Judging Forensics: A Conversation with Federal Judges on Forensic Evidence, Judicial Gatekeeping, and Rule 702

In its opening issue of Volume 73 (2023), Duke Law Journal published "Fact Stripping," written by Duke Law's own professors, Joseph Blocher and Brandon L. Garrett. In this interview, Judge Paul W. Grimm (ret.) of the Bolch Judicial Institute at Duke Law asks the authors about the concept of fact stripping and a current trend of appellate courts assuming fact-finding power over trial courts. The authors suggest Congress may want to reallocate factfinding power to trial courts through legislation.

Join our distinguished panel of experts for a discussion celebrating the 100th anniversary of The American Law Institute. ALI's mission is to clarify, modernize, and improve the law via scholarly publications and projects. Featuring: David F. Levi (Dean Emeritus, Duke Law) ALI President, Andrew Gold (Professor, Brooklyn Law; Duke JD'98) co-editor of The American Law Institute: A Centennial History, Deborah A. DeMott (Professor, Duke Law) Reporter, Restatement (Third) of Agency, Brandon L. Garrett (Professor, Duke Law) Associate Reporter, Principles of the Law, Policing.

In the past year, movements to address deep racial inequities embedded in the criminal system gained greater prominence and popular support. At the forefront of these movements are leaders in North Carolina fighting the cash bail system that incarcerates people based on poverty, the racially disparate disenfranchisement of individuals for unpaid fines and fees, and the dangerous conditions facing largely black and brown people in local jails.

A celebration of the renaming of the Center for Science and Justice at Duke Law to honor a generous donation from alumnus and philanthropist Derek Wilson. Duke Law Dean Kerry Abrams introduces the event; Center Executive Director Thomas Maher speaks and Center Director Brandon Garrett moderates. The event features a keynote roundtable with renowned ProPublica and New York Times Magazine journalist Pamela Colloff, Texas parolee Joe Bryan and Duke Law rising 3L Sarah Champion, who worked on an amicus brief in Bryan's case.

A discussion and Q&A with thought leaders on the merits, issues, and trade-offs of defunding-to-reallocate budget initiatives.

Appearing: Brandon Garrett (Duke Law), moderator; James Burch (Anti Police-Terror Project), Darrell Miller (Duke Law), and Christy Lopez (Georgetown Law), panelists.

Kerry Abrams, James B. Duke and Benjamin N. Duke Dean of the School of Law, hosts a conversation with Duke Law faculty members on the current state of policing throughout the United States, with an emphasis on how policies and biases impact communities of color. Panelists discuss the history of policing in the United States; address how political movements have been used to demand reform and how the current moment compares to earlier protests; the role of the law and the legal profession in maintaining the status quo; and how the law can be used to enact reforms.

A panel discussion, launching Duke CSJ’s new report and website on fines and fees in criminal cases, with the NC ACLU’s Kristie Puckett-Williams, Cristina Becker, NC Justice Center’s Daniel Bowes, and Forward Justice’s Whitley Carpenter, Fines and Fees Justice Center’s Joanna Weiss, and Duke CSJ Director Brandon Garrett, Executive Director Tom Maher, and Research Director Will Crozier.

To visit the new site: https://datalab.law.duke.edu/shiny/nccrimfines/

A panel discussion of Alexandra Natapoff's book, "Punishment Without Crime: How Our Massive Misdemeanor System Traps the Innocent and Makes America More Unequal". The book describes the powerful influence that misdemeanors exert over the entire U.S. criminal system. It was selected by Publishers Weekly as a Best Book of 2018. Natapoff is a professor at UCI Law School and has previously served as an Assistant Federal Public Defender in Baltimore, Maryland.

Professor Rachel Barkow discusses her new book, Prisoners of Politics: Breaking the Cycle of Mass Incarceration. Rachel Elise Barkow is the Segal Family Professor of Regulatory Law and Policy and Faculty Director, Center on the Administration of Criminal Law at NYU. She was a Member of the United States Sentencing Commission from 2013 until January 2019. In her book, Barkow argues that reform guided by evidence, not politics and emotions, will reduce crime and reverse mass incarceration. Barkow argues for an institutional shift toward data and expertise.

Yusef Salaam and Raymond Santana, two members of the Exonerated Five, formerly known as the Central Park Five, tell their stories to a Duke Law audience. They are the subjects of the Netflix series "When They See Us," which focuses on the conviction and later exoneration of Mr. Salaam, Mr. Santana and three others in the infamous Central Park jogger case. Dean Kerry Abrams welcomes the panelists to Duke Law and Professor Brandon Garrett interviews Mr. Salaam and Mr. Santana about their experiences. A question and answer period follows.

Professor Brandon Garrett and Daniel Bowes of the North Carolina Justice Center lead a discussion of driver's license suspensions in North Carolina. Also speaking are individuals who have had their driver's license suspended about how the experience affected their lives.

Sponsored by the Duke Criminal Law Society.

What are the stakes when forensics go wrong? Keith Harward tells his story: he was exonerated by DNA testing, but spent 33 years in prison in Virginia for a murder he did not commit, based on multiple erroneous bite mark comparisons. Peter Neufeld, co-founder and co-director of the Innocence Project joins in the conversation. M. Chris Fabricant, who directs special litigation for the Innocence Project, moderates. Prof. Brandon Garrett introduces the panel.

Eyewitness testimony can be incredibly powerful in court. However, we now know that eyewitness memory is fragile and malleable. This panel, with leading scientists, lawyers, and judges, moderated by Professor Brandon Garrett, explores how eyewitness misidentifications can cause wrongful convictions. Panelists also discuss scientific research on improving the reliability of eyewitness identification, and how to address these questions in the courtroom. Panelists include: Judge Theodore McKee, U.S. Circuit Judge on the U.S.