Tricia Rojo Bushnell

What does Real Housewife Jen Shah's early release from prison have to do with criminal legal reform? QC Executive Director @tcita.bsky.social dives into the data showing that participation in prison education programs contributes to reduction in recidivism. #rhoslc

Fun fact: A new meta-analysis of studies of innocence cases shows innocent clients are twice as likely to waive their Miranda rights.

Interviewing also requires that a witness overcome social norms of generally not giving lots of details. "No one wants to hear about what you had for breakfast for an hour." But in interviewing, that is the level of detail we do want.

"In interviewing, there is always the issue of a witness communication. Just because they remember something doesn't mean they know how to describe it with words." - Ron Fisher

One explanation for why some law enforcement officers are so resistant to the idea that customary techniques can and do produce false confessions - if we want to learn from our mistakes, we need immediate feedback. But feedback for officers in these cases comes yrs down the line (if it comes at all)

It's important to look for actual SBI trainings. Hybrid trainings may feel more comfortable because they're familiar, but they are not in fact teaching true SBI techniques. None of us have ever grown from being comfortable and if we care about having an accurate and reliable system, we must grow.

While many places advertise themselves as teaching Science-Based Interviewing (SBI), many places are teaching a blend of customary and science-based interviewing. That blend is not SBI and it can be difficult to tell them apart.

As the number of exonerations increase, the importance of applying science-based practices becomes clear. While customary practices were developed that produced confessions, they also produced false confessions. The idea that they produce results is no longer enough - they must be accurate results.

Today, we will learn what science has to say about the investigative interviewing techniques currently in use and what can and should be done to improve accuracy in investigations. I'll be posting important insights here for anyone following along.

Delighted to welcome our law enforcement and investigator colleagues who care as deeply about improving accuracy and reducing errors as we do an investigative interviewing training presented by EVOCAVI and hosted by the @quattronecenter.org.

Court Denies Glenn Funk's Motion to Dismiss in First Amendment Lawsuit A federal court has denied Nashville DA Glenn Funk’s motion to dismiss a First Amendment lawsuit alleging he retaliated against a prosecutor for her jury service. Learn more about the ruling.

In other criminal legal system news, a federal court rejected a motion to dismiss a Nashville ADA's employment lawsuit, which alleges she was demoted and essentially forced to resign by the elected DA she served on a local jury and voted to acquit. www.drslawfirm.com/court-denies...

Justice should be informed by data, and in this case, the data shows Missourians want fairness for Mr. Shockley, not finality above all else.

Their reasons? Doubts about the evidence used to convict Mr. Shockley, concern about judicial overreach in the imposition of the death sentence by a judge when a jury could not agree, and the strong evidence of Mr. Shockley's rehabilitation in prison.

This support holds true across all political parties: 53% of Republicans, 67% of Independents, and 79% of Democrats all support clemency for Mr. Shockley.

Mr. Shockley's death sentenced was imposed by a judge after the jury couldn't agree on punishment.

When public officials claim to act on behalf of the people, they should start by listening to them.

65% of MO voters believe Gov. Kehoe should grant clemency to Lance Shockley, who is scheduled to be executed on Oct. 14th.

The Jeff-alytics Podcast Is Coming! Episode 0 is here! Episode 1 drops next Wednesday!

With crime data at the center of a great deal of political debate, it's essential that we get it right and separate the signal from the noise. We're excited to listen to this new podcast from nationally renowned data (and friend of QC) @jeffasher.bsky.social:

Wyandotte County deputy charged with murder of inmate killed by controversial restraint A coroner's report found that 50-year-old Charles Adair died by mechanical asphyxia at the Wyandotte County Detention Center after a deputy kneeled on his back and restrained him. A similar tactic caused the death of George Floyd in Minneapolis.

BREAKING: The Wyandotte County District Attorney announced Thursday that it is charging Wyandotte County deputy sheriff Richard Fatherley in the July death of Charles Adair, a 50-year-old father of three.

Can pets transfer human DNA? Could these transfers lead to false implications, or help to identify suspects? A new paper in Science & Justice suggests the answer is YES. Our dog-loving Executive Director @tcita.bsky.social takes a look.

#NationalForensicScienceWeek

Do you have a question or comment for Tricia? You can ask it here: mailchi.mp/law.upenn.ed...

Robert Roberson, a white man, sitting down in prison looking through plexiglass.

In an open letter released today at a virtual press conference sponsored by the CIFS, a group of 20 exonerees call on TX authorities to do everything in their power to prevent the wrongful execution of Robert Roberson, an innocent man who faces execution in TX on Oct 16.
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Mr. House's case opened the door one more small crack wider for those who came behind him. But as this article explains, that door is slowly being pushed closed.

This piece from @radleybalko.bsky.social puts it in stark relief. It also highlights the importance of why we must keep doing the work to push forward.

Paul House has died -- a wrongly convicted man whom John Roberts gave the okay to execute House was finally freed in 2008. But under today's court, he'd likely still be on death row -- or worse.

As a practitioner, I have cited to Mr. Bell's case - House v. Bell - often. But like with so many other defendants, Mr. House's humanity and the full tragedy of what he was forced to endure -- both during and after incarceration -- is never a part of the caselaw.

Indeed, while defendants missed their court dates in only 19% of cases, police officers failed to appear in 31% of cases for which they were subpoenaed.

The study, which analyzed data from the Philadelphia Courts between 2010 and 2020, showed that over that time frame, an essential police officer, civilian witness, or lawyer failed to appear for at least one hearing in 53% of all cases.

Systemic Failure to Appear in Court - Penn Law Review This Penn Law Review print article aims to reorient the conversation around “failure-to-appear” (FTA) in criminal court.

But a @quattronecenter.org study shows that failures to appear are a systemic problem and that despite all the discussion around it - most of those who fail to appear for a court case are not defendants. pennlawreview.com/2024/02/09/s...

Also, it bears noting that the purpose of cash bail is to ensure that a defendant shows up for trial, and the debate about cash bail underscores how much attention we place on a *defendant's* presence.

Quattrone Center Academic Director Paul Heaton spoke with @wtopnews.bsky.social about the issue — listen starting at 14:57: wtop.com/wp-content/u...

And studies have shown that removing cash bail for non-violent offenses leads to safer cities and towns that spend less on jails. Our own @quattronecenter.org study of Harris County, TX (Houston) showed it led to reduced crime rates and reduced incarceration: www.law.upenn.edu/institutes/q...