • Pamela Fish
  5. Questionable Convictions & Forensic Science
    • Cases Studies
      • Death Penalty Cases
      • Non-Death Penalty Cases
  6. Questionable Executions & Forensic Science
    • Case Studies
      • Roger Coleman
      • Malcolm Johnson
      • Joseph O’Dell

Lecture 3: How'd We Get Here?

  1. Historical Background: Anthropology & Statistics
    • Is Individualization a Legitimate Scientific Expectation
  2. Forensic Science Research
    • Forensic Science Education: Where’s the Science?
    • No Research and ‘Scientific Testing’ Tends to Shift the Burden to the Defense?
    • Reactionary Nature of Research?
  3. Experience Equates to Mere Observation Rather than Methodical Observation
  4. Falsification and Testability
  5. Error Rate: Scientific Testing is Never Error Free
  6. Is Forensic Science Lawless?
  7. It’s “Standard” Practice Not To Have “Standards” in Forensic Science
  8. Is Forensic Science “Independently” Objective?
  9. Is Forensic Science—Pseudoscience?

Lecture 4: What to Do? Reforming the Forensic Science Community

  1. Increased Funding
    • Crime lab modernization funding
    • DNA backlog funding
  2. A National Forensic Science Commission
  3. Statewide Forensic Services Commission
  4. Independent State Forensic Laboratories
  5. Developing Standards and Protocols for Laboratories and Examiners
    • Education & Training
      • Science Education
      • Statistics Education
    • Accreditation and Certification
      • Laboratory Accreditation
      • Developing Crime Laboratory Protocols and Standards
      • Mandatory Case Reviews & External Audits
      • Externally Validating Forensic Technology
      • Written Policy for Forensic Reports & Documentation
      • Developing a Uniform Language
      • Expressing Degree of Certainty
      • Examiner Certification
      • Mandatory Proficiency Testing

Recommended Readings

The recommended text for this course is:
Tainting Evidence: Inside the Scandals at the FBI Crime Lab
by John F. Kelly

Please note: This book is a useful supplement to the course, but is not required. While a number of readings are assigned from the book, the student will gather the same amount and quality of information from the supplemental readings provided. These supplemental readings will primarily involve law review articles, case law and other scientific journal articles.

This book can be easily purchased from our online Forensic Science Bookstore. Just click on the book link to the right.

  

 

Another useful and informative book is:
Justice and Nightmares: Success and Failures of Forensic Science in Australia and New Zealand
by Paul Wilson

This book can be easily purchased from our online Forensic Science Bookstore. Just click on the book link to the right.

  

 

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Last update: 8/28/03