The Changing Forensic Science Of Arson Is Freeing Innocent Convicts
House Fire Using rigorous science, it can be hard to determine the cause of a fire. But less stringent techniques may have led to many false convictions in the U.S. Photo from the U.S. Consumer Product Safety CommissionModern investigations are finding no evidence for arson in old cases. A man who spent 42 years in prison walked free yesterday, released because the evidence that he had committed arson was faulty. Louis C. Taylor had been behind bars since he was 16, after he was convicted of setting a fire in a hotel that killed 29 people. In an agreement with prosecutors, he pled no contest, which means he didn't admit guilt, but he also doesn't contest his charges, which means he can't sue anyone involved in his original prosecution, New York Times reported. The science of proving arson has changed dramatically over the past 40 years, and...