| Top experts
and scholars from across the nation will gather
to explore the sweeping impact of forensic scientific
advances on criminal justice reform at the sixth
annual Forensic Science and Law Conference, Justice
for All, to be held at Duquesne University
April 20-22.
Sponsored by The Cyril H. Wecht Institute of
Forensic Science and Law, the Duquesne University
School of Law and The Justice Project, this year’s
conference theme was chosen in response to the
historic Justice for All Act of 2004. The landmark
legislation enhances protections for federal crime
victims, increases federal resources available
to state and local governments to combat crimes
with DNA technology, and provides safeguards to
prevent wrongful convictions and executions.
“The waves of exonerations in this country
based on forensic scientific advances have dramatically
altered the climate for criminal justice reform
in this country and made paramount the need for
reforms to both harness the growing potential
and address the limitations of forensic science
in meting out justice for all,” says John
T. Rago, executive director of the Wecht Institute
and assistant professor of law at Duquesne University.
“This conference presents a unique opportunity
to explore the causes of and solutions to wrongful
convictions,” says John Terzano, president
of The Justice Project and a presenter at the
conference. “The program will provide meaningful
discussion including concrete ways to ensure that
the American criminal justice system operates
fairly and accurately.”
Among the topics to be addressed:
- The Past, Present and Future of DNA Testing
in the Advancement of Criminal Justice
- Why Criminal Justice Reform Matters:
The Reality of Wrongful Convictions
- Standards of Scientific Proof in Capital
Cases
- The CSI Effect and the Psychology of
Juries
- Police Lineup Procedures and Improving
the Reliability of Eyewitness Identification
- Snitch Testimony: The Power of Uncorroborated
Evidence
View the complete
conference agenda.
Conference faculty includes:
The
Honorable William S. Sessions: former FBI
director, and former U.S. Attorney and U.S. District
Judge for Western Texas
The
Honorable Michael J. Sullivan: U.S. Attorney
for the District of Massachusetts and member of
the Governor’s Council on Capital Punishment
The
Honorable Arlen Specter: chairman of the U.S.
Senate Judiciary Committee and co-sponsor of the
Justice for All Act
Dr.
Henry C. Lee: internationally acclaimed forensic
scientist and star of the Court TV show Trace
Evidence: The Case Files of Dr. Henry Lee
Kirk
N. Bloodsworth: former prisoner whose capital
conviction was the first in the United States
to be overturned by DNA evidence
Thomas Doswell: former prisoner who, after serving
19 years, became Allegheny County’s first
inmate to be exonerated by DNA evidence.
View the complete list of Justice
for All faculty and bios.
Co-sponsors include the American Bar Association
Section of Criminal Justice, the American Bar
Association Section of Science and Technology
Law, the Allegheny County Office of the Medical
Examiner and the Pittsburgh Institute of Legal
Medicine.
Justice for All is open to the public.
Continuing education credits are available for
attorneys, teachers and others. For more information
or to register, call 412.396.1330, e-mail justiceforall@duq.edu
or register
online. To set up media interviews, call Rose
Ravasio in the Public Affairs office at 412.396.6051/cell
412.818.0234. |
