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Social Science and Criminology Merge At UCI Conference
UCI’s nationally recognized faculty in criminology, law and society held a conference entitled ‘Social Science and the Law of Evidence’ in the Irvine Civic Auditorium on Nov. 15.
The all-day conference, held from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., explored research surrounding topics relevant to criminology, law and society, like why people sometimes confess to crimes they did not commit.
Speakers included distinguished professor of social ecology Elizabeth Loftus, who presented ‘New Research on Creation of False Memories: Legal Implications,’ and professor of criminology, law and society William Thompson, who spoke on ‘Use and Misuse of DNA Evidence.’ Simon Cole presented ‘Evaluating the Reliability and Admissibility of Fingerprint Evidence,’ and David Faigman, professor at UC Hastings College of Law, served as the discussant/commentator of the conference.
Other topics covered at the conference included how the legal system can draw the truth from an individual’s recalled memory and illustrated the controversy concerning the reliability of fingerprint and DNA evidence.
The conference was co-sponsored by the UCI Newkirk Center for Science and Society, the UCI Department of Criminology, Law and Society, the city of Irvine and the Los Angeles Public Defender’s Office.

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