by Jo Ellen Nott
A recent study by Binghamton University researchers offers hope for identifying victims of fires where traditional methods fail. Fire victims can be identified through dental records if the teeth are preserved and such records exist. DNA testing is often the only way to identify badly burned ...
by Jo Ellen Nott
A Colorado jury awarded a 78-year-old woman, Ruby Johnson, $3.76 million in damages on March 1, 2024, after a SWAT team raided her home based on a faulty phone tracking app and a misleading warrant. “The detective misled the court by portraying the phone pings ...
by Jo Ellen Nott
In a significant decision on May 16, 2024, the Justice Department of the Biden Administration proposed to reschedule marijuana from Schedule I to Schedule III. This history-making shift, though not legalization, acknowledges the drug’s medicinal value and lower abuse potential.
The proposed rule, endorsed by Attorney ...
by Jo Ellen Nott
Dr. Robert Maher, electric and computer engineer who has researched and studied gunshot acoustics at the University of Montana, published the results of a two-year study on synchronizing and processing audio recordings of gunshots in 2018. His research was sponsored by a National Institute of Justice ...
by Jo Ellen Knott
DNA profiling has become the gold standard in forensic science since the first murder case was solved in England in 1987 by genetics professor Alec Jeffreys at the University of Leicester. Although Colin Pitchfork is not as notorious as Charles Manson or Jeffrey Dahmer, it is a ...
by Jo Ellen Knott
Keith Harward, 67, was born in Greensboro, North Carolina, a state whose motto is “To be, rather than to seem.” Unfortunately for Harward, he spent 33 years “seeming” to have a life after the state of Virginia wrongfully convicted the ex-sailor of a brutal murder ...
by Jo Ellen Knott
Differentiating accidental falls from child abuse in young children poses a significant challenge for professionals who work these cases. Child abuse cases are some of the most challenging for prosecutors, law enforcement professionals, and child protection advocates tasked with finding the truth about what happened ...
by Jo Ellen Knott
Oregon legislators passed H.B. 4002 on March 1, 2024, with support from both Democrats and Republicans on a 21-8 vote. Gov. Tina Kotek’s office indicated on March 7 that she would sign it sometime in the upcoming 30 days. H.B. 4002 undoes important drug possession ...
by Jo Ellen Nott
California is at the forefront of change in criminal justice reform with a new law, Senate Bill 731, allowing people with felony convictions, even violent ones, to petition to have their records sealed. This reform offers a fresh start for many Golden Staters who have ...
by Jo Ellen Knott
On January 1, 2024, Assembly Bill 2773 took effect in California. The law requires police officers to tell drivers why they have been pulled over before questioning them on other matters. This aims to curb pretextual traffic stops, where officers pull someone over for a minor ...
