Digital Forensics has become an unquestioned necessity for attorneys when conducting civil or criminal litigation. In a digital world, it is very difficult to permanently eliminate a person's or company's digital footprint. A prime example is the Ross Compton insurance fraud case.
Mr. Compton set fire to his home in an effort to claim the funds associated with an insurance policy on the home. He told police he was asleep when he saw the fire, packed a suitcase, and escaped the home through a window. The police were suspicious of Mr. Compton taking the time to pack a suitcase and requested digital data stored on Mr. Compton’s pacemaker.
It was concluded by the district attorneys, that Mr. Compton was not asleep when the fire began. The heart rate data recovered from his pacemaker showed his heart rate was way too high to be sleeping. Attorneys also compared Mr. Compton’s medical records submitted to the police with the recovered pacemaker data and they did not match. Ultimately, Mr. Compton was convicted of insurance fraud and arson.
Contact Tim Thames tthames@legaleagleinc.com to learn more about mobile digital forensics and information about preservation and collection of device data.
4 Cases Solved with Digital Evidence, January 17, 2020, precisedigital.com