Steven Timothy Hayne (born 1942) is a

pathologist Pathology is the study of disease. The word ''pathology'' also refers to the study of disease in general, incorporating a wide range of biology research fields and medical practices. However, when used in the context of modern medical treatme ...

from the US state of

Mississippi Mississippi ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Deep South regions of the United States. It borders Tennessee to the north, Alabama to the east, the Gulf of Mexico to the south, Louisiana to the s ...

who attracted significant controversy surrounding his medical practices and

testimony Testimony is a solemn attestation as to the truth of a matter. Etymology The words "testimony" and "testify" both derive from the Latin word ''testis'', referring to the notion of a disinterested third-party witness. Law In the law, testimon ...

in criminal trials, most notably those of

Cory Maye Cory Jermaine Maye (born September 9, 1980) is a former prisoner. He was originally convicted of murder in the 2001 death of Prentiss, Mississippi, police officer Ron W. Jones, during a drug raid on the other half of Maye's duplex. Maye has s ...

, Jimmie Duncan, and Tyler Edmonds.

Biography

Hayne was born in

Los Angeles, California Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...

. It is unknown when he adopted the use of the last name Hayne. He graduated from Oakland Technical High School in 1959 and from

Brown Medical School The Warren Alpert Medical School (formerly known as Brown Medical School, previously known as Brown University School of Medicine) is the medical school of Brown University, located in Providence, Rhode Island. Originally established in 1811, it ...

in 1974. He interned until 1976 at Letterman Army Medical Center in

San Francisco San Francisco, officially the City and County of San Francisco, is a commercial, Financial District, San Francisco, financial, and Culture of San Francisco, cultural center of Northern California. With a population of 827,526 residents as of ...

California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...

. After finishing his internship, he practiced medicine in California, Kentucky, and Alabama, before settling in Mississippi in 1987.

Practice in Mississippi

Until 2008, Hayne performed about 80 to 90 percent of criminal autopsies in Mississippi, even though he was never certified to do so. He testified to performing more than 1,500 autopsies per year, seven times the recommendation and considered a "Phase II deficiency" by the National Association of Medical Examiners, preventing the office from gaining accreditation. While performing these autopsies, Hayne also regularly appeared in court to testify as a forensic expert, and held down two hospital jobs. In August 2008 he was terminated from his medical examiner position and was barred from performing procedures for Mississippi. The

Innocence Project Innocence Project, Inc. is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit legal organization that works to exonerate the wrongly convicted through DNA testing and other forms of post-conviction relief, as well as advocates for criminal justice reform to prevent futur ...

was responsible for identifying Hayne's misconduct and his use of state laboratories for flawed and botched autopsies.

Cory Maye case

Hayne was the medical examiner in the

case and testified at the trial for the

murder Murder is the unlawful killing of another human without justification (jurisprudence), justification or valid excuse (legal), excuse committed with the necessary Intention (criminal law), intention as defined by the law in a specific jurisd ...

of Ron Jones. In this testimony, "Hayne said he could tell from the damage to Jones’ body the trajectory the bullet took as it entered the officer. Based on that trajectory, he speculated that Maye was standing when he shot Jones, not lying on the floor, as Maye testified. Hayne’s testimony seriously damaged Maye’s credibility with the jury. However, according to a post-trial review by an actual, board-certified forensics expert whom Maye’s new legal team hired, it would be impossible to project the bullet’s trajectory based on the tissue damage in Jones’ corpse, because Jones might have been crouching, rolling, or prone when he was hit."

Jimmie Duncan case

Jimmie Duncan was convicted for the 1993 murder of Haley Oliveaux of

West Monroe West Monroe is the second largest city in Ouachita Parish, Louisiana, United States. As of the 2020 United States census, its population was 13,103. It is situated on the Ouachita River, across from the neighboring city of Monroe. The two cit ...

Louisiana Louisiana ( ; ; ) is a state in the Deep South and South Central regions of the United States. It borders Texas to the west, Arkansas to the north, and Mississippi to the east. Of the 50 U.S. states, it ranks 31st in area and 25 ...

based primarily on the testimony of Hayne and Michael West, a dentist who claimed to identify bite marks and at the time coroner of

Forrest County, Mississippi Forrest County is a county located in the U.S. state of Mississippi. As of the 2020 census, the population was 78,158. Its county seat and largest city is Hattiesburg. The county was created from Perry County in 1908 and named in honor of Nat ...

. Duncan had admitted to leaving Oliveaux in a bathtub unattended, and was initially charged with

negligent homicide Negligent homicide is a criminal charge brought against a person who, through criminal negligence, allows another person to die. Other times, an intentional killing may be negotiated down to this lesser charge as a compromised resolution of a mur ...

. Hayne examined Oliveaux and claimed to have found bite marks on her face that had not been seen by any of the other medical professionals who had previously examined her body, such as EMTs and hospital personnel. After this, a mold was taken of Duncan's teeth for use in bite mark analysis by Michael West. In performing this analysis, West repeatedly pressed the mold into the cheek of Oliveaux' corpse, creating bite marks which had not previously existed. This was recorded on videotape which surfaced in 2008. Michael Bowers, deputy medical examiner for

Ventura County, California Ventura County () is a County (United States), county located in Southern California, the southern part of the U.S. state of California. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population was 843,843. The largest city is Oxnard, Ca ...

commented with regard to the bite marks that "Dr. West created them. It was intentional. He's creating artificial abrasions in that video, and he's tampering with the evidence. It's criminal, regardless of what excuse he may come up with about his methods."

Tyler Edmonds case

At 2004 the trial for the murder of Joey Fulgham (committed by his wife), in which his 13-year-old brother-in-law Tyler Edmonds was also tried and convicted, Hayne claimed to be able to determine from the bullet wounds received by Fulgham that Edmonds had also been holding the gun at the time the trigger was pulled. On appeal to the

Mississippi Supreme Court The Supreme Court of Mississippi is the highest court in the state of Mississippi. It was established in 1818 per the terms of the first constitution of the state and was known as the High Court of Errors and Appeals from 1832 to 1869. The court ...

this testimony was called "speculative" and "scientifically unfounded" by the court. Upon retrial in 2008, absent Hayne's testimony, Edmonds was acquitted. Hayne's involvement in the wrongful convictions of Levon Brooks and Kennedy Brewer was documented in the book “''The Cadaver King and the Country Dentist''.”

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hayne, Steven Living people American forensic pathologists Place of birth missing (living people) Alpert Medical School alumni 1942 births