Criminalistics / Criminology Expert Witnesses: 16

Richard T. Picciochi is a Forensic Handwriting and  Document Examiner with over thirty five years of experience in the New York City Police Department Crime Laboratory and in private practice. He is retired from the NYPD Forensic Investigation Division where he was a Detective, Document Examiner and the Technical Supervisor of the Questioned Document Unit. In the course of his career he has examined thousands of disputed signature, handwriting and document cases, participated in numerous high profile investigations and testified in trials including the New York City  "Zodiac" homicides and the first terrorist attack on the World Trade Center.

Mr. Picciochi possesses a background that integrates the natural sciences, forensic sciences and law enforcement investigations. He has earned a Master of Science degree in Forensic Science and has received extensive specialized training in handwriting and document analysis by the NYPD, the FBI and the United States Secret Service.

Mr. Picciochi is a Diplomate of the American Board of Forensic Document Examiners (ABFDE) and was awarded certification upon completion of comprehensive written, practical and oral examinations. He is a member of the American Academy of Forensic Sciences and the International Association for Identification.

Mr. Picciochi specializes in the examination of signatures and has testified in state, federal and international courts. He will accept civil, criminal and administrative cases and offers his services to both Plaintiff and Defense attorneys.

Francis T. "Jay" Jarvis has over 35 years of experience as a Forensic Scientist, specializing in Forensic Ballistics and Firearms Analysis.

During his career, Mr. Jarvis either performed casework in or was a supervisor for most of the forensic disciplines. Between 1982 and 1997, he wore a multitude of hats, performing casework in:

Following his retirement from the Georgia State Crime Lab, Jay Jarvis started Arma Forensics to provide personalized, timely and unbiased forensic services for clients. He has testified as an expert in Federal Court and the courts of Georgia and several other states over 750 times. Mr. Jarvis' specialty is firearms identification and ballistics but he also has casework experience in trace evidence. Mr. Jarvis has extensive experience in crime laboratory accreditation, having served as an accreditation assessor and as a member of the Board of Directors of the American Society of Crime Laboratory Directors Laboratory Accreditation Board (ASCLD/LAB), including one year as the Board Chair.

View Jay Jarvis' Consulting Profile.

Dr. Randy Atlas AIA , CPP is a Registered Architect, NCARB certified, and he practices Criminal Justice Architecture and Environmental Security Design. Atlas is a certified protection professional (CPP) with the American Society of Industrial Security (ASIS), and is an appointed member of the ASIS Security Architecture and Engineering Committee. Atlas has his doctorate in criminology and a masters of architecture. Dr Atlas is a Fellow  member of the American Institute of Architects (AIA).

Dr. Atlas has taught CPTED (Crime Prevention through Environmental Design) and criminal justice courses at Florida International University, Florida Atlantic University, and the University of Miami, Keiser University, and he is a trainer with the National Crime Prevention Institute at the University of Louisville. Dr. Atlas has been a technical Assistance consultant with the National Institute of Justice, National Institute of Corrections, and the Florida Department of Corrections and U.S. HUD Drug Elimination CPTED Program.

He has conducted ADA accessibility compliance audits for private and public sector clients, and served as an expert witness on over 200 premises liability lawsuits.

Dr. Atlas has been a speaker and trainer at security conferences from New Delhi, India to Seattle, Washington and has written over 200 articles in various publications on security, safety, and counter terrorism issues.

Marlon P. Marrache, Police Sergeant (Retired), JD, is a highly effective Law Enforcement Professional with exemplary skills in Police Administrative Discipline / Misconduct and Use of Force Investigations. 

Mr. Marrache is a 24 year veteran and has over 12 years of Police Misconduct Investigation, adjudication, and examination experience. He has been assigned to Internal Affairs as an Associate Advocate conducting Board of Rights Hearings, and to Officer Representation Section defending police officers. Mr. Marrache has:

• Demonstrated expertise in Peace Officer Bill of Rights Act (POBRA)
• Demonstrated expertise in Police Mediation (i.e., Biased Policing Complaints)

Litigation Support - Mr. Marrache is Subject Matter Expert in Administrative Police Misconduct and a Subject Matter Expert in Categorical Use Of Force Investigations with an emphasis in Officer Involved Shootings (OIS). He provides Expert Testimony in Internal Affairs investigations and renders fair, reasonable, and impartial recommendation on "adjudication" and "penalty" of completed investigations.

Areas of Expertise:

Marlon P. Marrache: How Police Are Held Accountable

Degrees and Certifications - Supervisory CA POST certificate - Certified LAPD Instructor - Juris Doctorate Degree from Pacific Coast University School of Law. Mr. Marrache has instructed in LAPD supervisor school on the topic of POBRA & Use of Force

Dr. Ron Martinelli, PhD, CMI-V, is a nationally renowned Forensic Criminologist and a federal/state courts qualified law enforcement and premises liability expert who is also a Certified Medical Investigator (physician's level). He is also a Certified Suicide Investigator. 

Dr. Martinelli directs the nation's only Forensic Death Investigations & Independent Review Team of 26 law enforcement, forensic and medical experts and specializes in officer-involved death cases, civilian self-defense shooting cases and premises liability/security cases. He is a forensic/law enforcement expert to the U.S. Department of Justice, several State Attorney Generals' Offices, numerous major municipalities and nationally prominent private law firms specializing in wrongful death, civil rights and premises liability. 

Dr. Martinelli is the prevailing expert in over 90% of his retained cases. He has saved defendants over $300M and earned plaintiffs over $160 million in jury verdicts and settlements since 2004. He is the media's go-to forensic expert for FOX News, One America News Network, CNN, HLN, Sky News, BBC, NPR, and the History & Discovery Channels. Dr. Martinelli is skilled in crime scene reconstruction, forensics, applied sciences, human factors, psycho-medical emergencies and premises liability and security cases. His unique and extensive field experience, combined his academic and scientific credentials, excellent written reports and persuasive testimony, make him a very appealing expert to attorneys and juries alike.

Areas of Expertise:

• Arrests
• Search & Seizure
• Use of Force / Excessive Force - All Levels and Weaponry
• Officer Involved Shootings(OIS)
• In-Custody Deaths
• Criminal Investigations
• Law Enforcement & Corrections Practices, Training & Supervision
• Adult & Juvenile Corrections
• Law Enforcement Negligence
• Civilian Self-Defense, Premises Liability, Security, Foreseeable Harm
• Insurance Cases
• COVID Detentions & Arrests

Charles H. Heller, PhD, is a Forensic Psychology Expert with over 35 years of experience in his field. Dr. Heller is currently on staff at Rutgers University Biomedical Health service, specializing in criminal behavior and risk assessment. He also serves as a forensic psychologist consultant for the Rockland County (NY) court evaluation service, where he has performed hundreds of child custody, as well as criminal competency and child abuse/neglect evaluations.

Litigation Support - Dr. Heller specializes in conducting custody evaluations, providing the review and analysis of potentially mitigating circumstances in connection with criminal behavior, and providing consultation to attorneys regarding civil litigation. He has extensive court experience in Civil, Criminal, and Family Court cases. Dr. Heller is a fully vetted and approved forensic psychologist for the NJ Office of the Public Defender as well as other Public Defender offices. (Federal Public Defender, Legal Aid in Manhattan, Bronx, Kings and the NYC assigned counsel program). He often travels throughout the US as a forensic consultant in important court cases including military Court Martials, death row assessment, sexual abuse, assault and multiple homicides. He is well known and respected among his colleagues as a clinician and as a forensic psychologist/expert witness.

Civil Litigation - (Emotional and Mental Injury) - Dr. Heller is retained by both plaintiff and defense counsel to assess plaintiffs for emotional and mental injury. He takes an unbiased, ethical approach to assessments and is not "a hired gun." He is an expert in objective evaluations that assess the probability the plaintiff is suffering PTSD, other emotional injuries, or if there is exaggeration of symptoms based upon psychological testing and other data. He has expertise in cases that involve group home / residential schools, provider negligence, and assaults.

Criminal Litigation - Dr. Heller is experienced in providing successful rebuttal testimony explaining the scientific issues related to the problems of validity, reliability, and usefulness of "Syndrome evidence" such as "Child Sexual Abuse Accommodation Syndrome" and "Rape Trauma Syndrome." He testifies in child sexual abuse cases and explains research related to false allegations, recantations, memory, suggestibility, child testimony, interview protocols, and "Believed-In Imaginings" in children and adults. He has expertise in domestic violence and has assessed women who have been victims of intimate partner violence and "Battered Women Syndrome" that contributed to homicides, assaults, and other felonies by the victims of abuse.

View Dr. Heller's Consulting Profile.

Michael Levine is one of the most decorated Supervisory Agents in the history of the Drug Enforcement Administration. A US Law Enforcement Procedure Expert, Mr. Levine has many decades of courtroom experience (civil & criminal) as a Trial consultant and Expert Witness, including 25 years of service with DEA, Customs, BATF, and the IRS Criminal Investigations Division. Mr. Levine's supervisory and other law enforcement experience includes being in command of task force units combining officers of FBI, BATF, IRS, Customs, NYPD and other police agencies, service as an Internal Affairs supervisory investigator, a senior inspector with the Department of Justice OPR, Office of Professional Responsibility, and Director of a sheriffs department drug bureau. 

Mr. Levine, during his decades of trial experience, both as a senior law enforcement officer including the past 30 years as a professional trial consultant, has qualified as an expert witness for both prosecution and plaintiff as well defense, in federal and state courts including 19 states, Puerto Rico and 8 foreign nations. He offers full trial consulting and investigative services in both criminal and civil matters as follows: Expert Witness File Review and Strategy Assessment; Case Particular Design of Cross-Examination "menus"; Investigative, Technical and Research Support; Expert Witness Report and/or Affidavit Preparation. Utilizing his extensive experience as a Supervisory Internal Affairs Investigator, he can also identify the elements of probable cause indicative of false reporting, cover-up, and the concealment of Brady materials. Since the year 2007 he has been retained by the Atlanta and DeKalb County District Attorneys Offices, to conduct police-involved shooting reviews and as such has testified before criminal grand juries leading to the indictment and conviction of law enforcement/violators. 

Mr. Levine specializes in full trial consulting services and expert testimony in criminal and civil matters and has testified as an expert in the following areas of expertise:

A listing of his cases may be found on his website www.policetrialexpert.com.

Michael Levine is the only US law enforcement expert ever admitted to testify before a Japanese court, (Japan v Goldstein) and used the Blind Mule Defense, which resulted in an acquittal. He is a best-selling author, media consultant, lecturer and police instructor with extensive experience as court-qualified expert witness and trial consultant in civil and criminal matters.

Since leaving the Department of Justice, he has been retained in excess of 500 occasions as a trial consultant/expert witness throughout the United States, Canada, England and Japan. Mr. Levine has also remained active as a police instructor in the US, Canada and Australia. In January of 2008, his police instructional manual "Undercover Tactics and Informant Handling" previously written for the Department of Justice, was published by the New York State Department of Justice Services and utilized as an instructional manual for New York State law-enforcement. The manual was subsequently edited and republished by the US State Department for the instruction of Brazilian Federal Police which was conducted by Mr. Levine and his team of US-based experts. The manual was subsequently republished via academia.edu from where it is now among the top .05% of Global downloads by police agencies, attorneys and researchers.

 View Michael Levine's Consulting Profile.

Reginald J. Montgomery, CLI, CPP, CFE, CST, CFC, CP, is an industry-leading, Certified Investigator and Security Expert with over 43 years of experience. He is directly responsible for the recovery of over 20 billion dollars (US$20B) worth of embezzled funds and stolen or misappropriated assets for corporate accounts.

Mr. Montgomery is a Certified Legal Investigator (CLI), a Certified Security Trainer (CST), a Certified Protection Professional (CPP), a Physical Security Professional (PSP), a Certified Fraud Examiner (CFE), a Certified International Investigator (CII), a Board Accredited Investigator (BAI), a Certified Polygraphist (CP), and a Personal Protection Specialist (PPS).

Background Experience - Mr. Montgomery is a distinguished and decorated Law Enforcement Officer in New Jersey until 1979 when he started his own Detective Agency. He has served as a Investigative Consultant, Investigative Project Manager, and/or Field Investigator, Polygraph Examiner/interviewer, Criminal defense investigator (sexual assault) Security and Fraud Expert, and Professional Guardian (elder abuse and exploitation).

He clients are fortune 500 companies, including A&P, Amstar, Banana Republic, Becton Dickinson, Borden, Congoleum, Food town, Hess Oil, Hewlett Packard, Hoffman LaRoche, ITT, Johnson & Johnson, Kate Spade, Liz Claiborne, Merck, Mobil Oil, SC Johnson Wax and many more.

Mr. Montgomery was President of the New Jersey Licensed Private Investigators Association between 1996-2000, has served as the Assistant National Director, Regional Director, National Secretary and Vendor Committee Chair for The National Association of Legal Investigators (NALI) and has served as the Placement and Program Committee Chair, Certification Committee Chair and was the Chapter Chairman (2000-2001) for The American Society for Industrial Security (ASIS), Northern New Jersey Chapter.  He also served as Vice-Chairman to the ASIS International Investigations Council.

Litigation Support - Mr. Montgomery has served as an expert witness in virtually every area of Security Litigation. Numerous judicial determinations awarding financial reparations to clients and shielding them from fraudulent and frivolous lawsuits were made due to his  expert testimony. Mr. Montgomery has successfully conducted investigations for Corporate, Legal, and Private concerns of national and international notability. 

Areas of Expertise:

View Reginald J. Montgomery's Consulting Profile.

Myron K. Smith is a Narcotics Expert with over 30 years of experience in his field of expertise. He provides Consultation and Expert Testimony in cases involving Narcotics offenses. Mr. Smith is a panelist and instructor to law enforcement officers, government officials, and grand juries on Police Procedures and Drug Identification. He has been accepted in several states (Local and Federal Courts) in all facets of narcotic criminal investigations.

Areas of Expertise:

Background Experience - Prior to founding S.E.C. Group, Inc., Mr. Smith worked with the Metropolitan Police Department of the District of Columbia for 30 years, the last 13 years in the Narcotics and Special Investigations Unit. He has been recognized as the Resident Narcotic Expert by the DC Superior Court and the US District Court of Washington, DC. Mr. Smith has been awarded over 20 citations and commendations for achievements in law enforcement as a Grade 2 Detective.

Selected Career Highlight:

• Selected as the Lead Investigator on several narcotic cases-supervising the coordinating of all appropriate personnel and required organizational efforts
• Participated in over 1,000 narcotic related investigations with the MPD and other agencies such as the Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA), Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms (ATF), Federal Bureau of Investigations (FBI), Military Services, and Local Police Department
• Worked extensively in an “undercover” capacity on over 100 assignments to combat illegal narcotic activities
• Provided courtroom “expert testimony” in over 1,000 cases involving the prosecution of narcotic offenses

Timothy A. Dimoff, CPP, founder and president of SACS Consulting & Investigative Services, Inc. a leading security consulting firm, has over 40 years of experience in Law Enforcement and Security matters for both the public and private sectors. He is multi-certified in the security field and is considered one of the nation's leading authorities on negligent security procedures; security & vulnerability issues; police procedures and operations including use of force; high-risk workplace and human resource issues; narcotics investigations and enforcement. 

Mr. Dimoff is board certified by ASIS as a Certified Protection Professional (CPP?) which is internationally recognized as the “gold standard” certification for security management professionals, demonstrating their knowledge and competency in seven key domains of security.

Litigation Support - Mr. Dimoff has over 20 years of experience in testifying and consulting as an expert witness in over 500 cases and trials for both the plaintiff and the defense sides. His expert witness experience includes law enforcement procedures, security negligence of business or physical premises, human resources issues, meeting standards of practice in hiring and termination, employment practices, proper documentation, training, supervision, policies and procedures, harassment, discrimination, internal investigations, threats and excessive use of force.

Mr. Dimoff is a renowned speaker, trainer, and author who has offered expert commentary to national media including Dateline, NBC, CNN, The Chicago Tribune, The New York Times, The LA Times, The Washington Post, and The Wall Street Journal.  He is the author of four books, including How to Recognize Substance Abuse, The YOU in Business, and Life Rage, a chilling examination of societal rage and safeguards against it.

Mr. Dimoff holds a Bachelor of Science Degree in Sociology with an emphasis in Criminology from Denison University.

Areas of Expertise: 

View Timoth A. Dimoff's Consulting Profile.

George Schiro is a DNA Technical Leader - Forensic Scientist. His duties include incorporating the DNA Advisory Board (DAB) standards, accountability for the technical operations of the lab, conducting DNA analysis using the 13 STR core loci and Y STR in casework, DNA research, forensic science training and crime scene investigation.

Mr. Schiro has worked over 3500 cases and has qualified as an expert over 175 times in 31 Louisiana parish courts, Arkansas, California, Florida, Mississippi, Missouri, Nevada, New York, Texas, West Virginia, federal court, U.S. court-martial, and two Louisiana city courts. Has also consulted on cases in 29 states.

Qualified as an Expert in the Following Areas:

Arthur S. Chancellor is a Law Enforcement Expert with over 40 years of experience, including 30+ years as a Special Agent, supervisor, and Commander with the US Army Criminal Investigation Division. He is currently serving as an Instructor and Consultant at Second Look Training and Forensic Consulting, LLC.

Litigation Support - Mr. Chancellor has personally investigated or supervised several thousand felony investigations which occurred on a military base or in the civilian community. He has processed over 200 homicide death scenes and qualified multiple times as an expert witness in the area of Crime Scene Analysis and Crime Scene Examination. His mission is to provide an accurate evaluation of criminal investigations and crime scenes for prosecutors or defense to enable them to make informed decisions about their case. 

Mr. Chancellor's focus in the last 15 years is on death and sexual offenses. His specialty is Staged Crime Scenes also known as Staging which is a crime scene alteration made by an offender to misdirect a criminal investigation. His most recent consultations have centered on homicides staged to resemble some other event or in false sexual assaults.

Areas of Expertise:

Professional Organizations: 

• American Academy Forensic Science (AAFS) Fellow status
• Member International Homicide Investigators Association (IHIA)
• International Association for Identification (IAI)
• North Carolina Homicide Investigator Association (NCHIA)

 View Second Look Training and Forensic Consulting Profile.

Dr. Roy G. Taylor is a current Chief of Police with over 40 years of experience in a wide-range of federal, state, local, and private criminal justice positions. Dr. Taylor specializes as an expert witness in Police Practices and Procedures and Law Enforcement and Criminal Justice. Current Positions:

• Chief of Police Blue Ridge Public Safety (2014)
• President/CEO Signal 88 Security of Charlotte (2012)
• President/CEO Capitol Special Patrol (2012)
• Chief of Police Capitol Special Police (2002)
• Lt. Colonel – Provost Marshal, Army National Guard (2000)
• Antiterrorism / Emergency Management Branch Chief DoD (2007)
• Provost Marshal Joint Civil Support Task Force, Joint Chiefs of Staff (2014)

Litigation Support - Dr. Taylor is called upon to analyze cases from both defense and plaintiff perspectives. His services include case review, written reports, deposition, and trial testimony as needed. 

Areas of Expertise:

View Roy Taylor's Consulting Profile.

Beth A. Mohr, CFE, CFCS, CAMS, CCCI, MPA, PI, is a Law Enforcement / Police Misconduct expert with over 30 years of sworn and non-sworn investigative experience. Ms. Mohr is credentialed as a Nationally Certified Law Enforcement Instructor by the International Association of Directors of Law Enforcement Standards and Training, and is one of fewer than 150 individuals who have been nationally certified as an expert law enforcement instructor.  She is a Certified Fraud Examiner, Certified Anti-Money Laundering Specialist (CAMS), Certified Financial Crimes Specialist (CFCS) and a Certified Cyber Crimes Investigator (CCCI). She is also a Private Investigator licensed in New Mexico, Arizona, and California.

Ms. Mohr has testified as an expert in California, Ohio, Illinois, New Mexico, Arizona, and Washington state, in federal and state courts, on a variety of subjects, including police procedures, police misconduct, white collar crime, and fraud examinations.  Ms. Mohr's qualifications as a police practices expert have been confirmed by the courts through a Daubert challenge, during which the courts specifically affirmed Ms. Mohr's expert qualifications in the areas of interviewing, interrogation, recanted and false confessions, investigative processes, vice, and human trafficking.

Ms. Mohr has written articles on the topic of police practices, including a forthcoming chapter entitled Skepticism, in the book The Art of the Investigation Revisited.  In addition to articles for peer-reviewed publications, Ms. Mohr has written and taught dozens of law enforcement courses which have been approved for law enforcement credit, including California POST accreditation.

During her career with the San Diego Police Department, Ms. Mohr she was awarded three Commanding Officer’s Citations, which are the highest awards offered by the San Diego Police Department for investigative acumen, at the time.  After retiring from the San Diego Police Department, she conducted death penalty mitigation investigations, and other complex felony investigations, including homicide and white-collar cases, for the Whatcom County, Washington, Public Defender’s Office.   This includes conducting investigations of allegations of police misconduct for the City of Albuquerque Independent Review Office.  Ms. Mohr recently chaired the City of Albuquerque’s Police Oversight Board, a civilian board which was created as part of the US Department of Justice’s Consent Decree with the City of Albuquerque and the Albuquerque Police Department. 

Ms. Mohr has taught courses on law enforcement topics including interviewing techniques, investigative ethics, evidence collection, financial and fraud investigations, and many other topics.  Her ethics courses, investigative courses, and fraud courses are certified for law enforcement credit.  Ms. Mohr is a POST Certified law enforcement instructor in California, and a Nationally Certified Law Enforcement Instructor.  

Beth A. Mohr is available as a consulting or testifying expert anywhere in North America, as well as many international locations.  She is neutral, fair, and her opinions are rooted in provable facts.  She strives to balance her cases between defense and plaintiff-sided cases, and also provides habeas consulting services.  

Areas of Expertise:

Emanuel Kapelsohn is an internationally recognized Firearms Training and Use of Force consultant who has instructed thousands of police and security officers, federal agents and others throughout the U.S. and abroad since 1980. A graduate of Yale University and Harvard Law School, he is a practicing attorney in addition to his consulting work. 

As vice president of the Internat’l Assoc. of Law Enforcement Firearms Instructors, Mr. Kapelsohn is a certified in force science and shooting scene reconstruction, and as an instructor in numerous law enforcement disciplines. He is a featured presenter at national and international instructor conferences. He has authored over 130 published articles, is Associate Editor of "Standards & Practices Guide for Law Enforcement Firearms Instructors," and principal author of "Firearms Training Standards for Law Enforcement Personnel," and "Guidelines for Simulation Training Safety." 

Mr. Kapelsohn testifies as an expert witness in civil and criminal cases in state and federal courts nationwide, and has testified by invitation before both houses of Congress. 

Testimony on the Following Subjects:

View Emanuel Kapelsohn's Consulting Profile.