Amicus Brief: Cara Rintala
Commonwealth of Massachusetts v. Cara Rintala
Filing Date
April 21, 2021
Charge
Homicide
Jurisdiction
Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court
Partners
Summary
CIFS filed this amicus brief in the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court in Cara Rintala’s case to educate the court about the risks of novel science that lacks foundational validity. The victim and the crime scene in this case were covered in white ceiling paint and a paint expert opined on the drying time of this paint.
PRELIMINARY STATEMENT
Scientists, scholars, lawyers, and others have long been concerned that forensic science lacks the safeguards often associated with other sciences and is not adequately reliable for its purpose. In 2009, the National Academy of Sciences (the “NAS”) published a report criticizing many of the established forensic sciences as lacking foundational validity and adequate scientific research. The NAS further found that many forensic science analysts testified outside the bounds of what science could support, exaggerating their opinions or offering opinions that could not be supported. Scholars have further recognized that these inadequate underpinnings are often compounded by cognitive bias. While forensic sciences have inadequate safeguards and foundations, the opinions in this case, particularly with respect to the testimony about paint, lack even those minimal and insufficient protections. Because the conviction in this case rests heavily on forensic science testimony that cannot bear its weight, CIFS urges this Court to find that the trial judge's denial of the defendant's motion in limine to exclude David Guilianelli's opinion testimony was an abuse of discretion and prejudicial error requiring reversal of the defendant's conviction and a new trial. In the alternative, CIFS urges the court to vacate the denial of the Defendant's motion for a new trial and remand the case to the trial court for an evidentiary hearing so that the trial court can receive evidence under oath on the reliability of Mr. Guilianelli's opinions from qualified scientists.