Fire expert criticizes investigation that led to execution (Cameron Todd Willingham)

[alp227]

(CNN) -- His testimony delayed for more than a year, an arson expert Friday sharply criticized the investigation that led to the 2004 execution of a man convicted of killing his three daughters in a house fire.

Craig Beyler has written that the finding of arson at the heart of Cameron Todd Willingham's murder conviction "could not be sustained," either by modern science or by the standards of the day.

"The basics of (this) investigation is such that you could not come to the conclusion that there were arsons, they are undetermined," Beyler, a Maryland-based fire science expert, told the Texas Forensic Science Commission on Friday, according to CNN affiliate KVUE.

"By their acknowledgment, child fire setting, somebody else coming in and setting the fire, are things they acknowledge were not ruled out," said Beyler. "And in this case, they shoveled out the bedroom in the Willingham case before examining the electrical evidence, so you can't rule that out as a cause."

Full story: http://www.cnn.com/2011/CRIME/01/07/texas.willingham.commission/index.html

[freethought]

1. Anyone see "Frontline" on this case?

The documentary was called "Trial by Fire" and its focus was the murder conviction and execution of Cameron Todd Willingham. After seeing it myself, I came back with the impression that Willingham's conviction seemed to based on two things. First, many of the locals had a low opinion of him or outright hated the guy. Frontline did not paint a picture that he was some sort of angel, rather he was a creep and a bully. Second, one seemed to get the impression that the trial and conviction almost seemd to be a case of "Us vs. Them", "US" being the local police and fire investigator(s) and "Them" being the scientists and journalists that were sitting in ivory towers. One of the last comments that was made in documentary was the local fire investigator saying that he didn't care what the scientists said about the fire and it's possible origins, Willingham was guilty and that was that.

[alp227]

2. yeah i watched that episode

http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/death-by-fire/