Truth, Justice and Forensic Evidence

by Diane Fanning

We all realize that statistics can be manipulated to prove points, that polls can be slanted by how a question is asked, that news reporting itself demonstrates bias by what the media chooses to cover, if nothing else. However, we expect forensic science to be the gold standard of truth--complete, objective, honest. We want to believe that. Learning that forensics, too, does not live up to its objective, TV-drama-polished image makes us all feel vulnerable to the vagaries of uneven justice.

North Carolina is facing that truth right now. It began with the 1991 discovery of the body of Jaquetta Thomas at the end of a cul de sac in Raleigh. In 1993, Gregory Taylor (above left) was convicted of her first-degree homicide. In February of this year, the North Carolina Innocence Commission three-judge panel exonerated Gregory Taylor in part because Duane Deaver, an SBI lab analyst who reported "chemical indications for the presence of blood" on Taylor's SUV, failed to mention in his final serology report that a more sensitive, confirmatory test for blood was negative. Taylor was released after spending nearly 17 years in prison, according to the commission, for a crime he did not commit.

In the aftermath of this revelation, the North Carolina Attorney General Ray Cooper ordered an independent review of the State Bureau of Investigation's Forensic Laboratory. The resulting report cited "serious issues about laboratory reporting practices from 1987-2003 and the potential that information that was material and even favorable to the defense of criminal charges filed was withheld or misrepresented. The factors that contributed to these issues range from poorly crafted policy; lack of objectivity; the absence of clear report writing guidance; inattention to reporting methods that left to much discretion to the individual analyst; lack of transparency; and ineffective management and oversight of the Forensic Biology Section from 1987 to 2003."

The report strongly stated that it "did not conclude, and the reader should not assume, that each case resulted in a wrongful conviction." We can only hope that is true. Of the 15,419 lab files reviewed, 230 cases were identified as containing lab reports that mentioned positive presumptive tests results but omitted the results of more sensitive tests.

In 40 of the cases, no suspect was ever charged. In another 20, the charges were dismissed or the defendants received a not guilty verdict. In those remaining, 249 individuals were convicted of crimes. Eighty are still serving sentences -- including four now sitting on death row. Additionally, five inmates died in prison and three were executed by the state. District Attorneys in the appropriate jurisdictions now have an itemized listing of the cases in question and a charge to investigate the circumstances in each conviction. 

The cases were divided into four categories. In the fourth and most serious group, confirmatory tests were over-reported or not reflective of the results contained in the lab notes. Only five of the cases landed in this category and all of them were handled by Special Agent Duane Deaver (right). 

It seems that Deaver is being painted as the chief villain in this mess. He has been relieved of his duties while an investigation looks into his actions. But did he really perform any differently than others? Or was Deaver simply following the procedures and policies as required to maintain his job?

As for the present and the future, the report pointed out that the review "focused mostly on historical practices and policies that are no longer in use..." and that as of March 2010, complete SBI laboratory files are now routinely provided via online access to every District Attorney's office in the state..." enabling them "...to provide appropriate and timely discovery materials to the defense in a criminal proceeding." 

So was Deaver merely following bad guidance? My experience with him tends to make me lean in that direction. I watched Deaver testify in the Michael Peterson case in 2003 for a book (Written in Blood, February 2004). I saw him face a cross examination that felt more like a witch hunt than a quest for justice. I interviewed him at length. He seemed genuinely committed to justice.

I know that Peterson's family is now demanding a new trial based on this report even though that case was not one of the ones found faulty in the independent review. Peterson, who claimed his wife fell down the stairs, was convicted of killing her with a blow to the head. The most pivotal testimony presented by Deaver--that the point of impact was a point in mid-air--was confirmed by the defense witness, Dr. Henry Lee. Other evidence, like forensic pathologist Deborah Radisch's testimony about red neurons, was far more compelling. 

Nonetheless, I imagine an appeal will be filed in the Michael Peterson case. And I suspect many other defense attorneys will pile on to that bandwagon in an attempt to discredit every piece of forensic evidence that ever came within walking distance of Deaver. 

Although I applaud all the efforts to dig into the 230 cases in question and find the truth, and although I suspect those investigations will lead to additional wrong and/or dubious convictions, I am not ready to demonize Special Agent Duane Deaver. It seems the system created these circumstances, and the blame cannot be laid at the feet of one individual -- it belongs to the bureau that created the system. Deaver looks more like a scapegoat than the devil to me.

Jaycee Dugard: One Year Later

by Stacy Dittrich

This past Thursday, August 26, 2010, marked the one year anniversary of Jaycee Lee Dugard’s (pictured left) return to her family. As most people know, Jaycee was eleven years old when she was viciously ripped from her family while walking to her bus stop in South Lake Tahoe, California, on June 10, 1991. This occurred as her step-father, Carl Probyn, watched helplessly. For the next 18 years, Dugard’s captors, Philip Craig Garrido, 58, and his wife, Nancy Garrido, 54, held young Jaycee in a wretched, filthy, compound of tents—well hidden behind their Antioch, California, home. For 18 years, Garrido repeatedly raped Jaycee and she eventually bore two of his children.

On August 26, 2009 the nation came to a virtual standstill when the news of Jaycee’s survival spread like wildfire. Garrido, with Jaycee and their two daughters, ages 12 and 15, was eyed suspiciously by the University of Berkeley police officers when he arrived on campus spewing religious rants. After a highly praised interrogation by the officers, Jaycee’s true identity—and her past—was revealed. The detailed information that followed shocked and sickened humanity. Furthermore, people were angry that such an abomination continued for 18 years without detection. California’s parole system came under intense scrutiny for failing to discover Jaycee in Garrido’s hold. Having been on parole for several decades, Garrido routinely played nice with his parole officers and his home was never searched.

In 1992, a report to the Contra Costa County Sheriff’s Department revealed a man claiming he saw a young girl matching Jaycee’s description staring at a missing poster of herself at a nearby gas station. The caller claims the girl left with a man matching Garrido’s description in a large yellow van (the same vehicle that was later towed from Garrido’s property in 2009). The tip was never followed-up on. Along with the numerous missed opportunities by parole agents, another tip was phoned into the sheriff’s department by one of Garrido’s neighbors. The neighbor claimed that Garrido, a known sex offender and psychotic, had young children living in his back yard. The deputy that arrived to investigate the complaint never even searched the back yard (pictured right). Thus, the unconscionable lack of justice for Jaycee Dugard resulted in a $20 million  settlement from the state of California. Well deserved, but considering that Jaycee, and her daughters’, lifelong therapy is estimated to cost $7 million I’d say she deserved a hell of a lot more than that.

Now, a year later, Jaycee and her daughters live in seclusion with her mother, Terry Probyn, in Northern California. Many wonder what the last year has been like for the newly reunited family, and what does the future hold. The last year for Jaycee has been an onslaught of new beginnings; she obtained her driver’s license, maintains a journal, baked Christmas cookies with her mother and sister for the first time, and even recently went camping with friends. They live in an undisclosed small neighborhood where it has been reported that their neighbors are “fiercely” protective of Jaycee and her family. Rumors have been floating around for quite some time that Jaycee will be writing a book of her time spent in hell, and her mother’s account of her own nightmare is due to be published in late 2010. Regardless, evil Garrido and his disgusting robot-of-a-wife, Nancy, (pictured right to left) are still incarcerated awaiting trial. Most likely both will die in prison. Hallelujah.

A year later, in the rare moments where Jaycee (now 30) is shown in photographs, she is smiling. Personally, I find that to be an extremely positive sign. Although she and her children have a long road ahead, they are back where they belong. Good luck, Jaycee; you and your family will continuously be in our thoughts and prayers.

Poor Little Rich Girl?

by Kathryn Casey and Cathy Scott

Flashback: Paris Hilton on "Larry King Live" in June 2007, two days after her release from jail: "I'm going to have a new beginning. I'm going to raise money for kids, for breast cancer, for multiple sclerosis."

Sounded like the young Ms. Hilton had learned her lesson, didn't it? Apparently not. She's been busted again, this time in Las Vegas, at 11:30 Friday night, in a car. Her boyfriend, Cy Waits, was driving, but police say Hilton had cocaine on her. Apparently a motorcycle cop noticed a trail of smoke "from a controlled substance" following the Cadillac Esplanade and pulled it over. Waits was book