Professor Scherr is a nationally recognized authority on forensic DNA evidence. Since 1990, he has served as the lead attorney in numerous pretrial hearings in homicide, robbery and sexual assault cases to determine the admissibility of forensic DNA evidence.
In addition to his work involving forensic DNA evidence, Professor Scherr has extensive experience as a trial and appellate lawyer for more than 20 years. He has handled over 40 homicide cases and has trial experience as a criminal defense lawyer in a wide variety of cases, including substantial Daubert and Frye litigation.
As a law professor, Professor Scherr teaches courses in criminal procedure, evidence, expert witnesses and scientific evidence, genetics and the law and trial advocacy. He also directs the Trial Advocacy Program at the University of New Hampshire School of Law. He has lectured to judges and lawyers on a variety of evidence issues.
Professor Scherr was the principal investigator on a two–year NIH grant to study genetics, police investigation and Constitutional privacy. He has also co-designed and taught a national model, NIH–funded, Summer Faculty Institute at Dartmouth for 9 years that educates undergraduate faculty from around the country in the ethical, legal and social issues of the Human Genome Project. He has lectured to judges, attorneys, educators and others regionally and nationally on a variety of genetics and law issues.
Professor Scherr was chair and president of the ACLU of NH for 5 1/2 years and he was a member of the ACLU's national Board of Directors and chair of the Board's Patents and Civil Liberties Committee for 6 1/2 years. He was also a member of the ACLU-NH's Board of Directors and its executive committee.
Professor Scherr has also worked closely as a cooperating attorney for the ACLU-NH on a number of issues involving economic justice in the criminal justice system. He has authored successful statutory legislation on debtors' prisons and bail reform as well as a proposed constitutional amendment on informational privacy.
