Forensic Science and Law : Investigative Applications in Criminal, Civil and Family Justice

704 Pages·2005·21.34 MB·english

by  Rago

FOR ENSIC
SCIENCE
and
L AW
Investigative Applications in
Criminal, Civil, and Family Justice

FOR ENSIC
SCIENCE
and
L AW
Investigative Applications in
Criminal, Civil, and Family Justice
Edited by
Cyril H. Wecht
John T. Rago
Editorial Coordinator
Benjamin E. Wecht
Boca Raton London New York
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Preface
As a practicing forensic scientist for more than 40years, I have spent the majority of my
life seeking social truth and justice through the application of scientific methods and
legal principles to some of the world’s greatest mysteries. Over that period of time, I
have watched forensic science undergo dramatic progress, most recently in the areas of
DNA collection and analysis and computer-simulated reconstruction of crime scenes.
Unfortunately, and despite what such popular TV shows as CSI and Crossing Jordan
might suggest, too few professionals are equipped with the knowledge necessary to fully
unleash the promise of science in civil, criminal, and family legal matters. Such recent
real-life dramas as the O.J. Simpson investigation and trial and the unsolved murder of
JonBenet Ramsey provide ample confirmation of this fact.
What’smore,theacademiccommunityhasbeenslowandsplinteredinitsresponseto
the need to prepare a broader base of professionals for the study and implementation of
this critical body of knowledge. As a result, the field of forensic science, along with its
role in our various systems of justice, has reached a crucial juncture.
Aseducators,wecannolongerignoretheneedforthelegalandscientificcommunities
to work in greater unity toward the apprehension and prosecution of the perpetrators of
crime orof those who causeinjuries to others, nor toward the exoneration of the wrong-
fullyconvicted.Forensicsciencehasalreadymadeagreatimpactonoursystemsofjustice,
but if we are to become truly effective in our collective “search for the truth,” we must
inform and involve other professionals and their specialties as well.
Forensic Science and Law — like the Cyril H. Wecht Institute of Forensic Science and
Law,outofwhichitgrew—wasdesigned,inlargepart,tocommunicatethewiderangeof
methodsandapproachesforachievingcivil,criminal,andfamilyjustice.Butmoreimpor-
tantly, it is an undertaking that brings together the words and thoughts of professionals
from multiple disciplines who stand united in the goal of speaking truth to power. It is
abookthatshouldengenderinallofitsreaders—whetherstudentsorteachers,scientists
orlawyers—anappreciationoftheneedtointegrateourskillsandunderstandingofthis
multidisciplinary approach to applying science to law.
Theapplicationofforensicsciencetothejusticesystemcanhaveprofoundresults.But
if we are to fully harness the promise of forensic science in the administration of justice,
today’s students — along with professionals who have dedicated their lives to public
serviceandeducation—mustseekoutopportunitiesforgrowthinthisrapidlyemerging
body of work. It is our sincere hope that this book represents one such opportunity.
Cyril H. Wecht, M.D., J.D.
Coroner, County of Allegheny, Pennsylvania
Advisory Board Chairman,
The Cyril H. Wecht Institute of Forensic Science and Law
Adjunct Professor of Law, Duquesne University School of Law
Objective truth is a difficult conquest. No study of any single body of intellectual
activity—theproblemsofchemistry,physics,biology,mathematics,philosophy,psycho-
logy,orthehistoryofsocialeconomy,interalia—can,inandofitself,achievethelevelor
degreeoftruthnecessary tocomprehendthefullrangeofhumanconduct.Thesubstance
of this textbook represents an attempt to respond to this limitation by identifying new
pedagogical and professional methods that shed critical light on our pursuit of objective
truths. It breathes forth the conviction that law and forensic science, viewed in the
context of each other, harmonize and call for a climate of genuine interdisciplinary
study. And at the heart of this convergence resides the authors’ collective belief that the
combined study of forensic science and law will continue to lead to the revelation of
new knowledge and certain objective truths in a variety of our social settings and
institutions.
If the primary task of education is to instill respect for truth in all its forms, these
writings are designed to encourage students (and their professors) to contemplate the
emerging presence and broad appeal of forensic scientific and legal studies at all levels
of education. By sharing the same coefficient of reality, forensic science and law animate
our pursuit of truth. Free of bias or prejudice, the product of this marriage of thought
convincingly reveals to us that just as all life rebels against death, so, too, does all truth
in every facet of life, and its social arrangements rebel against contradiction.
The origin for this work is grounded in ancient traditions. Aristotle has described
human beings as “rational animals,” positing that we are driven to identify methods by
which we can achieve an abstract notion of truth and concrete conditions of objective
truth. The combination of forensic scientific and legal studies achieves this objective
and much more. This textbook represents the authors’ efforts to reveal the fruits of
thesesharedobjectives—arevelationthatbeginswithanunderstandingofthecontextual
relationship of certain foundations in criminal, civil, and family justice, before moving
ontoavarietyofforensicscientificapplications.Ofparticularimportanceisacloseexam-
inationofthecriticalroleplayedbytherulesofevidenceandtheuseofexpertsinattaining
these shared objectives.
Thelawispredicateduponthe“reasonableman”standardforapproachingmuchofits
fact-finding obligation; however, “reason” can give rise to misunderstanding. “Rational”
thought, on the other hand — the predicate analytical approach of science — has its
appeal, but is similarly flawed since science is neither the whole of mankind nor the key
to unlocking all of its objective truths. Stated simply, no single discipline or combined
schools of thought will definitely and exhaustively elucidate the mystery of human
existence in search of objective truth...but we can think of few better and more proven
places to begin than at the intersection of forensic science and law.
John T. Rago, J.D.
Assistant Professor of Law, Duquesne University School of Law
Executive Director, The Cyril H. Wecht Institute of Forensic Science and Law
About the Editors
Cyril H. Wecht is a medical–legal and forensic science consultant, author and lecturer,
who also serves as coroner of Allegheny County (Pittsburgh), Pennsylvania. He adminis-
ters a governmental department which is responsible for investigating all sudden, suspi-
cious, violent, and unexplained deaths within its jurisdiction. As a medical–legal expert,
he has performed approximately 14,000 autopsies and has supervised, reviewed, or been
consulted on approximately 30,000 additional post-mortem examinations.
Dr. Wecht is a clinical professor at the University of Pittsburgh schools of Medicine,
Dental Medicine, and Public Health; an adjunct professor at Duquesne University’s
schools of Law, Pharmacy, and Health Sciences; and a distinguished professor at Carlow
University, as well as chairman of the Advisory Board of The Cyril H. Wecht Institute of
Forensic Science and Law, which he founded at the Duquesne University School of Law
in 2000. He has served as president of the American College of Legal Medicine and the
American Academy of Forensic Science, as well as chairman of the boards of trustees of
both the American Board of Legal Medicine and the American Collegeof Legal Medicine
Foundation.
Dr.Wechtistheauthorofmorethan475professionalpublications;aneditorialboard
member of 18 national and international medical–legal and forensic scientific publi-
cations; and editor of 35 books, including the 5-volume set, Forensic Sciences (Matthew
Bender), and two 3-volume sets, Handling Soft Tissue Injury Cases and Preparing and
Winning Medical Negligence Cases (both published by Michie).
Dr. Wecht frequently appears as a guest on national TVand radio shows to discuss
various medical–legal and scientific subjects, including medical malpractice, alcohol and
drug abuse, the assassinations of President John F. Kennedy and Senator Robert F.
Kennedy, the death of Elvis Presley, and the O.J. Simpson and JonBenet Ramsey cases.
These cases, along with many others, are discussed in his popular non-fiction books,
Causeof Death (Penguin),Grave Secrets (Penguin),WhoKilled JonBenet Ramsey?(Onyx),
MortalEvidence(PrometheusBooks),andTalesfromtheMorgue(PrometheusBooks).
FormerlychairmanoftheDepartmentofPathologyandpresidentofthemedicalstaff
at St. Francis Central Hospital in Pittsburgh, Dr. Wecht received his medical degree from
the University of Pittsburgh and his law degree from the University of Maryland. He is
certified by the American Board of Pathology in anatomic, clinical, and forensic pathol-
ogies, and is a fellow of the College of American Pathologists, the American Society of
Clinical Pathologists, and the National Association of Medical Examiners.
John T. Rago is an assistant professor of law at the Duquesne University School of Law,
where he also serves as the executive director of The Cyril H. Wecht Institute of Forensic
Science and Law and director of the Law School’s Post-conviction DNA Project. In
additiontothisworkandhisteachingintheareaofcriminallawandprocedure,Professor
RagomaintainsafacultyappointmenttotheDuquesneUniversityBayerSchoolofNatural
andEnvironmentalSciences,whereheteachesgraduatecoursesonWrongfulConvictions,
Foundations in American Law, and Constitutional Criminal Procedure. Professor Rago,
whose work is focused, in large part, on the subjects of innocence reform and wrongful
convictions, also serves as an appointed member to the Innocence Project’s Policy
Group of the Cardozo School of Law in New York.
In his role with the Wecht Institute, Professor Rago directs a multidisciplinary
educational initiative that collaborates with his faculty colleagues in the university’s
schools of Law, Nursing, Natural and Environmental Sciences, Pharmacy, Business and
College of Liberal Arts, to offer graduate degree and professional certificate programs in
forensic science and law to a diverse group of students.
The institute’s interdisciplinary work, consisting of scholarship, teaching, consulting,
andcurriculardesign,hasservedastheimpetusforthecreationofsixdegreeprogramsat
theuniversityandarticulationagreements(sharedacademicprogrammingunderdevelop-
ment) with several colleges and universities throughout the region. The institute has
hostedfivemajornationalsymposiainasmanyyears,andalongwithDuquesneUniversity
andtheDuquesneUniversitySchoolofLaw,isrecognizedintheforensicsciencecommu-
nityasaleaderamongthenation’sacademicinstitutionsinprovidinganinterdisciplinary
approach to the study of the forensic sciences in context with the law.
BeforejoiningtheLawSchool’sadministrationasassociatedeanin1993,followedby
hisappointmenttotheSchool’sfacultyin2001,ProfessorRagowasinprivatepracticeand
servedasalawclerkinboththefederalandstatecourts.Heisadmittedtopracticebefore
the Pennsylvania Supreme Court, the United States Supreme Court, the U.S. Court of
Appeals for the Third Circuit, and the U.S. District Court for the Western District of
Pennsylvania. He holds degrees from Duquesne University’s College of Arts and Sciences
and Law School.
AlifelongPittsburghresident,ProfessorRagoandhiswife,Ann,havethreechildren—
Annie J., Emily J., and John Henry.
Contributors
The Honorable Ruggero J. Aldisert Nicholas P. Cafardi, J.D., J.C.L.
Senior Circuit Court Judge Dean Emeritus and Katarincie
U.S. Court of Appeals Professor of Legal Process
for the 3rd Circuit Duquesne University School of Law
Santa Barbara, California, USA Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA
Bruce A. Antkowiak, J.D.
Deborah L. Chaklos, M.S.
Assistant Professor of Law
Scientist
Duquesne University
Firearms and Toolmarks Section
School of Law
Allegheny County Coroner’s Office
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA
Forensic Science Laboratory Division
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA
Scott D. Batterman, Ph.D.
Engineering Consultant
Batterman Engineering, LLC Carole E. Chaski, Ph.D.
Cherry Hill, New Jersey, USA Executive Director
Institute for Linguistic Evidence
Steven C. Batterman, Ph.D. Georgetown, Delaware, USA
Professor Emeritus
University of Pennsylvania Suzanne Edgett Collins,
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA; RN, M.P.H., J.D., Ph.D.
Engineering Consultant Associate Professor
Batterman Engineering, LLC Department of Nursing
Cherry Hill, New Jersey, USA University of Tampa
Tampa, Florida, USA
Jagdeep S. Bhandari, J.D., Ph.D.
Professor of Law
Laura Ann Ditka, J.D.
Florida Coastal School of Law
Deputy District Attorney and Supervisor,
Jacksonville, Florida, USA
Child Abuse Unit
Office of the Allegheny County
Vanessa S. Browne-Barbour, J.D.
District Attorney
Associate Dean, Associate
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA
Professor of Law
Duquesne University School of Law
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA Frederick W. Fochtman, Ph.D.
Director and Chief Forensic Toxicologist
Ann Wolbert Burgess, Allegheny County Coroner’s Office
D.N.Sc., RN, CS, FAAN Forensic Science Laboratory Division;
Professor Director
Connell School of Nursing Master’s in Forensic Science and Law
Boston College Duquesne University
Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts, USA Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA