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Shoddy Fingerprint Analysis Inks Bad Impression on LAPD
Oops! The LA Times got their hands on an LAPD confidential report that admits people were wrongly charged with crimes because fingerprint specialists apparently didn't have those specialized skills. Rhonda Sims-Lewis, chief of the LAPD's administrative and technical bureau and others "described a poorly run operation, in which records and evidence were left lying around or misplaced, and supervisors 'were stuck in the old way of doing things.' Pressed to explain the sloppy work of the unit, Yvette Sanchez-Owens, commanding officer of the Scientific Investigation Division, speculated that 'people were reviewing the work of friends and just rubber stamping it without really reviewing it.'" One analyst was fired and another three were suspended.
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Right now, LAist has lost $1.7M in annual funding due to Congress clawing back money already approved. The support we receive from readers like you will determine how fully our newsroom can continue informing, serving, and strengthening Southern California.
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