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Indian Woman Convicted of Murder By Brain Scan

Posted by CmdrTaco on from the 1984-came-a-few-years-late dept.

Kaseijin writes "Neuroscientist Champadi Raman Mukundan claims his Brain Electrical Oscillations Signature test is so accurate, it can tell whether a person committed or only witnessed an act. In June, an Indian judge agreed, using BEOS to find a woman guilty of killing her former fiancé. Scientific experts are calling the decision 'ridiculous' and 'unconscionable,' protesting that Mukundan's work has not even been peer reviewed. How reliable should a test have to be, when eyewitnesses are notoriously fallible? Does a person have a right to privacy over their own memories, or should society's interest in holding criminals accountable come first?"

5 of 453 comments (clear)

  1. 5th by DoofusOfDeath · · Score: 5, Insightful

    Does a person have a right to privacy over their own memories

    In the U.S. I would say yes, because we have the 5th Amendment to the Constitution. In Indian law, I have no idea.

    At first blush this sounds like a high-tech form of seeing if the witch can float.

    1. Re:5th by Nuclear+Elephant · · Score: 5, Insightful

      Just to play devil's advocate, the courts could argue here in the US that brain scans are evidentiary, and not testimony (hence witness against one's self). My guess is they would argue that brain scans are of the same family of evidence as DNA; e.g. it doesn't "testify against you", but is rather physically relevant to the case. I would hope that this would cause outrage, but judging by the number of other things the government has desensitized us to, it wouldn't surprise me.

    2. Re:5th by elrous0 · · Score: 5, Insightful

      If psychics are so real, how come none have come forward to debunk James Randi (the way that he has debunked dozens of them)? It would seem a fairly simple task. He has even agreed to meet psychics on "neutral ground," but still no takers.

      --
      SJW: Someone who has run out of real oppression, and has to fake it.
  2. Did anyone else ... by DikSeaCup · · Score: 5, Insightful

    Did anyone else read that headline and think, "She scanned his brain and it killed him?"

    --
    I talk about stuff.
    1. Re:Did anyone else ... by oodaloop · · Score: 5, Insightful

      Seconded. I think perhaps the title could have been better worded. Like, "Brain Scan Used in Murder Conviction of Indian Woman".

      --
      Tic-Tac-Toe, Global Thermonuclear War, and relationships all have the same winning move.