×
You've used up your 3 free articles for this month. Subscribe today.
The Evolving Science, Skepticism, and Limited Evidentiary Value of Firearm and Toolmark Identification
by Douglas Ankney
In People v. Kirschke, 53 Cal.App.3d 405 (1975), a firearm and toolmark identification (“FTI”) expert testified for the prosecution “that an evidence bullet had been fired by a particular firearm and that ‘no other weapon in the world was the murder weapon.’” But in post-conviction proceedings, ...
Full article and associated cases available to subscribers.
As a digital subscriber to Criminal Legal News, you can access full text and downloads for this and other premium content.
Already a subscriber? Login
More from this issue:
- The Evolving Science, Skepticism, and Limited Evidentiary Value of Firearm and Toolmark Identification, by Douglas Ankney
- Op-Ed: Fix the First Step Act and Let Reformed Prisoners Out From Behind Bars – Time Credits and the Irrebuttable Presumption Doctrine, by Christopher Cobb
- Beyond Rehabilitation: Personal Achievement and Selfless Service as Grounds for Federal Compassionate Release, by James Lockhart, Luke Sommer
- SCOTUS Announces Statute of Limitations for § 1983 Claim Challenging State’s Postconviction DNA Testing Procedures Begins to Run Upon Completion of State-Court Litigation, Including Appeals, by Richard Resch
- Oregon Supreme Court: Right to Counsel Violated by Police Questioning Defendant About an Uncharged Crime in Connection With Charged Crime for Which Defendant Represented by Counsel, by Mark Wilson
- Idaho Supreme Court: Confession Obtained in Violation of Miranda Inadmissible in State’s Case in Chief but May Be Used for Impeachment Purposes Where Defendant’s Will Was Not ‘Overborne’ During Interrogation, by Douglas Ankney
- Ohio Supreme Court: Good-Faith Exception to Exclusionary Rule Inapplicable to Warrant Based on Affidavit Stating Cellphones Found at Scene of Traffic Crash ‘May’ Contain Evidence, by Anthony Accurso
- Eleventh Circuit Announces Defendant Must Satisfy All Three Subsections of § 3553(f)(1) to Be Ineligible for Safety Valve, by Douglas Ankney
- Massachusetts Supreme Court Announces When Clock Begins to Run on Statutory Pretrial Detention, by Harold Hempstead
- New York Court of Appeals Announces When an Alternate Juror Is ‘Discharged’ and no Longer ‘Available for Service’, by Douglas Ankney
- Seventh Circuit: Fugitive Who Leased Condo Under Alias Retained Expectation of Privacy so Landlord Could Not Give Valid Consent for Warrantless Search of Premises, by Richard Resch
- California Court of Appeal: Geofence Warrant Violates ‘Particularity’ Requirement of Fourth Amendment and Is ‘Overbroad’ but Good Faith Exception Applies Because of the Novelty of Geofence Warrants at Time Sought and Executed, by Richard Resch
- Washington Supreme Court Announces Adoption of ‘Rule of Automatic Reversal’ When Prosecutor Flagrantly Appeals to Racial and Ethnic Bias During Voir Dire, by Mark Wilson
- Fourth Circuit Reinstates Relief From Death Penalty, Citing State’s Forfeiture of Argument Against Relief, by Dale Chappell
- Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court Affirms Granting of New Trial in Murder Case Based on IAC Where Counsel Failed to Investigate Exculpatory Evidence Contained in a Proffer and Provided to Counsel Prior to Trial, by Matthew Clarke
- A Lie Is Still a Lie, Even if the Speaker Genuinely Believes It, by Jordan Arizmendi
- Tennessee Supreme Court Announces State Statute Automatically Sentencing Juvenile Offenders Convicted of First-Degree Murder to Life in Prison Is Unconstitutional, by Douglas Ankney
- California Court of Appeal Announces ‘Plausible Justification’ as Standard for Claiming Entitlement to Discovery Under Racial Justice Act of 2020, by Mark Wilson
- Ohio Supreme Court: IAC for Counsel to Mention ‘Neonaticide’ at Sentencing but Fail to Explain and Use It as Mitigating Evidence, by Douglas Ankney
- by Eike Blohm, MD FATAL ENCOUNTERS WITH POLICE OCCUR in the U.S. with disturbing frequency, setting us apart from other Western industrial nations. A recent study published in the Annual Review of Criminology explores the drivers behind this American exce, by Jordan Arizmendi
- Study Explores Factors Underlying High Rate of American Police Killings, by Eike Blohm, MD
- Proactive Online Stings Do Little to Protect Children, by Eike Blohm, MD
- California Court Rejects Geofence Warrant, by Anthony Accurso
- News in Brief
More from Douglas Ankney:
- Beyond a Reasonable Doubt? Fingerprint Evidence’s Troubling Flaws, April 15, 2025
- Tenth Circuit Stretches PLRA to Deny Claim of Colorado Prisoner Shot by Guard While Shackled, April 1, 2025
- Fourth Circuit Excuses Maryland Prisoner From Exhaustion Requirement in PREA Claim, April 1, 2025
- Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court Announces State Wiretap Statute Requires Suppression of Both Audio and Video Components of Audiovisual Footage of Unlawfully Intercepted Oral Communication Showing Defendant as Party to Communication, March 15, 2025
- California Court of Appeal Vacates Sentence Where Trial Court Imposed Sentence Under ‘One Strike’ Enhancement Statute Enacted After Crimes Were Committed, March 15, 2025
- Nevada Supreme Court: Theft Offenses and Possessing or Receiving Stolen Property Offenses Are Mutually Exclusive and Double Jeopardy Protections Bar Conviction for Both Offenses When Based on Same Conduct, March 15, 2025
- Maryland Supreme Court: Trial Court Abused Its Discretion by Failing to Exercise That Discretion Where It Summarily Refused Requested Jury Instruction Because It Was a Non-Pattern Instruction and ‘Some Evidence’ Supported the Instruction, March 15, 2025
- $100,000 Settlement Reached in New York Prisoner’s Solitary Confinement Suit, After Jury for First Time Finds Practice Violates Eighth Amendment, March 1, 2025
- Community Supervision: America’s Hidden Wellspring to Mass Incarceration, Feb. 15, 2025
- Rikers Island Continues Long Practice of Denying Education to Young Adults, Feb. 15, 2025
More from these topics:
- Beyond a Reasonable Doubt? Fingerprint Evidence’s Troubling Flaws, April 15, 2025. junk science, Wrongful Conviction, Fingerprint Evidence.
- A Guilty Voice: Is Voice Analysis Junk Science or Reliable Evidence?, March 15, 2025. junk science, Evidence - Integrity/Reliability of.
- Study Confirms New York City’s ShotSpotter Deployment Was a Costly Misstep, March 15, 2025. junk science, Use of a Gun.
- Bite Marks and Broken Justice: A Louisiana Man’s Life and Death Struggle Against Junk Science, March 15, 2025. junk science, Wrongful Conviction.
- Minnesota Supreme Court Announces No Duty to Retreat When Using Reasonable Force in Defense of Another and Provides Framework for Analyzing Such Claims, Feb. 1, 2025. State Law Claims, Wrongful Use of Force, Firearms.
- 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.
- 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.