A Prescription for Criminal Justice: Embrace Errors, Then Fix Them
A sampling of the many achievable reforms now being used to help avoid wrongful convictions
Sue Russell
Why Can't Law Enforcement Admit They Blow It Sometimes?
Because police, detectives and forensic scientists are only human, and it's all-too natural to be inexplicably reluctant to admit to – or even to see – some of their mistakes.
Seeking Second Chances Without DNA
DNA testing has overturned many wrongful convictions but the vast majority of criminal cases have no DNA to test. And some of those inmates’ convictions are also flawed.
The Right and Privilege of Post-Conviction DNA Testing
Almost half the DNA tests conducted at prisoners’ request confirm guilt. Yet many believe that the exceptions more than justify making post-conviction testing widely accessible. And what is often fair or prudent is for Death Row inmates essential.
Litigating Lineups: Why the American Justice System Is Keeping a Close Eye on Witness Identification
The single biggest cause of wrongful convictions is mistaken eyewitness identification. Is there a better way to find the right perpetrator?
Why Fingerprints Aren't the Proof We Thought They Were
Fingerprint matching is a vital investigative tool. But despite its legendary aura of infallibility, courtroom claims of fingerprints’ uniqueness are slowly receding.
Human Lie Detectors: The Death of the Dead Giveaway
Amateurs and experts alike overestimate their ability to divine truth and deception. But when criminal investigators do it, it can be very bad news for the accused.
Red Flags: Early Warnings of Wrongful Convictions
Experts find recurring themes in wrongful convictions. And while some jurisdictions are now creating in-house review units to ensure convictions are righteous, commonly repeated mistakes continue to mar cases.
A Porn Stash and a False Confession: How to Ruin Someone's Life in the American Justice System
John Watkins' stash of pornography made him a look like a prime suspect for a rape in police and prosecutors' eyes. How they wrung a confession out of him and convinced a shaky witness to ID him offers textbook examples of how to achieve a wrongful conviction.
When Extreme Animal Rights Activists Attack
Lawmakers, researchers, and peaceful activists all say they deplore violence committed in the name of animal rights. But laws that may label some protesters as “domestic terrorists” are upsetting activists.
Reducing the Use of Animals in Experiments
U.S. law and U.S. agencies are both looking at ways to reduce the use of animals in labs.
Five Orcas, Five Slaves or Five Persons?
PETA’s lawsuit on behalf of five orcas at SeaWorld could end in a splash or a belly flop for animal rights.
Pets, Vets and Stalking Horses
The animal rights movement may set their sights on veterinarians, warn protectors of biomedical animal research.
Should Animals Be Considered People?
In a nation where corporations are people and others want fetuses to be, a core of philosophers and attorneys are trying develop laws to declare animals “legal persons.”
Teens Weigh Ethical Animal Research Dilemmas
Youth Ethics Summit gives students an understanding of how medical research works, which some say is critical to the pushback against animal rights activists.
Animal Research's Changing Equation
Gavels and courtrooms are replacing placards and bullhorns, says the biomedical research community, as determined legal eagles work to increase animals’ rights and possibly even grant them "personhood."
Smart Solutions for Fighting Tomorrow’s Wildfires
A slew of good ideas, from high-tech UAVs to just leaving a hose out for firefighters, may help in battling tomorrow’s brush fires.
Playing the Odds in Catching Wildfire Arsonists
A small but significant number of wildfires are intentionally set. The fire starters often share characteristics but aren’t always cut from the same cloth.
California, Carolina Spotlight Extremes of Firefighting Budgets
While agencies in California can shine a spotlight on fancy new firefighting technology, their peers in places like South Carolina often make do with much less.
Computer Science Aids Firefighters on the Ground
Understanding wildfire behavior and predicting its spread ...
Satellite, Aerial Technology Revolutionizes Firefighting
Far above the rough terrain where wildfires thrive, satellite and aerial technology is being used to give firefighters on the ground the big picture.
Experts Live and Die With Mental Shortcuts
Understanding human thought processes puts a different spin on everything from global financial meltdowns to fighter pilot errors. It can also help make technology more brain-friendly.
High Court Recognizes Imperfections at Crime Labs
A 5-4 majority at the nation's highest court finds that the work of crime labs is not infallible, and defendants have a right to make that clear.
Bias and the Big Fingerprint Dust-Up
Cognitive neuroscientist Itiel Dror finds that analysis of fingerprint data by human examiners can be ruined by unintentional bias. But he offers some relatively simple fixes that can improve the odds of reliable results.
Re-Mapping Forensic Science’s Future
A critical report from the National Academy of Sciences calls for national standards in forensics science, validation of new technology and crime lab ethics.
Debunking Arson Indicators
Sidebar: 'Flashover defense' gets two arson convictions reversed in the 1980s.
Arson Convictions, Fire Investigations Feel the Heat
As decades of flawed and unscientific fire investigation techniques call arson convictions into question, new recipes emerge for a system-wide overhaul.