The Lawyer Monthly Expert Witness Awards 2021

The privilege of being permitted to act as an Independent Expert within the UK Court system, and abroad, for a period of 34 years, has provided me with the opportunity to observe first-hand the application of forensic evidence by the Courts to the concept of the jury trial. In this article I have summarised some views regarding ways in which this process might possibly be improved and enhanced when inevitably performed by individuals attempting to make the right decisions, always under pressure of limited time and resources, and in sometimes seemingly impossible circumstances. These observations are inevitably limited in scope to my areas of expertise and experience, but it is hoped that the findings might possibly have some more general degree of application. The content implies no criticism of past experiences, but instead accepts and acknowledges that the application of forensic scientific evidence is still an almost embryonic, emerging, and rapidly developing area of endeavour; and that is evolving, with each new technological breakthrough, into a more mature and comprehensive discipline, in what is incontrovertibly the most complex application of science to real world matters in all their complexity and uncertainty. Thus, in 2021, forensic science continues to develop across the world with ever faster revolutionary advances in analytical techniques and information technology which permit, by sheer power of the timely provision of more complete information, ever more certain analysis of the complex real-world events that lead up to incidents requiring forensic involvement to resolve issues of guilt or innocence. A classic example of this has just occurred in the field of alcohol intoxication, and where the most recent research (November 2020) has helped define, with greater possible accuracy and reliability, the forward and back calculation of blood alcohol levels in defendants. Such advances in the peer reviewed scientific literature now appear with such rapidity that it is necessary for the forensic expert to regularly inspect the literature up until the day of the consideration of the scientific evidence in Court in order to be certain that nothing of possible significance has been overlooked (e.g. as in a recent firearms residue case where the very latest literature revealed the unexpected presence of tin in modern commercial shotgun residue). Such advances have now resulted in the situation that, in those cases where the potential for significant doubt exists, it is becoming possible to effectively and routinely combine both the forensic scientific and also the circumstantial evidence, under the close and rigid direction of counsels, in order to provide ever more powerful and discriminatory methods of resolving case details. This has reached the extent that in some such cases, even those developing as this article is being written, a clear divide has appeared between the interpretations of the scientific evidence alone, and that achieved with the assistance of the circumstantial evidence. Such an improvement in reliability of case outcome arises when the forensic scientist has prompt and immediate access to the entire case file details. Previously, such access was limited to the lay barristers; however, the scientific experience of the forensic expert can permit the recognition of evidence that is seemingly insignificant from the view of the layperson and which, when not overlooked, often has the potential to be highly important to elucidation of the true circumstances of a case. By this approach, a range of evidence and possibility that requires consideration (sometimeswith thehelpof experts inother specialisms) has the potential to become LAWYER MONTHLY EXPERT WITNESS AWARDS 2021 UNITED KINGDOM - 19 - www.lawyer-monthly.com “ Forensic science continues to develop across the world with ever faster revolutionary advances in analytical techniques and information technology. Dr Douse is a forensic expert witness of 34 years experience working both within the UK and internationally. His organisation, OGT Forensic Ltd, offers a range of services involving thorough and exhaustive investigation of the forensic scientific, and also circumstantial evidence, and preparation of reports in cases involving Criminal (e.g. Liquid Explosive Bomb Plot, London Glasgow Bombings, Wood Green Ricin Factory, Leeds Insulin Serial Killings), and Commercial Law (e.g. Insurance and Salvage Claims such as HSE v Roxel, the salvage of the Hazardous Material Carrier Casualty MS Bow Diamond, the explosion of a WWII bomb in Europe, and poisonings by Arsenic, Thallium and Hydrogen Sulphide). The recipient of many degrees and accreditations, Dr Douse specialises in providing expert insight in the fields of Drugs Toxicology and Toxins, Explosives Incendiaries and Fireworks, the forensic significance of DNA and Firearms Residue traces, and all aspects of Forensic Chemistry. He is also a Fellow of the Royal Society of Chemistry, the UK Chartered Society of Forensic Scientists, the Chromatographic Society, and is also a member of The International Association of Forensic Toxicologists, the Expert Witness Institute, and the Institute of Explosives Engineers. Below, Dr Douse discusses how the UK Courts can make the best use of expert witnesses’ capabilities, and the pressing need for wider legal aid coverage.