Expert Witness Blog
The Texas Forensic Science Commission is investigating negligence and misconduct complaints against forensic labs and has agreed to look into allegations that Cameron Willingham was convicted and sentenced to die on fire officials’ faulty testimony. Willingham was executed four years ago for the 1991 murder of his 1-year-old twins and 2-year-old stepdaughter in a house fire.
A five-member panel of national fire experts, who conducted the analysis, found much of the trials’ expert testimony relied on outdated, invalid investigative criteria and called for improved training of fire investigators and prosecutors who handle such cases. Chron.com also reports:
“These two cases in Texas are just the tip of the iceberg,” Innocence Project co-director Barry Scheck said in an e-mail statement. “Across Texas and around the country, people are convicted of arson based on junk science that has been completely discredited for years.”