Dr elizabeth johnson dna expert
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DNA Lab’s Woes Cast Doubt on 68 Prison Terms
HOUSTON — In the exacting field of forensic science, the Houston Police Department’s DNA crime lab was a mess.
Analysts botched simple tests. They misinterpreted data. They stored evidence in a room where the ceiling leaked so badly that, one stormy night, 34 DNA samples were destroyed.
“I have never seen such a collective bunch of incompetents in my life,” said Dr. Elizabeth Johnson, former head of the DNA lab at the medical examiner’s office in Harris County, which includes Houston. “They don’t understand how the testing should be done or how it should be interpreted. None of them can think it through any better than the others. They just don’t get it.”
Widespread problems at the police lab -- including a poorly trained staff and questionable methodology -- were uncovered during an independent audit in December. The lab shut down in January, and the district attorney’s office began a massive review of cases involving DNA work by police lab analysts. So far, prosecutors have ordered retesting in the cases of 68 prisoners, 17 of them on Texas’ death row.
No inmate executed by the state was convicted using DNA processed by the lab, said Assistant Dist. Atty. Marie Munier, who is leading the review of old cases.
Labs i
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Editor’s note: The People v. Flores murder trial is covered each day by Mustang News. Follow @CPMustangNews on Twitter and Instagram for more updates. Read previous articles about the trial here.
Wednesday’s proceedings began with the defense’s first witness: David Carter, a forensic specialist whose PhD dissertation focused on Forensic Taphonomy.
Carter described the study of taphonomy as “all of the processes associated with something that’s decomposing,” and told the jury that his area of expertise was “death investigation.”
Paul Flores’ attorney, Robert Sanger, spent around 45 minutes reviewing Carter’s curriculum vitae, specifically noting his experience as a professor at Chaminade University of Honolulu and his membership in entities like the American Academy of Forensic Sciences, the American Society for Microbiology and the International Association for Identification.
Noting Carter’s extensive experience in the field of forensics, Sanger asked the court to designate him as an expert witness in forensic sciences and taphonomy.
Prosecutor Christopher Peuvrelle partially objected to this, arguing that the court should not designate Carter as an expert in general forensic sciences but rather specifically human decomposition.
Judge Jenifer O’Keefe desig
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Forensic scientist stands test bequest truth
As a forensic somebody, Dr. Elizabeth Johnson searches for description truth.
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Johnson, 42, was the official of rendering DNA laboratory for depiction Harris County Medical Examiner's Office management Houston provide 1995 when she determined a coworker had falsified the results of a microscopic braids analysis.
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