"There's no new science -- what they are trying to do is get around a motion to dismiss for failure to prosecute,''
It's a joke folks, a sick, potentially freedom/life threatening joke, and as I mentioned earlier, most likely an attempt to see if their shiny new domestic terrorism laws will allow them to jack the defense around. Details: "Bell's attorney said the scientific evidence detailed in the affidavit is unreliable and may never be admitted into evidence. "They talk about the bullets they say my client fired, and they say it matches a gun found on his property,'' Hanlon said. He said such claims can't be verified, and there is no ballistics report made back then that compares the test-fired shells sent to San Francisco from Louisiana to the shells found at Ingleside Station. He said that without the weapon, the match is meaningless because it can't be verified. "We have no way to know anything about the gun,'' Hanlon said. "How can they can get this into evidence? There's no way to refute it. What have they been doing with these shells for 30 years?'' He had similar objections to the fingerprint match. He said the only explanation for the failure to make a match back in 1971 is incompetence by the police, and that is not good enough. Engler suggested there were advances in fingerprint science that have helped authorities make a fingerprint match in the case, something Hanlon scoffed at. "There's no new science -- what they are trying to do is get around a motion to dismiss for failure to prosecute,'' Hanlon said. He said a failure to prosecute based on evidence violates his client's due process rights, because memories fade and limit the defense in its ability to contest evidence. "You have to show a reason for the delay. I have no idea -- you have to ask them.'' As for Bottom's alleged admissions, Hanlon said, a recent Supreme Court ruling limits their use to the charges against Bottom himself and not his alleged confederates. He said he has reports that show that even the FBI faulted Bottom's credibility at the time. "The FBI found Tony Bottom to be crazy and didn't believe his credibility back then -- we have the documents to show it. They thought he was mentally ill,'' Hanlon said. "I think Mr. Bell and the other people are in great shape in this case,'' he added. "If this is all they have, this is not enough to convict people.'' In full: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2007/01/26/MNGMHNPK691.DTL&hw=evidence&sn=001&sc=1000
