Ep 160: Junk Science on Trial- The Cameron Todd Willingham Case

Fingerprints, DNA, ballistics, blood spatter, fire investigation: these disciplines have helped solve countless cases; but what happens when these trusted sources of evidence are flawed themselves?

This week, we're beginning that journey with one of the most controversial cases in modern American criminal justice. After a devastating house fire claimed the lives of three young girls in Corsicana, Texas, investigators believed the evidence told a clear story. Decades later, that same evidence would become the center of an ongoing debate that continues to challenge experts, attorneys, and investigators alike. Cheers!

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Sources: https://innocenceproject.org/news/cameron-todd-willingham-wrongfully-convicted-and-executed-in-texas/

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cameron_Todd_Willingham

https://www.texastribune.org/2011/04/14/cameron-todd-willingham-a-timeline/

https://tcadp.org/wp-content/uploads/2012/05/Cameron-Todd-Willingham-fact-sheet-2014.pdf

https://tcadp.org/get-informed/wrongful-execution/resource-archive-for-the-case-of-cameron-todd-willingham/

https://www.ojp.gov/ncjrs/virtual-library/abstracts/rising-ashes-what-we-have-learned-cameron-todd-willingham-case

https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2009/09/07/trial-by-fire

Documentary: Incendiary: The Willingham Case (2011) 

Trial by Fire (2019)