Cell Phones Are the New DNA - The Emerging Role of Mobile Device Forensics in Wrongful Conviction Exonerations

Online registration is closed.  To register, email Tram Nguyen at tnguyen@mnbars.org.

Remote participation only.

This program is sponsored by the MSBA Tech Law Section.

New evidence produced from testing using new, innovative technology can open the door to judicial action for wrongful conviction review and exonerations. For decades DNA testing was the most popular and effective example of new technology. Now mobile device forensics is emerging as an effective alternative to watch, or even the most promising form of new evidence, because of its speed of technology innovation and adoption, also its support of a diversified number of proof vectors as compared to DNA.

This presentation will compare and contrast mobile with DNA evidence, and will focus on effectively using mobile device forensics to recover new evidence in wrongful conviction challenges. The presentation will conclude with a brief review of a successful wrongful conviction case study of a first degree murder with LWOP sentence in Minnesota where an advanced mobile device forensic examination of the victim’s feature phone from March 2008 recovered new, material evidence which contradicted eyewitness testimony and provided the wrongfully convicted defendant a new trial.

The presentation will impact the attendees in terms of competence (ability) and performance (action) by showing the practical value of technology innovation, whether biological, or digital, in modern day criminal justice in the U.S. and how to recognize opportunities to exploit it. It will educate them on how to obtain new trials and exonerations based on effectively using sound digital forensic methods, best practices, and mobile device forensic tools designed to seek truth and defend the innocent.