Science Thursday: Questioning Science in the Courtroom

Shaken Baby Syndrome continues to be debated in court, a Florida court admits an immature forensic science called “root banding” in the Casey Anthony  case, and forensic microbiology reveals new information in the rash of food-related injuries and deaths in Europe.  Here’s a roundup of forensics news from this week:

Medical experts will debate

the validity of the shaken-baby diagnosis

that is central to the murder case against an Ohio woman.

An Ontario woman wrongfully convicted of the death of her child based on testimony by disgraced forensic pathologist, Charles Smith, now

seeks to find her children

who were put up for adoption 14 years ago.

Australian scientists

developed a method to target amino acids left by fingers

to develop fingerprints that cannot be revealed by traditional methods.

Degraded chemicals left by the shuttered Detroit Police Crime Laboratory

now require a hazardous materials level of cleanup

.

Blood test records in lead poisoning cases under litigation

were destroyed by top officials

at the Maryland State Department of Health Laboratory.