Speak of the devil!
A recent article in The Washington
Post, written by Stephen S. Hsu and titled “FBI Admits Flaws in Hair Analysis over
Decades,” revealed that examiners in the FBI’s microscopic hair comparison unit
have been giving flawed forensic testimony in court since the 1970’s. The
article reports that 26 out of 28 examiners in the unit were the “expert”
witnesses who backed their claims by referencing incomplete or misleading
statistics in their work.
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| A hair match |
The organizations assisting the Justice Department and the FBI with the review are the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers and the Innocence Project. Of the 2,500 cases involving hair
matches, only 268 have been reviewed since 2012, and 95% of those cases had flawed
testimony in favor of the prosecution. In 32 cases, the defendants were
sentenced to death and 14 have already been executed or died in prison. According to Brandon L. Garrett, one of the authors of peer-reviewed articles I have researched, the results of the review so far indicate a “mass disaster” within the criminal justice system.
This news exemplifies the issue of wrongful convictions and how it can be caused by faulty forensic science. The FBI admitting their error is the first
step in the right direction. People must take the blame for their actions and
be punished accordingly for any individual wrongfully accused due to the inaccurate
hair matches. The FBI laboratory and other agencies should also change the way hair analysis is conducted and regulated. No agency likes wasting time reviewing past cases due to mistakes of their employees. More research must be done to conclude that hair
can be a reliable source of evidence.
It is sad to know that 14 people
have died due to the flawed testimony. They could have been given another chance at an appeal, but instead they have lost their lives. Hopefully the number of deaths
does not increase considering this is only the beginning of the “largest post-conviction review of questioned forensic evidence.”
What are your thoughts on the recent news?
ReplyDeleteBasically what this article is stating is 13 in 14 people within the last 40 years have been wrongfully convicted. That is, to simply put it, insane! Could those people have done anything to prove their innocence? Or is having a DNA test against them too condemning? The FBI labs should face some kind of consequence for such an atrocious mistake. 14 people lost their lives because of a mistake they made. What kind of new equipment is being used to improve the accuracy of hair DNA testing? Are there going to be new procedures put in place?
They're actually in the process of making appeals for all those involved. The FBI is willing to ignore the statute of limitations in order to retry each case and analyze all DNA evidence again, if possible. I don't know much about the equipment, but I think they will definitely come up with new standards for the investigation hair analysis.
DeleteI wonder what kind of punishments should the FBI get after these terrible mistakes. Who should be responsible of filing these charges against them? It is kinda hard to think on possible answers to these questions because of the world wide reputation this organization has. Their work is the most important source of investigation in the country but in the end they are all humans. However, it is very important to identify and punish the individuals who were involved in this terrible mistake.
ReplyDeleteYou make a good point about human error. This was a widespread mistake in which a group of professionals believed they were doing the right thing and did not question their work at all. Maybe there were one or two people that doubted their own work, but because everyone else was okay with it, they did not speak up. The reputation of the FBI will definitely be tarnished until they fix the problem.
DeleteWow, this a very serious matter. It is not simply a human mistake, it is actually a calculated move to favor prosecution. There are people who should be blamed for ending other people's lives and therefore should pay for it. Also, it kind of scars me that there is people who have the courage to play with people's lives like that, only for a better professional curriculum.
ReplyDeleteBut well, I believe this will cause some changes on how forensics operates within the FBI, but i seriously dont think anyone will be particularly blamed and charged for what this article reports.