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In What Fire Scene Responders Need to Know in Tough Economic Times (Part 3), fire expert witness and Principal of Pyrocop Inc., Robert Rowe writes:

Another factor that can reduce the incidence of arson is ensuring that every suspicious fire is investigated. Ensuring that an investigator is called to investigate is the job of those who initially respond to fire scenes.

Fire Scene Responders (FSR’s) such as firefighters, police officers, emergency medical services personnel, and insurance personnel are typically the first individuals who walk into a fire scene. As such, they must have the necessary tools to properly identify indicators of a suspicious fire incident, develop a “gut feeling” that something is not quite right, and take the necessary steps to ensure that a qualified investigator is called to the scene as soon as possible.

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State District Judge Jose Longoria ruled this week that former Corpus Christi Chamber of Commerce CEO Terry Carter’s lawsuit can continue but without two of his planned defamation expert witnesses. Carter filed a lawsuit in March 2008 against the chamber, former and current board members, the Caller-Times and others, saying they knowingly disseminated false statements about him and the chamber’s finances which caused him to lose his job.

All the defendants have denied Carter’s accusations and the chamber has counter sued Carter alleging a breach of contract. Attorney Jorge Rangel, who represents the Caller-Times and E.W. Scripps, said Monday that because the case involves first amendment rights the newspaper immediately can appeal on the summary judgment issue. Rangel said that will be the next step.

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In When the Phone Rings … Twelve Questions for Prospective Expert Witness Assignments, insurance expert witness Kevin M. Quinley, CPCU, ARM, AIC writes:

Consultants and expert witnesses are more used to answering questions than asking them. When the phone rings, there may be an attorney or prospective client on the other end of the line. He or she poses questions to the consultant or expert, trying to gauge whether there is a good “fit” between the client’s needs and what the practitioner can offer in the way of experience and expertise.

After answering prospective clients’ questions, effective consultants and expert witnesses may have some queries of their own. In fact, they should. Here are 12 questions that can form the basis of an effective fact-gathering process which unearths aspects of a case to help the consultant and expert witness gauge the degree of fit.

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Jamie and Jarrod Bacon are facing 10 firearms charges stemming from the discovery of a secret gun compartment containing weapons the day after Jamie was wounded in a shooting outside the family’s home. Defense lawyers for the Red Scorpion gang siblings are challenging the legality of the vehicle search as well as the police conduct in the Bacon house after the shooting and before the gun compartment was found.


Police procedures expert witness Paul Vogt of the Canada Border Services Agency says the Bacon brothers’ secret gun compartment is the work of a specialist. The compartment in the Suburban in which four loaded handguns and five magazines were found had carpet installed to “stop any contraband from moving around,” Vogt said. “It is a very sophisticated compartment professionally installed by someone who knows what they are doing,” he testified.

For more, see vancouversun.com.

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techdirt.com has this to say about Jenzabar & Google metatags:

Jenzabar Finds ‘Expert Witness’ Who Will Claim Google Relies On Metatags, Despite Google Saying It Does Not

CEO of software company Jenzabar, Ling Chai, has sued the makers of a documentary about the Tiananmen Square uprising. Now, the company has gone even further. It’s found an “expert witness” who will claim that metatags do, in fact, influence Google results, even as the company itself insists they don’t. The guy in question, Frank Farance, claims in his affidavit that “metatags are used by every Web search engine to determine search results and rankings.” It’s not clear how he has expertise in this particular realm or how he knows that Google uses metatags when pretty much everyone in the space has known for years it does not and Google itself has publicly denied using metatags to rank results.

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In What Fire Scene Responders Need to Know in Tough Economic Times (Part 2), fire expert witness and Principal of Pyrocop Inc., Robert Rowe writes:

For example, Maine State Fire Marshall John Dean told the Maine Public Broadcasting Network last month that he expects that the recession will continue to fuel the arson rate as more and more people face a loss of their property or find it difficult to pay their bills. These trends become more evident with the recent increase in gas prices and the realization by desperate owners of “gas guzzling” vehicles that arson may be the only way to relieve their financial burden.

Additionally, there is the failing business. During adverse economic conditions, arson involving businesses becomes a hopeless but viable option for those business owners who are experiencing a profit loss to “shore up” an otherwise dismal month-end balance sheet.

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Trucking and transportation rules and regulations expert witness John Johnson, a Michigan Technological University professor of mechanical engineering, testified last spring before the House Subcommittee on Energy and Environment as part of a review of the Department of Energy’s (DOE) Vehicle Technologies research and development programs.

The expert witness stated that increasing truck efficiency has a major impact because trucks make up a significant portion of America’s fuel use and will likely surpass passenger car fuel use within the next few decades. Research spending should reflect the significant role the trucking industry plays in the US economy. Manufacturers of heavy-duty trucks had sales of $16 billon in 2002, and overall, the trucking industry employs 1.4 million workers with an annual payroll of $47 billion. “Trucks account for about one-fourth of the transportation industry’s total revenues,” said Johnson.

For more, see mtu.edu.

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The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) revised its guidelines for medical negligence expert witness testimony in cases involving pediatric expert witnesses. In its policy statement, the AAP provides a definition of expert witness testimony, and provides recommendations on how pediatricians should approach their role as experts. The full release can be found here: http://aappolicy.aappublications.org/cgi/content/full/pediatrics;109/5/974

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Trucking industry expert witness John Johnson, a Michigan Technological University professor of mechanical engineering testified last spring before the House Subcommittee on Energy and Environment as part of a review of the Department of Energy’s (DOE) Vehicle Technologies research and development programs. The expert said more research is needed to improve the safety and fuel economy of the nation’s truck fleet.

Johnson expressed concern over the decline in federal funding for the 21st Century Truck Partnership. In 2000, DOE launched the Partnership to explore technological improvements in commercial and military trucks and buses. Funded through the DOE, the Department of Defense, the Department of Transportation and the Environmental Protection Agency, the Partnership also involves several national research laboratories and many industrial partners.

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In Is it Fabricated?, document examination expert witness Ronald N. Morris writes on what material can be on a copy in addition to the material on the original. “Copies may include toner reproduction of scratches, trash, dirt, etc., found on the glass or drum.”

…b. Even if a number of these qualities and features are present in the copy, it cannot be concluded that the copied document contained an originally written signature. Document fabrication, complete with the addition of signatures extracted from other documents, is relative easy to accomplish.

c. Writing features found in the original document paper stock, such as indentations or indented outlines of letters and words, the disturbance of paper fibers due to mechanical abrasive erasure or the use of liquid solvents or eradicators, insertion of a number or letter using a different ink, etc., are not exactly reproduced during the copying process.

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