Justice flags possible flaws in FBI forensics

The Department of Justice announced last week that a review of old criminal cases has uncovered at least 120 convictions—including 27 carrying the death penalty—in which FBI forensics experts may have erroneously linked defendants to crimes. Officials are examining more than 21,700 FBI laboratory files, focusing mainly on overstated “matches” determined through microscopic analysis of hair found at crime scenes. Written FBI reports have acknowledged since the 1970s that such matches could not be used as positive identification, but FBI witnesses on the stand continued to testify that hair analysis amounted to nearly conclusive proof. The full review is to be disclosed later this summer.

Subscribe to The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

Sign up