DNA data is run through algorithms to calculate the likelihood that a person’s DNA is present in a mixture. Developers say they remove human bias from the equation, delivering accurate results. But critics worry that they undermine an important aspect of due process. The accused, defense attorneys, and judges don’t have access to the tools’ proprietary inner workings and, thus, the ability to question their conclusions. As one attorney wrote, “The Petitioner cannot cross-examine a computer.”   read more

Voters reported waiting for more than two hours. The long wait time was largely due to limited staff and equipment to handle the unexpectedly large crowd. Voters have to fill out a slip before getting their ballot printed out. There was only one computer, one printer and a couple of workers assigned to the site. Three other sites — in Scottsdale, Tempe and Mesa — were similarly busy. Voters endured waits of more than five hours in the March primary.   read more

Environmentalists are outraged with the proposal to increase from 15 to 34 the number of states that could use Enlist Duo, saying the EPA sought court authority last year to withdraw approval of the weed killer. The EPA had cited information from manufacturer Dow AgroSciences that indicated Enlist was probably more toxic to other plants than previously thought. George Kimbrell, senior attorney with the Center for Food Safety, accused the EPA of "capitulation to the agrichemical industry."   read more

Ohio death-row inmates sued, claiming the law unconstitutionally burdens free speech, but a federal judge dismissed their lawsuit. Siler said the Supreme Court has never recognized a public right of access to government information as broad as that claimed by the inmates. "While the public's right of access under the First Amendment covers certain records...it does not follow that this right covers all information related to the proceeding," the opinion states.   read more

For courts, social media may open up new doors to reach defendants and other participants in the legal process, as well as communicate with the public. But it poses risks, too. Deploying social summons has its own challenges. Just because an individual has an account may not mean it's active. It is also too easy for people to pose as someone they are not, said Prof. Andrews, who believes courts ``are putting much too much stock in social media.''   read more

For years, technologists have argued that online news would be a boon to democracy. That has not been the case. The internet is distorting our collective grasp on the truth. Polls show that many of us have burrowed into our own echo chambers of information. Now, in the death throes of an election that features a candidate who once led the campaign to lie about Obama’s birth, there is more reason to despair about truth in the online age.   read more

"Bayer made numerous misleading claims to consumers about the safety of its pesticide products, including falsely advertising that they were similar to giving 'a daily vitamin' to plants, when in fact, they are highly toxic to honey bees..." said Attorney General Healey. She called the settlement "an unprecedented step from a major pesticide manufacturer to promote truth in advertising for consumers about products that expose bees and the environment to harm..."   read more

The country's addictions epidemic has created a generation of children affected by their parents' problems. The number of children taken into custody has risen 19% over the past seven years, largely due to parents' painkiller and heroin addictions. Such children "cannot have what we would consider is a normal childhood," Wedig said. Placing the children of addicts in protective custody is costing taxpayers $45 million a year.   read more

There was a 100% likelihood that studies that found no link between sugary drinks and diabetes or obesity were funded by the beverage industry or were conducted by authors who had financial ties to the beverage industry. He said the findings were so stark, he wanted to ensure they were reported before the election. Schillinger's study is just the latest to knock industry groups for trying to sway the outcomes of scientific studies.   read more

Among children ages 1 to 4, hospitalizations for opioid poisoning increased 205%. For teens 15 to 19, hospitalizations rose 161%. Children ages 1 to 4 were primarily hospitalized for accidentally ingesting opioids, while the majority of teens older than 15 took the drugs with the intent to commit suicide, said Julie R. Gaither. She attributed the increase in poisonings among toddlers to parents or other adults within the household leaving pills within easy reach of young children.   read more

The company says the potatoes will have reduced bruising and black spots, enhanced storage capacity, and a reduced amount of a chemical created when potatoes are cooked at high temperatures that's a potential carcinogen. There is no evidence that genetically modified organisms, known as GMOs, are unsafe to eat, but for some people, altering the genetic code of foods presents an ethical issue. McDonald's has rejected using Simplot's first generation of Innate potatoes for its French fries.   read more

Deborah Giannecchini, who was diagnosed with advanced ovarian cancer in 2012, said she had used Johnson's Baby Powder for more than 40 years to keep her genital area dry, as many women do. She blamed it for her cancer and accused J&J of negligence. Late Thursday, a St. Louis jury awarded her $70.1 million. Two other jury trials in St. Louis reached similar outcomes earlier this year, awarding $72 million and $55 million. The company faces an estimated 2,000 similar lawsuits.   read more

In Seattle, the researchers found, African-American users had to wait as much as 35 percent longer for some Uber rides, while in Boston, people with African-American-sounding names were more than twice as likely to have their Uber rides canceled compared with people with white-sounding names. Claims against these newer tech companies — which have garnered multibillion-dollar valuations and often a global footprint — could tarnish their reputations if such practices are not addressed quickly.   read more

Imagine if, during the Jim Crow era, a newspaper gave advertisers the option to place ads only in copies for white readers. That’s what Facebook is doing nowadays. It not only allows advertisers to target users by their interests, it allows them to exclude specific groups by “Ethnic Affinities.” Seeing this racial exclusion policy, a civil rights lawyer said, “This is horrifying. This is massively illegal. This is about as blatant a violation of the federal Fair Housing Act as one can find.”   read more

A recent report found “there was little evidence” that the introduction of genetically modified crops in the U.S. had led to yield gains beyond those seen in conventional crops. At the same time, herbicide use has increased in the U.S., even as major crops like corn, soybeans and cotton have been converted to modified varieties. And the U.S. has fallen behind Europe’s biggest producer, France, in reducing the overall use of pesticides, which includes both herbicides and insecticides.   read more

More than 10,000 New York City residents are using solar power to reduce their electric bills. But hardly any of those people converting the sun’s rays into savings are poor. The reason so few New Yorkers with low incomes are tapping into the power of the sun is not a lack of interest, but rather a lack of access. Simply put, most poor New Yorkers — like many other city residents — do not have a roof of their own on which they could install solar panels, even if they could afford to do so.   read more