Fabulous Confabulation

My co-contributor and I just got back from the "All Star Western Conference and Confabulation" put on by Federal Defender Services of Idaho in Boise this weekend. The conference featured speakers on topics including false confessions, eyewitness identification, technology in the courtroom, and a capital update. In short, it gave us plenty of information to share to assist investigators in making the most of the knowledge and resources out there. As a good conference always is, we came back refreshed, renewed and re-inspired.

Look for a series of postings over the next couple of weeks on eyewitness identification, false confessions, and one of our favorite topics, technology for investigators as well as Guantanamo updates, immigration developments, and other things important to federal criminal defense investigation.

DNA Training

Reading Public Defender Dude, I came across a great post on DNA and an upcoming DNA Seminar. Put on by Forensic Bioinformatics, the seminar is entitled, "The Science of DNA Profiling" and is in Daytona, Florida from August 15-17, 2008. The seminar is designed for attorneys and experts familiar with DNA profiling to exchange information and insights. For those new to DNA, it will be an opportunity to learn what issues may be important in litigating a federal case and what experts and resources are best suited to particular cases. The seminar will cover key subjects in forensic DNA including evidence collection, laboratory procedures, transfer, identification, technical artifacts and error, juror comprehension, expert witness selection and due diligence.

The seminar looks to be geared to the DNA novice and expert alike, and it looks like there is plenty of interesting information for attorneys and investigators.