From Hairdressing to Forensics

By Luntz, Stephen

The rush of TV series involving forensic investigators has led to a rush of students wanting to study forensic science at university, but Carol Mayne has gone one step further: setting up her own consultancy.

While DNA evidence has solved many crimes that were previously beyond police, and cleared wrongly convicted defendants, it has created problems of its own as juries become baffled by evidence that seems incontrovertible. Mayne’s slogan, however, is that DNA should stand for Do Not Assume. “It’s not as infallible as people think,” she says.

If a jury hears that the odds that a person other than the defendant has the same DNA as a blood or semen stain are one in 43 trillion it is easy to get dazzled into thinking the case is closed (AS, August 2004, pp. 14-17). What may not be revealed is the chance that the DNA was contaminated, mistested or that a lab sample somehow got swapped, as has occurred in one high profile Victorian case. It is here that Mayne comes in.

Mayne’s business, DNA Evidence Pty Ltd, helps lawyers to understand the context in which DNA was collected and tested so they can present it to the jury. Most of her work is with defence lawyers, since prosecutors can usually get the equivalent advice from the lab that conducted the research in the first place.

Mayne says she helps lawyers understand if they are dealing with “a degraded sample or only a partial match”. Her work is covered by Legal Aid, where appropriate, so it’s not just a service to the rich.

“It’s not a case of me overturning the evidence and getting someone off who was otherwise going to be sentenced to life in prison,” Mayne says. However, by ensuring that the defence lawyer is not baffled by DNA evidence, Mayne prevents it from getting more weight in a trial than it may deserve. On the other hand, at least one person who was planning to plead not guilty has changed their plea after Mayne explained how powerful the evidence was in that case.

A second string to Mayne’s bow involves the creation of DNA- laced anti-counterfeiting paints and dyes to protect works of art or valuable brands. Her most famous client was the artist Pro Hart, but Mayne has also produced labels for wineries and Olympic memorabilia.

On request Mayne may use the appropriate DNA, such as Hart’s or that from the vine on which the grapes were grown. However, she adds: “There is always at least one DNA from a source only I know”. Her business has grown to the point where she now employs an assistant for the lab work.

Mayne is not the only scientist in Australia providing forensics consulting to defence lawyers, but she says for the others it is a sideline or something they are doing in retirement. As consulting is her prime business she says she is “able to work in with court deadlines” in a way others may not.

It’s an impressive career for anyone, but more remarkable when you consider that Mayne left school after Year 10 to do a hairdressing apprenticeship. Things may have turned out very differently if the hairdresser had not gone bankrupt before Christmas that year. “I was too cool to go back to school,” Mayne says.

Instead Mayne got a government job and finished her secondary education at night. Although it took her 5 years to do the final 2 years of school once the qualification was gained, she had recovered enough enthusiasm for study to leave her job and do a Bachelor of Biomedical Science at Griffith University.

From there Mayne went on to a postgraduate diploma in molecular genetics at the University of Queensland, with a thesis on the genes responsible for tenderness in beef. When Griffith offered a Masters in forensic science, Mayne saw the opportunity to move into a field that had always interested her.

Mayne was the winner of the 2005 Queensland Smart Women – Smart State Award, and she says the award “has been fantastic for my career. It didn’t just raise my profile among scientists and lawyers, it also led to lots of schools contacting me to do speaking tours.”

When speaking to high school students Mayne explains that “once you discover something you are interested in, learning becomes fun”. Mayne says she enjoyed science and maths at school but “sport was more fun”, and does not remember ever wanting to be a scientist.

Mayne is an advocate for lifelong learning and for inventing your own career path. “When I had done forensics I didn’t want to start again at the bottom, so I did the market research and found there was an opportunity and I went for it.”

Carol Mayne advises lawyers about the strength of DNA evidence.

Copyright Control Publications Pty Ltd May 2007

(c) 2007 Australasian Science. Provided by ProQuest Information and Learning. All rights Reserved.