A Trail of Misconduct and the Need for Reform

Posted: May 7, 2010 3:32 pm

A 1993 investigation into Zain's work was undertaken by the State and a special judge was appointed. The initial investigation looked at 36 cases, and an independent team of serologists ultimately concluded that Zain had fabricated or manipulated evidence to win convictions in every one of the cases reviewed.

A wider investigation would reveal the extent of Zain's massive fraud. The 1993 investigation found that Zain overstated the strength of his results, overstated and misreported the frequency of genetic matches on multiple pieces of evidence, reported inconclusive tests as conclusive, failed to report conflicting results, reported scientifically impossible or improbable At least 182 cases bore the mark of Zain’s misconduct, and the special judge granted West Virginia prisoners the opportunity to seek habeas relief if Zain's misconduct played a role in their convictions.

Zain died of cancer in 2002 at the age of 52 while awaiting retrial on charges of obtaining money from the State of West Virginia under false pretenses. He was also charged with perjury in Texas, but the case was dismissed because of statute of limitations issues. Though he may have escaped conviction, his misconduct has informed all levels of the criminal justice system about the necessity for national forensic standards that exclude improper and unvalidated forensic science. Read more about the Innocence Project’s call for federal forensic oversight here.

Other Exoneree Anniversaries This Week:

Clark McMillan, Tennessee (Served 22 Years, Exonerated 5/2/02)

Danny Brown, Ohio (Served 18.5 Years, Exonerated 5/3/01)

Jeffrey Pierce, Oklahoma (Served 14.5 Years, Exonerated 5/7/01)