Lawyers representing convicted murderer Luke Mitchell have claimed DNA samples were "never tested" after Jodi Jones was brutally killed in 2003. Mitchell, now 34, is currently serving a life sentence and has had several appeals to overturn his conviction rejected, with the Appeal Court previously concluding there had not been a miscarriage of justice.
He is up for parole in 2025 after being ordered to spend at least 20 years behind bars and continues to plead his innocence. Now, the Scottish Mail on Sunday has reported claims made by lawyers that samples of bodily fluids were taken from Jodi's body but forensic testing was never carried out.
It is alleged that at least 10 samples of bodily fluids swabbed from different parts of Jodi's body were sent for forensic tests that were never carried out. And lawyers acting for Mitchell claim this could prove he is the victim of a miscarriage of justice.
Criminologist Dr Sandra Lean said: "We expect fairness from our justice system. In this case, we've seen everything but fairness. To discover now that there were samples which could have identified the real murderer is beyond comprehension.
"A 14-year-old girl was murdered and, rather than concentrate their efforts on finding who was responsible, they focused on her boyfriend - failing, as a result, to pursue forensic evidence that could not only have identified the real killer but exonerated Luke Mitchell."
Jodi was killed in a brutal attack in June 2003 after being stripped, tied up and stabbed to death. Her throat was also slit during the horrific murder and her mutilated body was found dumped in woods near to her home in Dalkeith. Mitchell, then 15, was later convicted for girlfriend Jodi's murder.
Police Scotland and the Crown Office insist there has been no miscarriage of justice. Detective Chief Superintendent Paul Livingstone said: "Following the discovery of 14-year-old Jodi Jones' body within a wooded area in Easthouses, Midlothian, on 30 June 2003, a thorough investigation was conducted by Lothian and Borders Police.
"Extensive forensic analysis was carried out along with door-to-door inquiries and other investigative techniques and a full report of the circumstances was submitted to the COPFS.
"As a result, Luke Mitchell, who was 15 at the time, was charged with Jodi's murder, before being convicted and sentenced in 2005.”
A COPFS spokesman said: "During the prosecution and the appeal proceedings, the Crown complied with its disclosure obligations in full. The Appeal Court has previously concluded there has not been a miscarriage of justice."
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