In February of 1982 in a Fulton County Georgia court room, fiber evidence came to be the main source that linked Wayne Williams to murder victims, which led to a verdict of guilty during a trial that lasted eight weeks (Saferstein, 2011). The evidence presented in court proved that Williams murdered Jimmy Payne and Nathaniel Cater in April and May of 1981 (Saferstein, 2011). It was also proven in court by way of fiber evidence that Williams was responsible for ten other murdered victims. The time frame of these murders occurred during 1979 through 1981 (Saferstein, 2011). This murder case involved very extensive research on fiber remains which was the strongest evidence source in resolving this horrible crime.
Wayne Williams’ case was heartbreaking but it was an interesting case that could have had more justice for all the victims and their families. The judge should have thrown in all of the other murders in
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this case because evidence made it obvious that Williams killed everyone in the Atlanta Child Murders. The number one critical issue to point out is the fact that all the murders stop after Williams was arrested. With this being the case, along with the DNA evidence, it should have been enough to render a conviction in all the other murders. At the end of William’s case, it is noted that the murders stop after he was arrested (Biography.Com) The first thing the judge should have done was reopen the case because it was strange that a large number of murdering stopped in the surrounding areas after he was incarcerated. The second critical point is about the percentage of the DNA matches that the investigators found on the other victims.
Yes, it is documented that they could not open the case up because of the 2% that didn’t go along with the 98% match of his DNA. Due to convincing circumstantial and DNA evidence, Williams is thought to be responsible for the deaths of more than 20 others, yet the 2% doubt was enough to hinder further convictions in this case (Biography.Com). However, something should have happened because that was a huge chunk and a lot of children were killed. There should have been some type of line drawn to connect all the cases together due to the DNA testing found on the 20 victims. DNA has come a long way from where it uses to be. In the 80s, DNA technology was not where it is now. With the DNA hairs they found on the other victims, they should have did more digging into making sure the DNA equal out to 100% (Biography.Com). Even with today’s technology, the case could possibly be reopened to confirm the DNA is completely Wayne
Williams. Another critical point is when the officers pulled Williams over after he fled the scene where the officers heard the splashing. They should have immediately found out what the splash was and have an officer follow him until it was confirmed that it was a body. Waiting two days before the bridge was searched made all the difference in how long it took to solve this case. The officers were on a surveillance stake-out on the bridge, around 3am when the splash was heard and the pursuit of Williams took place (Biography.Com). Most people understand that there is protocol to follow when arresting someone but if an officer knows there had been bodies dumped in the river, they should have investigated it immediately. Williams dumping the body in the river at around the same time of the stake-out made it all the more suspicious for immediate action. Reference Biography.com Editors (2015). Wayne Williams Biography. Retrieve from: http://www.biography.com/people/wayne-williams-14424594#synopsis Saferstein, R. (2011). Criminalistics an Introduction to Forensic Science (10th ed.). Boston: Prentice Hall.
They found Casey Anthony, who was charged with first degree murder of her 3-year-old, not guilty. While she was not guilty of murder, she was convicted on counts four through seven for false information given to the police. The judge sentenced her to one year in county jail for each one of the four counts, but she was released 10 days after she received 1043 days credit. If I was part of the jury I would have said she was guilty of murdering her daughter. Even if she did not kill her, she is still part of the reason why she died. Casey neglected her child either way and did not report the crime to the police until someone else did. I am shocked that the visual evidence did not convince the jury that she was guilty. From the strand of hair in the trunk that matched the past child’s hair, to the extensive research on chloroform found on all web browsers, it was very evident that she did or was at least part of murdering her
In Cold Blood addresses a variety of issues including questions of whether a person's upbringing plays a role in criminal activity, and whether the death penalty is right or wrong. It also deals with issues such as prejudice and religion. I feel as if the disposition of the case was fair, but I also feel bad for them.
The fiber evidence was the major evidence that linked the findings to Mr. Wayne Williams. However, some testimony was involved but not disclosed. The fiber was sent out for thorough testing by the investigators to ensure the results were accurate and from an Independent source to rule out tampering or coercion. There were multiple law enforcement agencies working together on this case. It was the local police department, the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Georgia Department of Investigation. The team was patient and not trying to just solve the case quickly for the press. They ensured multiple tests were conducted for the carpet in the home, the hair from the family pet, Wayne’s hair and the carpet from multiple vehicles at the Williams
This illustrates the refusal of the rights of victims and the inevitable denial of justice for society. The coronial inquest that was conducted in 2011, corrected some of the initial issues with the investigation. Before the inquest, vital DNA evidence was disposed of, as a result of human error, which meant that the likely suspect could not be identified. As a result of human error the inquest provided some form of justice for society but due to how late it was conducted the family did not receive justice
... Till, Evers, King and Martin all seem to be cases of stereotyping and racial profiling. These cases make it seem as if justice was not served and that the wrong verdict was rendered initially. That is the same situation with the Zimmerman vs. Martin case. . Hopefully justice will prevail, in time, just as in the cases cited and George Zimmerman will be placed behind bars for a long time; the place where he belongs. If history repeats itself, a wrong verdict will be overturned.
The Casey Anthony trial has been arguably the most controversial case since the trial of O.J. Simpson and has been speculated over ever since the verdict had been given in July of 2011. It was decided by a jury of her peers that Anthony was not guilty of murder, for the death of her daughter Caylee. Many believe that Anthony should have been found guilty however, very little Americans actually comprehend the justice system.
On Thanksgiving evening, November 27, 1992, Sergeant Kenneth Mathison and his wife Yvonne drive their 1988 tan Ford van along Route 131 in Hilo, Hawaii. The rain is pouring down and before he knows it, Kenneth Mathison is awaiting police assistance as he cradles his wife’s dead body in the back of their van. Mathison, a sergeant of 25 years with the Hilo Police Department was allegedly informing his wife, a maternity nursing professional at the Hilo Medical Center, that he was being investigated in his second paternity suit. According to Mathison, when Yvonne heard the news, she jumped from the passenger side of the van. While he was looking for her in the blinding rain, Mathison purportedly ran over his wife. He then carried the body into the van and secured it with yellow rope in the back before attempting to find help. Will the forensic evidence support Mathison’s account of that fateful evening?
Racial discrimination has been an immense problem in our society for a very long time. The fact that the race of a victim plays a role in his or her sentencing is appalling. Discrimination within our society needs to come to an end. It’s frightening to think that if you are a minority facing a capital punishment case, which you might be found guilty only because of the color of your skin.
The Zimmerman case allowed me to be aware of something that was right in front of me. At a young age, my mother's significant other was arrested and imprisoned for "trafficking drugs". My mother had always maintained that he was initially arrested due to racial profiling, as there was no sufficient evidence to warrant the police to search his car. Despite this information being told to me as a child, I remained blind to the effects that such a system of injustice could have on your economic status, mental health, etc. However, I believe that the outcome of the Zimmerman trial opened my eyes to this effect. I believe that Trayvon Martin's family most likely received the same financial and emotional stresses due to the racial injustice associated with their experience. However, they had lost their son. Following the shooting of Trayvon Martin, I began to understand the effect that systemic racism could have on the lives of Black people, and how it had already been affecting
When the first responder got to the scene he adimatately meet the 911 caller, who lead him to a car in an apartment parking lot. The car doors were closed and all of the windows were fogged. The police officer used his flashlight to see inside of the car before opening the door. He found a young African American woman who had been shot several times. The officers quickly called for backup, investigators and medical personnel. While awaiting for their arrival he secured the crime scene with caution tape, creating an initial perimeter setup as discussed in lecture two. Once everyone arrived he left it to them to search the car while he talked to the 911 caller, witnesses and others who had information on who had been present in the car. The investigators were able to collect physical evidence of bullets and cartage casings that were found outside the vehicle and inside the vehicle on the floorboard of the driver’s side. The team determined the bullets came from a 40 caliber. Other types of physical evidence that were found on the scene were the bloody clothing on the victim, the victim’s cell phone and fibers in the car from the driver’s side. personnel at the scene crime took several photographs, powered test for finger prints and did a blood spatter analysis. Stewart’s autopsy revealed that she had been shot at close range in the left hand once and in the
After reading this story, I most certainly do believe that it is possible for crimes just as terrible as this one to occur without justice being found. There isn’t any way to guarantee that all crime scenes ever will be uncontaminated and sometimes the issues with the crime scene cane make the evidence there unable to be used, which will strongly hinder a case, just like in this case with Jonbenét Ramsey. I don’t think it is selling out the rights of the victim because as humans there is only so much that we are able to
The one good thing that I believe comes from this case is that it educated America on the mistakes being made by a law enforcement entity. The attitudes portrayed by these officers are terrible and, regretfully, most likely common. What it did was wake us up by showing us how biased criminal investigations can be and that bigotry has no place in the criminal justice system.
Racial discrimination in this time period was a very crucial issue. This case should have never happened. Why were these men murdered for fighting for what they believed in? The civil rights act of 1964 was a prime example of what should have been done before these men were murdered and all of these executions might have been prevented. To this day racial segregation, religion and other forms of discrimination still go on but something is being done about it. Innocent people are not being murdered because of three men who lost their lives due to discrimination. Even though these men are gone it is because of their death that people are still fighting for equality.
Forensic evidence can provide just outcomes in criminal matters. However, it is not yet an exact science as it can be flawed. It can be misrepresented through the reliability of the evidence, through nonstandard guidelines, and through public perception. Forensic science can be dangerously faulty without focus on the ‘science’ aspect. It can at times be just matching patterns based on an individual’s interpretations. This can lead to a miscarriage of justice and forever alter a person’s life due to a perceived “grey area” (Merritt C, 2010) resulting in a loss of confidence in the reliability of forensic evidence.
Andrus, R., Bailey, J., Sprague, T., Springer, F., Tulleners, F., Wiersema, S., et al. (n.d.). Crime Scene