The department came under fire after the Travis County District Attorney's office raised concerns over the disclosure of information in criminal cases.
The Travis County DA's Office said in August that the department was not fulfilling its duty to surrender key information in ongoing criminal cases.In the memo, the Travis County District Attorney's Office said that the Austin Forensics Science Department had not fulfilled its legal duty to surrender key information in ongoing criminal cases.
The interest in the local criminal justice system remains high after the aftermath of what happened in 2016 when issues led to the overturning of two convictions and the still ongoing litigation of several others.US Supreme Court tells Texas to reconsider executing man convicted with faulty DNA evidenceIn this new letter, the forensics department director said officials will update policies created in 2020 about when and how to release case information to prosecutors as required by law.
Kadavy also wrote that the department staff will receive training as soon as it's available from the DA's office about case disclosures to prosecutors. But Kadavy rejected claims from the DA's office in a previous letter that it had waited 10 months to inform them about allegations involving lab management and staff.
"The Forensic Science Department values its relationship with the Travis County District Attorney's Office and is committed to continuing its efforts to facilitate effective collaboration between our respective offices," Kadavy wrote. The forensics department was previously overseen by the Austin Police Department, but that changed several years ago, leaving it as a standalone department.
United States Latest News, United States Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
Claire Maldarelli Archiveswas the Science Editor at Popular Science. She has a particular interest in brain science, the microbiome, and human physiology. In addition to Popular Science, her work has appeared in The New York Times, Scientific American, and Scholastic’s Science World and Super Science magazines, among others. She has a bachelor’s degree in neurobiology from the University of California, Davis and a master’s in science journalism from New York University's Science, Health, and Environmental Reporting Program.
Read more »
Louisiana officials say efforts to combat saltwater intrusion will help delay drinking water impactsDenise Chow is a reporter for NBC News Science focused on general science and climate change.
Read more »
'Remarkably symmetrical' star explosions could reveal the true expansion rate of the universeRobert Lea is a science journalist in the U.K. who specializes in science, space, physics, astronomy, astrophysics, cosmology, quantum mechanics and technology. Rob's articles have been published in Physics World, New Scientist, Astronomy Magazine, All About Space and ZME Science. He also writes about science communication for Elsevier and the European Journal of Physics. Rob holds a bachelor of science degree in physics and astronomy from the U.K.’s Open University\n
Read more »
Highest-energy pulsar ever seen could indicate new physicsRobert Lea is a science journalist in the U.K. who specializes in science, space, physics, astronomy, astrophysics, cosmology, quantum mechanics and technology. Rob's articles have been published in Physics World, New Scientist, Astronomy Magazine, All About Space and ZME Science. He also writes about science communication for Elsevier and the European Journal of Physics. Rob holds a bachelor of science degree in physics and astronomy from the U.K.’s Open University\n
Read more »
Man found dead in South Austin park, marking city's 50th homicide of the yearA man was found dead in car at a south Austin park overnight, according to police.The Austin Police Department responded to the South Austin Neighborhood Park,
Read more »
Debate settled? Oldest human footprints in North America really are 23,000 years old, study findsLaura is the archaeology and Life's Little Mysteries editor at Live Science. She also reports on general science, including paleontology. Her work has appeared in The New York Times, Scholastic, Popular Science and Spectrum, a site on autism research. She has won multiple awards from the Society of Professional Journalists and the Washington Newspaper Publishers Association for her reporting at a weekly newspaper near Seattle. Laura holds a bachelor's degree in English literature and psychology from Washington University in St. Louis and a master's degree in science writing from NYU.
Read more »