A forensic scientist has told an appeal hearing that fibre evidence linking a man convicted of murder to the scene is valid. Simon Hall, 33, from Ipswich, was found guilty in 2003 of stabbing 79-year-old Joan Albert at her home in Suffolk in 2001.
Ray Palmer, of the Forensic Science Service, told the Royal Courts of Justice that despite doubts raised by a defence expert, he was sure of the fibre link. Defence expert Tiernan Coyle, who worked on the Damilola Taylor murder investigation, said that with one exception, flock fibres found at Hall's mother's address differed from those at the murder scene.
But Mr Palmer insisted his re-examination of the fibres 'bolsters the initial findings' that fibres linked Hall to the scene, showing a 'high degree of congruence'. He criticised the First Derivatives (FD) technique used by Mr Coyle, saying it 'exaggerates small differences' and 'can lead you up the garden path'.
Under cross-examination by Michael Mansfield QC for Hall, Mr Palmer admitted he did not know how common the fibres were at the time of the crime. He also noted that the FD technique is regularly used by LGC Forensics, a major private firm offering forensic services to police and courts.
