The Expert Witness Forensic Science And The Criminal Justice Systems Of The Uk

The global nature of crime often requires expert witnesses to work and present their conclusions in courts outside their home jurisdiction with the corresponding need for them to have an understanding of the different structures and systems operating in other jurisdictions. This book will be a resource for UK professionals, as well as those from overseas testifying internationally, as to the workings of all UK jurisdictions. It also will help researchers and students to better understand the UK legal system.

Forensic science evidence plays a pivotal role in modern criminal proceedings. Yet such evidence poses intense practical and theoretical challenges. It can be unreliable or misleading and has been associated with miscarriages of justice. In this original and insightful book, a global team of prominent scholars and practitioners explore the contemporary challenges of forensic science evidence and expert witness testimony from a variety of theoretical, practical and jurisdictional perspectives. Chapters encompass the institutional organisation of forensic science, its procedural regulation, evaluation and reform, and brim with comparative insight.

Forensic Science in Court: The Role of the Expert Witness is a practical handbook aimed at forensic science students, to help them prepare as an expert witness when presenting their evidence in court. Written in a clear, accessible manner, the book guides the student through the legal process and shows them how to handle evidence, write reports without ambiguity through to the more practical aspects of what to do when appearing in court. The book also offers advice on what to expect when working with lawyers in a courtroom situation. An essential text for all students taking forensic science courses who are required to take modules on how to present their evidence in court. The book is also an invaluable reference for any scientist requested to give an opinion in a legal context. · Integrates law and science in an easy to understand format · Inclusion of case studies throughout · Includes straightforward statistics essential for the forensic science student · An invaluable, practical textbook for anyone appearing as an expert witness in court · Unique in its approach aimed at forensic science students in a courtroom environment

This book is the first socio-legal analysis of the role of experts in the legal process, focusing on the role played by expert witnesses in the pre-trial construction of legal cases. It examines the history of forensic science in terms of its cooptation by the law as an aid to advocacy. Given recent concerns about the reliability of forensic evidence in criminal cases, the book is especially topical. Its argument is that, far from being 'abnormal' or 'deviant' science, forensic science in these cases of 'miscarriages of justice' represents a normal practice of science and a typical practice of science in the harness of the law. In some respects, our recent disillusionment with forensic science stems from a wider loss of faith in the promise of modernity - science no longer may be relied upon to provide us with the certainties we seek in order to construct our everyday lives. In one sense, therefore, our loss of confidence in forensic science and the criminal justice system is part of a more profound malaise. This book examines the various options available to us and analyses the ways in which the legal system has, in the past as in the present, sought to redeem its role as a primary means of truth-finding and deliverer of certainty. The book contains new material on the history of science and law as well as drawing upon empirical data and observational study to demonstrate the 'behind the scenes' links between, and pre-trial practices of, lawyers and scientists. It argues that recent attempts to resolve our crisis of confidence in forensic science by moving towards an 'independent' forensic science service are misguided and will eventually lead to 'state closure' of forensic services.As an alternative to this scenario, the author proposes a mixed economy of forensic services, comprising a strong freelance/university sector to off-set the present virtual monopoly by the State. Its analysis and proposals should be of interest to anyone interested in the findings of the Royal Commission on the Criminal Justice System.

This project addressed the admissibility of expert evidence in criminal proceedings in England and Wales. Currently, too much expert opinion evidence is admitted without adequate scrutiny because no clear test is being applied to determine whether the evidence is sufficiently reliable to be admitted. Juries may therefore be reaching conclusions on the basis of unreliable evidence, as confirmed by a number of miscarriages of justice in recent years. Following consultation on a discussion paper (LCCP 190, 2009, ISDBN 9780118404655) the Commission recommends that there should be a new reliability-based admissibility test for expert evidence in criminal proceedings. The test would not need to be applied routinely or unnecessarily, but it would be applied in appropriate cases and it would result in the exclusion of unreliable expert opinion evidence. Under the test, expert opinion evidence would not be admitted unless it was adjudged to be sufficiently reliable to go before a jury. The draft Criminal Evidence (Experts) Bill published with the report (as Appendix A) sets out the admissibility test and also provides the guidance judges would need when applying the test, setting out the key reasons why an expert's opinion evidence might be unreliable. The Bill also codifies (with slight modifications) the uncontroversial aspects of the present law, so that all the admissibility requirements for expert evidence would be set out in a single Act of Parliament and carry equal authority.

An accessible guide for students across a variety of disciplines who are studying forensic evidence throughout the criminal justice system. Containing up to date and classic case studies, photos and examples, it assumes no prior scientific knowledge to ensure the discussion is clear but comprehensive.

The global nature of crime often requires expert witnesses to work and present their conclusions in courts outside their home jurisdiction with the corresponding need for them to have an understanding of the different structures and systems operating in other jurisdictions. This book will be a resource for UK professionals, as well as those from overseas testifying internationally, as to the workings of all UK jurisdictions. It also will help researchers and students to better understand the UK legal system.

Forensic science evidence and expert witness testimony play an increasingly prominent role in modern criminal proceedings. Science produces powerful evidence of criminal offending, but has also courted controversy and sometimes contributed towards miscarriages of justice. The twenty-six articles and essays reproduced in this volume explore the theoretical foundations of modern scientific proof and critically consider the practical issues to which expert evidence gives rise in contemporary criminal trials. The essays are prefaced by a substantial new introduction which provides an overview and incisive commentary contextualising the key debates. The volume begins by placingforensic science in interdisciplinary focus, with contributions from historical, sociological, Science and Technology Studies (STS), philosophical and jurisprudential perspectives. This is followed by closer examination of the role of forensic science and other expert evidence in criminal proceedings, exposing enduring tensions and addressing recent controversies in the relationship between science and criminal law. A third set of contributions considers the practical challenges of interpreting and communicating forensic science evidence. This perennial battle continues to be fought at the intersection between the logic of scientific inference and the psychology of the fact-finder‘scommon sense reasoning. Finally, the volume‘s fourth group of essays evaluates the (limited) success of existing procedural reforms aimed at improving the reception of expert testimony in criminal adjudication, and considers future prospects for institutional renewal - with a keen eye to comparative law models and experiences, success stories and cautionary tales.