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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Mark J. McLaughlin
(310) 277-0660 /
mjm@cf-intl.com
Digital Evidence Has
Become the New DNA in Criminal Cases, Says Expert
Los Angeles, CA (May
28, 2014) In 1911, it was fingerprints. In 1=
990,
it was DNA. “In 2014, its digital evidence that’s now playing a lead role at
determining the fate of criminal defendants”, says Mark J. McLaughlin of
Computer Forensics International.
The ability to place
someone at the scene of a crime is typically done by eyewitnesses, or throu=
gh
something unique they leave behind like fingerprints or DNA. And when a sol=
id
chain of custody is made, it rarely can be refuted. But while digital evide=
nce
from personal computers or mobile devices can place a defendant at the scen=
e, it
can also show they were actually miles away or didn’t commit the crime.
Three months ago th=
ere
was a home invasion robbery and kidnapping in Los Angeles. One of the victi=
ms
made a positive identification on the young defendant. The kid was arrested=
and
faced a list of serious charges that, if convicted, would have placed him
behind bars for over 25 years. But he always proclaimed his innocence and s=
aid
he was at school during the robbery.
However, school att=
endance
records were inconclusive. His family offered up a printed picture of their=
son
standing next to a friend on campus, and printouts of text messages as proo=
f he
was at school. The Court said that’s not good enough.
“We live in a Photo=
shopped
world where any original image can be easily made to look like something it=
’s
not. It was clear the original digital photograph needed to be recovered and
examined to establish a solid chain of custody,” says McLaughlin.
A Los Angeles Super=
ior
Court Judge appointed McLaughlin to authenticate that photograph and the
purported text messages. He examined 4 iPhones and recovered not one, but a
series of 8 photographs taken in rapid succession. The photograph’s hidden
metadata showed the creation time of the photographs and text messages were=
the
same time as the robbery 5 miles away. The case was dismissed.
What type of digital
evidence can be involved in a case? It always should begin at the source and
could involve; a mobile phone, personal computer, USB thumb drive or email =
account.
And then the target data recovered could be in the form of; specific date a=
nd
time stamps from relevant computer files, surveillance video, hidden metada=
ta,
Wi-Fi connections, GPS coordinates, unique IP addresses, or recoverable text
from a deleted document or email.
However, it’s up to= the defense attorney to recognize the possible involvement of digital evidence = and bring in a forensic expert. Unfortunately, that always doesn’t happen becau= se many attorneys are not trained on what questions to ask or what to look for. McLaughlin added, “the attorneys that do, are gi= ving their client’s the best chance for a successful resolution of their case.”<= o:p>
Last June, McLaughl=
in helped
defend another robbery case where the defendant claimed he was 40 miles awa=
y at
home, and working remotely on his laptop connect=
ed to
a college computer system. Records were obtained from the defendant’s colle=
ge
login account that showed multiple accesses during the robberies. Then an
examination of the laptop recovered his unique college login with matching
dates and times. And lastly, the unique IP address from his parent’s home
Internet Service Provider that matched the college records. The case was
dismissed.
Over the last 18 ye=
ars,
McLaughlin has handled over 500 criminal, civil and internal investigations=
, and
examined over 2,000 digital items. He testifies in court as an expert and e=
ven
trains attorneys on how to enhance their cases through digital evidence. Mc=
Laughlin
says, “you can rest assured if there’s evidence of a defendant’s innocence =
in
digital form, we’ll find it.”
#
# #