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| FBI questions Oklahoma chemist's investigations |
| By Associated Press |
| Published: 05/07/2001 |
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A series of Oklahoma criminal convictions, including 13 death row cases, have been thrown into question by an FBI report that a police chemist wrongly linked defendants to crime scenes. Joyce Gilchrist misidentified hair and fibers in at least six criminal cases and gave testimony that went beyond what her science showed, the report said. At least one man, Jeffrey Todd Pierce, may have been wrongly convicted of sexual assault based on Gilchrist's faulty lab work or testimony, Oklahoma County Assistant District Attorney John Jacobsen said recently. Pierce has been in prison for 15 years. Responding to a police request, the FBI reviewed Gilchrist's laboratory notes, her trial testimony and microscopic slides of hair or fibers in eight cases from 1982 to 1991. The FBI's findings led officials to start a criminal investigation and look at other cases on which she worked. The first priority is determining whether Gilchrist botched evidence that was instrumental in putting somebody on death row, Oklahoma Attorney General Drew Edmonson said. Gilchrist testified against several of the defendants. Gilchrist, who is on paid administrative leave, has not been charged with a crime. She has not worked in the Oklahoma City Police Department's forensic lab since 1993, when she was moved to a manager position. Her attorney, Melvin Hall, said she disagrees with the FBI findings and believes she will be vindicated. The Oklahoma Criminal Defense Lawyers Association called for a death-penalty moratorium. |
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