Forensic Science Reform: Protecting the Innocent

Forensic Science Reform: Protecting the Innocent is written for the nonscientist to help make complicated scientific information clear and concise enough for attorneys and judges to master. This volume covers physical forensic science, namely arson, shaken baby syndrome, non-accidental trauma, bite marks, DNA, ballistics, comparative bullet lead analysis, fingerprint analysis, and hair and fiber analysis, and contains valuable contributions from leading experts in the field of forensic science.

• 2018 PROSE Awards - Winner, Award for Textbook/Social Services: Association of American Publishers
• Offers training for prosecuting attorneys on the present state of the forensic sciences in order to avoid reliance on legal precedent that lags decades behind the science
• Provides defense attorneys the knowledge to defend their clients against flawed science
• Arms innocence projects and appellate attorneys with the latest information to challenge convictions that were obtained using faulty science
• Uses science-specific case studies to simplify issues in forensic science for the legal professional
• Offers a detailed overview of both the failures and progress made in the forensic sciences, making the volume ideal for law school courses covering wrongful convictions, or for undergraduate courses on law, legal ethics, or forensics

Wendy J. Koen is currently in private practice in Southern California. Formerly with the California Innocence Project, Ms. Koen has been part of litigation teams that successfully represented many clients in wrongful conviction cases, including the successful exoneration of Timothy Atkins, Daniel Larsen, and William Richards. In addition, Attorney Koen’s work was instrumental in changes to California’s law concerning false expert evidence, and the inception of California Penal Code Section 1473 (e)(1), giving those convicted by faulty science a clear avenue for relief.

C. Michael Bowers is an Associate Clinical Professor at the Herman Ostrow School of Dentistry at the University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA. He is also the Deputy Medical Examiner in Ventura, California. Dr. Bowers is a practicing forensic dentist and consultant who has testified and worked on hundreds of cases where dental evidence has been involved. He is a former Diplomate of the American Board of Forensic Odontology, a Senior Crime Scene Analyst for the International Association for Identification (IAI) and has written other articles, chapters and books on forensic dentistry. He owns and operates his own dental practice in Ventura, CA.