A top forensic scientist has been found liable for fabricating evidence in a murder case, the Associated Press reports. 

The forensic scientist is Henry Lee, the former head of Connecticut's forensic laboratory and a professor emeritus at the University of New Haven's Henry C. Lee College of Criminal Justice and Forensic Sciences.

Lee is also the forensic scientist who famously testified during the trial of O.J. Simpson, back when Simpson was accused of murdering his ex-wife, Nicole Brown Simpson. During his testimony, Lee questioned the handling of blood evidence by authorities.

This, however, is not Lee's only claim to fame. Since the Simpson trial, Lee, according to the Daily Caller, "has been involved in several high-profile instigations," including that of JonBenet Ramsey, Scott Peterson, and Phil Spector.

Background

Lee has been found liable for fabricating evidence in a Connecticut murder case that sent two men to prison for decades. The two men are Ralph “Ricky” Birch and Shawn Henning.

Back in 1989, the two men were convicted of the 1985 murder of Everett Carr, a 65-year-old resident of New Milford. Carr was found to have been stabbed 27 times. He was also struck seven times on the head and had his throat cut.

The prosecution, at the time, had a problem linking Brich and Henning to the crime. Neither their hair nor their fingerprints were found at the scene of the crime. And, despite the bloodiness of the scene, no blood was found either in their car or on their clothing.

This is where Lee's testimony came in.

Lee testified that it was possible for the crime to have been committed without blood getting on the perpetrator(s). Lee also testified that testing determined that a towel found in Carr's home contained bloodstains. The claim was that this towel was used by the perpetrator(s).

The wrong side of the law

It turns out, however, the stains on the towel were not of blood. This was confirmed by testing that was conducted on the towel after the trial had finished.

In 2020, a judge vacated the murder convictions of Birch and Henning. Then, the two men filed a federal wrongful conviction lawsuit, in which Lee, along with eight police investigators, was named.

The judge has now granted a summary judgment against Lee, finding him liable for fabricating evidence. U.S. District Judge Victor Bolden essentially found that there was no evidence to support the testimony that Lee gave at the trial.

Bolden wrote:

Other than stating that he performed the test, however, the record contains no evidence that any such test was performed. In fact, as plaintiffs noted, Dr. Lee’s own experts concluded that there is no ‘written documentation or photographic’ evidence that Dr. Lee performed the TMB blood test. And there is evidence in this record that the tests actually conducted did not indicate the presence of blood.

Now, a jury will determine how much money Lee is going to have to pay Birch and Henning in damages.