Emily Prokesch

Emily Prokesch is a trial lawyer, forensic consultant, and legal strategist with over a decade of experience representing clients facing the most serious criminal charges and litigating cutting-edge issues in forensic science and surveillance.

She is nationally recognized for her work challenging unreliable forensic disciplines—most notably firearms and other pattern-matching evidence—and for her leadership in building defense capacity to address complex scientific and technological evidence.

Professional Background

Before founding EP Forensics, Emily served as Forensic Practice Director at The Bronx Defenders, First Chair Trial Attorney at the Georgia Capital Defender's Office, and Team Leader of the Discovery and Forensic Support Unit at the New York State Defender Association.

In these roles, she represented clients facing charges from misdemeanors to homicides and capital cases, developed litigation strategies, supervised and trained attorneys, and led challenges to flawed forensic methods and overbroad surveillance.

Landmark Litigation

In 2019–2020, Emily was lead counsel in the landmark Frye litigation People v. Ross/A.M., the first admissibility hearing in New York State courts on firearms and toolmark comparison. The court excluded all evidence except a comparison of class characteristics, finding that other aspects of the discipline were not generally accepted as reliable by the relevant scientific community.

Teaching & Scholarship

Emily teaches Forensic Evidence at Columbia Law School and Emory Law School, and has co-taught Artificial Intelligence and the Criminal Legal System at NYU School of Law. Her work has been published in peer-reviewed journals and presented at national conferences, and she is a frequent lecturer on forensic science and its role in litigation.

Education & Honors

Emily holds a J.D. from the Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law, where she graduated cum laude and received the Archie A. Gorfinkel Award for excellence in criminal law.

She earned her B.A. from Barnard College, Columbia University, studying Race and Class in U.S. History, and was awarded a Guggenheim Fellowship in Criminal Justice and Crime Prevention.

She is admitted to practice in Georgia and New York and is certified to handle death penalty cases in Georgia.