What Can Law Take From Science After the Pardon of Kathleen Folbigg?

Abstract

Much can (and has) been said about the relationship between law and science. It is a rich mine for legal discourse. Kathleen Folbigg’s recent pardon, the injustice in her original conviction, and all that happened in the intervening years require that we once again explore the intersection of law and science. In this essay, I will briefly review Kathleen Folbigg’s case and then discuss some implications for science in legal proceedings. I will focus on one particular implication relevant to a range of criminal cases, the urgent need for procedures that help factfinders distinguish between exploration of the facts and confirmation of theories. I end with some reflections on this issue’s theme of safe hands.

Keywords: Evidence law, wrongful convictions, criminal evidence, pardons, criminal case review commission, epistemic trust

JEL Classification: K10, K14, K40