Man beats murder rap because DNA expert illegally testified via Skype | The Compost Bin | Forums

prosecutor should have thought that one through just a bit more

There's this pesky thing called the US Constitution, and sometimes there's a price to be paid when it's subverted.

That's what is happening in New Mexico, where a convicted murderer serving a life term won a new trial because a DNA prosecution expert in the prosecution's case testified via Skype, denying the defendant Truett Thomas' Sixth Amendment rights to confront witnesses in court, according to the New Mexico Supreme Court.

The case against Thomas began in 2010 when Albuquerque police discovered Guadalupe Ashford's body behind a trash can in a small parking lot. The woman was assaulted and sustained significant head injuries, "including lacerations, skull fractures and a dislodged tooth." Police found blood on the scene that didn't match the woman's and ran it through the Combined DNA Index System (CODIS) database, which matched the defendant. The defendant denied he knew the woman.

More than two years after his arrest, he went to trial. But the state's forensic analyst who had originally tested the blood found at the crime scene had moved away from New Mexico. The defense attorney initially said there was no "problem" with two-way Skyping of the expert at trial but then altered course as the trial approached. Prosecutors did not subpoena the expert to appear based on defense counsel's initial statement that Skype would "work," and the judge allowed it to happen.

A local jury subsequently convicted the defendant of murder and kidnapping. The New Mexico Supreme Court tossed the kidnapping charges, saying the evidence didn't support the charge. The state's top court reversed the murder conviction because of the Skype testimony and ordered a new trial.

more http://arstechnica.c.....via-skype/