Category: Questioned content analysis

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R -v- Remi Adams & others

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Trial for murder of Kieran McGrath | 

Taxi calls after the murder and recordings from a prison van were made and the speakers in and content of the recordings was at issue in the trials.  Dr Rhodes carried out speaker comparison, attribution of voices and transcription of content throughout the trial and subsequent retrial of Remi Adams and other suspects for murder. Further to this work,  we were instructed to assess and scrutinise the work of other voice experts and transcribers.

BBC article following original trial

MEN article from the retrial

February, March and October 2016; Liverpool and Manchester Crown Square Crown Courts

Instructed by the Defence; Dr Rhodes provided multiple reports and gave evidence in court for the original trial

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R -v- Uter, Abouakkour, Roberts, Wood and Williams

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Birmingham gang tried for kidnapping, torture and subsequent witness intimidation |

Provided a key witness for the prosecution case in the trial of multiple defendants.  The recordings comprised numerous telephone calls which we were instructed to compare with suspect interview recordings.  The examinations also involved transcription/analysis of disputed sections from some of these recordings.  The defendants were convicted and sentenced to a collective 66 years.

Article containing information about the case

November 2014, Birmingham, UK
Instructed by the Crown, produced reports and gave evidence in the witness box.

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R -v- Paul Hamilton, Noel Hamilton and Thomas Hamilton

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Trial for murder and violent disorder at the Old Bailey |

We were instructed by the Crown to transcribe a recording of a fight between a group of men and women where Liam Hamilton was fatally stabbed.  As well as discerning the content, we were asked to give a judgement on whether certain utterances were spoken/shouted by men or women.  Prof French was also asked to consider further questions from the defence at trial. Paul Hamilton was convicted of murder and received a life sentence.

BBC article on case

January – February 2014; Central Criminal Court – Old Bailey, UK
Instructed by the prosecution, provided reports and transcripts and gave evidence in the witness box

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R -v- Robert Cerqua

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Man who murdered his twin brother |

We enhanced and transcribed key sections of the 999 call recording in this case (article containing call) where the mother of the victim rang the police after he had been stabbed.  The evidence provided the police with a more accurate account of the event and details of who was involved in the offence.  The case and sentencing is summarised in a Guardian article:

http://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2014/oct/21/man-stabbed-twin-brother-death-13-years-prison

February 2014, Hampshire, UK
Instructed by the prosecution, provided reports and transcripts.

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R -v- David Sindall

Speaker comparison and transcripts in South Yorkshire murder trial |

We acted for the defence in this case and produced a transcript and a report on forensic speaker comparison.  As part of the work we were asked to comment on a prosecution expert’s transcript, and attribution within that transcript, and produce our own version.

BBC article on the case

February 2014; Sheffield Crown Court before Mr Justice Staples, UK
Instructed by the defence, provided reports and transcripts and gave evidence in the witness box

 

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George Zimmerman & Trayvon Martin

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Murder case in the state of Florida |

In this case, which received international attention, we were engaged by the defence to provide an expert assessment of speech evidence submitted.  This testimony was entered into a Frye hearing on the admissibility of speech evidence where one sample featured distress screams.  Using our experience and knowledge, and relying on research carried out in partnership with the University of York, we provided a number of conclusions which were put forward by Prof French via video-link.  The Judge ruled in favour of the defence, stating:

Defense witness Dr. French, regarded as an international expert in the field of forensic speech analysis, has worked in the field since the late 1980′s. The Court found the testimony of Dr. French to be the most compelling of the witnesses presented.

June, 2013; Seminole court (Eighteenth Judicial Circuit Court of Florida), Sanford, FLA.
Instructed by the defence, provided deposition and appeared in court.

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R -v- David Cullen Bain

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Case of disputed utterance in emergency call following family’s murder |

David Bain was famously retried subsequent to the quashing of his conviction for murder of five family members.  J P French gave expert evidence and reports to a preliminary voir dire hearing about the questioned audio.  Our report was also used later by the Supreme Court of New Zealand.

High Court, Christchurch, New Zealand.  November 2008.

Report used by Court of Criminal Appeal and Supreme Court of New Zealand in deciding admissibility of audio evidence March 2009.  Produced report and gave evidence via video link.

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The State of Ghana -v- Kwabena Amaning & Alhaji Issah Abbass

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Authentication of recordings in Ghanaian narcotics case |

We authenticated a number of recordings and analysed the speech in Ghanaian and English.  To do this, J P French Associates recruited and trained a native speaker and Professor in linguistics from Accra to assist in the analysis.  the evidence was produced in reports and also in person to the High Court in Accra.

High Court, Accra, November 2006 – November 2007.

Instructed by the State of Ghana.  Produced reports, transcript and gave expert witness testimony.

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R -v- Michael Stone

Analysis of disputed utterance in ‘Russell murders’ trial

J P French Associates were instructed to analyse a disputed part of a police interview with Michael Stone, where it was suggested he said his clothes from the time of the attack were all ‘burnt’.  The analysis revealed that the other interpretation ‘gone’ was better supported by the acoustic evidence.

Nottingham Crown Court, 2001.

Instructed by the Defence.  Produced report.