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Probabilistic Genotyping on Trial: Can We Trust the Secret Algorithms Deciding Guilt? by Michael Thompson DNA evidence has long been hailed as the gold standard of forensic science—unassailable, precise, and definitive. But what happens when that gold standard is processed through proprietary algorithms that operate in secrecy, shielded from scrutiny …
Los Angeles Criminal Legal System Undermined by Months of Faulty DNA Testing by Jo Ellen Nott The integrity of Los Angeles County’s justice system is under fire following the news that potentially defective DNA test kits were used for months in thousands of criminal cases.  Despite being notified in August …
A Black Box, a Guilty Plea, and an Uncertain Truth by Michael Thompson by Michael Dean Thompson In forensic technology, the term “black box” has gained prominence. It describes a system whose inner workings remain opaque—an output emerges, but how it is produced eludes the user. Such black-box algorithms underpin …
Article • March 15, 2025 • from CLN April, 2025
Filed under: DNA Testing/Samples
‘Jack the Ripper’ Meets DNA Analysis by James Mills by James Mills More than 135 years after a series of gruesome murders terrorized London, new DNA evidence has emerged that may lend credence to long-held suspicions about one of the original suspects. The infamous “Jack the Ripper” killings, a string …
Article • March 15, 2025 • from CLN April, 2025
Faster Justice: Rapid DNA Set to Expand Law Enforcement Reach by Jo Ellen Nott by Jo Ellen Nott In a significant development for forensic science, the Federal Bureau of Investigation (“FBI”) approved updates to the Quality Assurance Standards (“QAS”) for Forensic Laboratories in January, paving the way for DNA profiles …
Article • March 15, 2025 • from CLN April, 2025
Filed under: DNA Testing/Samples
Can Comics Help Juries Understand Complex DNA Evidence? by Michael Thompson by Michael Dean Thompson Few people possess the scientific and mathematical background needed to fully grasp the complexities of DNA evidence after just ten minutes of expert testimony. Yet jurors are routinely tasked with making life-altering decisions for defendants …
Article • February 15, 2025 • from CLN March, 2025
Study Reveals Best DNA Recovery Spots on Drug Baggies by James Mills by James Mills In a world of theoretical experiments, it’s rare to find one that’s directly applicable for law enforcement in the real world. This may just be one of those rarities. A recent study from Flinders University …
Article • February 15, 2025 • from CLN March, 2025
Study: DNA Transfer in Social Settings by Michael Thompson by Michael Dean Thompson With every breath you take, you shed DNA. It is in the skin cells that flake off your body by the millions, the hair that floats off as you walk, and the oil you leave behind on …
Article • February 1, 2025 • from CLN February, 2025
Colorado Bureau of Investigation Admits Over 1,000 Cases Affected by DNA Test Misconduct by James Mills by James Mills The Colorado Bureau of Investigation (“CBI”) announced that more than 1,000 cases could be affected by the systematic deletion and falsification of data by forensic scientist Yvonne “Missy” Woods. Woods was …
Article • January 15, 2025 • from CLN February, 2025
Seeking Justice for Two: The DNA Scandal That Shook a Community by by Justyna Madenska This article explores the wrongful conviction of David Hehn and the unresolved murder of Gay Lynn Dixon, revealing systemic failures in forensic evidence handling and the justice system’s pursuit of true justice. In 1982, the …
Article • December 15, 2024 • from CLN January, 2025
Touch-Transfer DNA Remains Misunderstood and Still Poses High Risk of Wrongful Conviction by J.D. Schmidt by J.D. Schmidt Modern criminal investigations, especially cold homicide cases, often rely on what is known as “touch-transfer” DNA to identify the perpetrator. But in recent years, developments in DNA research have shown that there …
Article • December 15, 2024 • from CLN January, 2025
Filed under: DNA Testing/Samples
DNA on Fired Cartridge Casings: Promising Advances to Link Suspects to Crime Scenes by DNA analysis of fired cartridge casings has been studied since the early 2000s and continues to be an emerging field in forensic investigations. While cartridge casings have been traditionally examined for fingerprints and tool marks, recent …
False Confessions and Wrongful Convictions: Known Causes and Steps to Eliminate Them by Douglas Ankney by Douglas Ankney A s of February 2024, the National Registry of Exonerations (“NRE”) at the University of Michigan has registered 3,475 postconviction DNA and non-DNA exonerations since 1989—an average of 100 per year. Of …
Article • October 1, 2024 • from CLN October, 2024
New Research Method Leads to Better Touch DNA Recovery and Development of Genetic Profiles by Douglas Ankney by Douglas Ankney Touch DNA—“the invisible biological traces deposited through a person’s skin’s contact with an object or other person”—can be found at crime scenes, but detection presents a challenge for officers attempting …
Texas Man Exonerated by DNA Evidence After 25 Years of Maintaining His Innocence by Jo Ellen Nott by Jo Ellen Nott Martin Lucio Santillan, now 50 years old, was fully exonerated in the Frank Crowley Criminal Courts in Dallas, Texas, on March 22, 2023. His 25 years of wrongful imprisonment …
Article • August 1, 2024 • from CLN August, 2024
Dozens of Prisoners in Colorado Notified About Potential Compromised DNA Evidence by In early July, dozens of incarcerated individuals in Colorado counties Arapahoe and Douglas, received a promising letter from the District Attorney’s office. DA John Kellner was notifying defendants in cases that could have been affected by allegations of …
Article • July 15, 2024 • from CLN July, 2024
Breakthrough in Burn Victim Identification: Ancient DNA Tech Offers New Hope by Jo Ellen Nott 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 …
Article • June 15, 2024 • from CLN June, 2024
Filed under: DNA Testing/Samples
Forensic Genetic Genealogy: Law Enforcement’s Rapid Adoption Outpacing Adoption of Laws and Ethical Guidelines Regulating Its Use by Matthew Clarke by Matt Clarke   Millions of people have submitted oral cheek (buccal) swab samples to companies like 23andMe and Ancestry hoping to use their DNA to trace their ancestors and …
Article • June 15, 2024 • from CLN June, 2024
Filed under: DNA Testing/Samples
University of New Hampshire Designs a Simpler, Cost-Effective Test to Identify Touch DNA by Jo Ellen Nott 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 …
Article • June 15, 2024 • from CLN June, 2024
AC Units and DNA by Douglas Ankney by Douglas Ankney   Australian researchers at Flinders University have employed a promising new technique to collect and record forensic DNA evidence from crime scenes. A new study appearing in Electrophoresis focused on the DNA retrieved from air conditioning (“AC”) units that circulate …
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