What Exoneration Case Reviews Can Reveal About Forensic Errors

At the national death investigation workshop, Barry Scheck described a project examining errors in cases that had ended in exoneration. The review covered forensic science alongside witness identification and false confessions. Looking at multiple kinds of evidence allows a reviewer to ask where an error entered the case and how it interacted with other evidence.

The selection of cases matters. A set of successful exonerations can reveal recurring problems worth investigating. Estimating how often those problems occur across criminal cases would require a broader sample. The workshop summary describes the project while it was underway.

Institute of Medicine, Medicolegal Death Investigation System (2003), p. 36