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Re: Judge finds forensic scientist Henry Lee liable for fabricating evidence in a murder case
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zero degrees
Jul 23, 2023, 10:24:53 PM7/23/23
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On 25 Jan 2022, The Starmaker <star...@ix.netcom.com> posted some
news:ssq3u7$lva6$1...@news.freedyn.de:
> He's a Biden voter so it figures.
Famed forensic scientist Henry Lee was found liable for fabricating
evidence in a murder case that sent two Connecticut men to prison for
decades for a crime they did not commit, a federal judge ruled Friday.
Ralph “Ricky” Birch and Shawn Henning were convicted in the Dec. 1, 1985,
slaying of Everett Carr, based in part on testimony about what Lee said
were bloodstains on a towel found in the 65-year-old's home in New
Milford, 55 miles (88.5 kilometers) southwest of Hartford.
A judge vacated the felony murder convictions in 2020, and the men filed a
federal wrongful conviction lawsuit naming Lee, eight police investigators
and the town of New Milford.
The ruling Friday sends the case against the police and the town to trial.
In granting a motion for summary judgement against Lee, the only
outstanding issue for a jury in his case will be the amount of damages.
Lee, the former head of the state’s forensic laboratory and now a
professor emeritus at the University of New Haven’s Henry C. Lee College
of Criminal Justice and Forensic Sciences, did not immediately respond to
an email seeking comment.
Lee, 84, rocketed to fame after his testimony in the 1995 O.J. Simpson
murder trial, in which he questioned the handling of blood evidence. He
also served as a consultant in other high-profile investigations,
including the 1996 slaying of 6-year-old JonBenet Ramsey in Colorado; the
2004 murder trial of Scott Peterson, who was accused of killing his
pregnant wife Laci; and the 2007 murder trial of record producer Phil
Spector.
When Birch and Henning were put on trial in 1989, jurors heard about an
extremely bloody crime scene. Carr had been stabbed 27 times, had his
throat cut and suffered seven blows to the head.
No forensic evidence existed linking Birch and Henning to the crime. No
blood was found on their clothes or in their car. The crime scene included
hairs and more than 40 fingerprints, but none matched the two men.
Prosecutors presented evidence from Lee — not yet famous — that it was
possible for the assailants to avoid getting much blood on them.
Lee also testified that a towel, which later was suggested could have been
touched by the killers while cleaning up, was found in a bathroom near the
crime the scene with stains that he tested and were consistent with blood.
Tests done after the trial, when the men were appealing their convictions,
showed the substance was not blood.
In his ruling Friday, which was first reported by The Hartford Courant,
U.S. District Judge Victor Bolden ruled that Lee presented no evidence to
back up his testimony.
“Other than stating that he performed the test, however, the record
contains no evidence that any such test was performed,” the judge wrote.
“In fact, as plaintiffs noted, Dr. Lee’s own experts concluded that there
is no ‘written documentation or photographic’ evidence that Dr. Lee
performed the TMB blood test. And there is evidence in this record that
the tests actually conducted did not indicate the presence of blood.”
The judge also ruled that Lee failed to properly use an immunity defense
that could have shielded him from damages and was no longer eligible to
use that argument.
Elizabeth Benton, a spokesperson for Connecticut Attorney General William
Tong, whose office defended Lee and the police detectives in the case,
said it was reviewing the decision and evaluating the next steps.
Birch served more than 30 years of a 55-year sentence for felony murder
before being released in 2019 after a judge ordered a new trial. Henning,
who was 17 when the crime occurred, was granted probation in 2018.
After their convictions were vacated in 2020, Lee defended his conduct in
the investigation.
“In my 57-year career, I have investigated over 8,000 cases and never,
ever was accused of any wrongdoing or for testifying intentionally wrong,”
Lee told a throng of reporters. “This is the first case that I have to
defend myself.”
Lee's work in several other cases has come under scrutiny, including in
the murder case against Spector, in which he was accused of taking
evidence from the crime scene.
https://news.yahoo.com/judge-finds-forensic-scientist-henry-231104555.html
news:ssq3u7$lva6$1...@news.freedyn.de:
> He's a Biden voter so it figures.
Famed forensic scientist Henry Lee was found liable for fabricating
evidence in a murder case that sent two Connecticut men to prison for
decades for a crime they did not commit, a federal judge ruled Friday.
Ralph “Ricky” Birch and Shawn Henning were convicted in the Dec. 1, 1985,
slaying of Everett Carr, based in part on testimony about what Lee said
were bloodstains on a towel found in the 65-year-old's home in New
Milford, 55 miles (88.5 kilometers) southwest of Hartford.
A judge vacated the felony murder convictions in 2020, and the men filed a
federal wrongful conviction lawsuit naming Lee, eight police investigators
and the town of New Milford.
The ruling Friday sends the case against the police and the town to trial.
In granting a motion for summary judgement against Lee, the only
outstanding issue for a jury in his case will be the amount of damages.
Lee, the former head of the state’s forensic laboratory and now a
professor emeritus at the University of New Haven’s Henry C. Lee College
of Criminal Justice and Forensic Sciences, did not immediately respond to
an email seeking comment.
Lee, 84, rocketed to fame after his testimony in the 1995 O.J. Simpson
murder trial, in which he questioned the handling of blood evidence. He
also served as a consultant in other high-profile investigations,
including the 1996 slaying of 6-year-old JonBenet Ramsey in Colorado; the
2004 murder trial of Scott Peterson, who was accused of killing his
pregnant wife Laci; and the 2007 murder trial of record producer Phil
Spector.
When Birch and Henning were put on trial in 1989, jurors heard about an
extremely bloody crime scene. Carr had been stabbed 27 times, had his
throat cut and suffered seven blows to the head.
No forensic evidence existed linking Birch and Henning to the crime. No
blood was found on their clothes or in their car. The crime scene included
hairs and more than 40 fingerprints, but none matched the two men.
Prosecutors presented evidence from Lee — not yet famous — that it was
possible for the assailants to avoid getting much blood on them.
Lee also testified that a towel, which later was suggested could have been
touched by the killers while cleaning up, was found in a bathroom near the
crime the scene with stains that he tested and were consistent with blood.
Tests done after the trial, when the men were appealing their convictions,
showed the substance was not blood.
In his ruling Friday, which was first reported by The Hartford Courant,
U.S. District Judge Victor Bolden ruled that Lee presented no evidence to
back up his testimony.
“Other than stating that he performed the test, however, the record
contains no evidence that any such test was performed,” the judge wrote.
“In fact, as plaintiffs noted, Dr. Lee’s own experts concluded that there
is no ‘written documentation or photographic’ evidence that Dr. Lee
performed the TMB blood test. And there is evidence in this record that
the tests actually conducted did not indicate the presence of blood.”
The judge also ruled that Lee failed to properly use an immunity defense
that could have shielded him from damages and was no longer eligible to
use that argument.
Elizabeth Benton, a spokesperson for Connecticut Attorney General William
Tong, whose office defended Lee and the police detectives in the case,
said it was reviewing the decision and evaluating the next steps.
Birch served more than 30 years of a 55-year sentence for felony murder
before being released in 2019 after a judge ordered a new trial. Henning,
who was 17 when the crime occurred, was granted probation in 2018.
After their convictions were vacated in 2020, Lee defended his conduct in
the investigation.
“In my 57-year career, I have investigated over 8,000 cases and never,
ever was accused of any wrongdoing or for testifying intentionally wrong,”
Lee told a throng of reporters. “This is the first case that I have to
defend myself.”
Lee's work in several other cases has come under scrutiny, including in
the murder case against Spector, in which he was accused of taking
evidence from the crime scene.
https://news.yahoo.com/judge-finds-forensic-scientist-henry-231104555.html
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