Donald E Shelton Author

Hon. (ret.) Donald E. Shelton was a Circuit Judge in Ann Arbor, Michigan for almost 25 years. During his time on the bench, he served as Chief Judge of the Circuit, Juvenile and Probate Courts. The Michigan Constitution requires that judges leave the bench at age 70. After retiring from the bench, he was a Professor at the University of Michigan Dearborn and the Director of the Criminology and Criminal Justice Program and Director of the University’s Justice Reform Project. Born in Jackson, Michigan Judge Shelton earned his undergraduate degree from Western Michigan University, his Juris Doctor degree from the University of Michigan Law School, his Masters degree in Criminology from Eastern Michigan University, and his PhD in Judicial Studies from the University of Nevada Reno. Dr. Shelton is a prolific author, particularly in the field of forensic science evidence His doctoral dissertation was “Criminal Adjudication: The Challenges of Forensic Science Evidence in the Early 21st Century” and his earlier books include “Forensic Science in Court: Challenges in the 21st Century” and “Forensic Science Evidence: Can the Law Keep up with Science?”. He has published many articles and research papers and was one of the earliest published researchers into the so-called “CSI Effect” and the expectation of jurors for scientific evidence. Judge Shelton is a Fellow in the American Academy of Forensic Sciences and the past Chair of the AAFS Jurisprudence Section. He continues to teach forensic science and criminal justice and recently served as a member and committee chair of the Michigan Governor’s Forensic Science Task Force.