Evidence in law and legal systems

Evidence

Discuss the problems for prosecutors in the O.J. Simpson case of 1994. What could have been done to alleviate these problems? Be specific and cite resources.

The racist comments of Mark Fuhrman caused the jury to doubt all of the testimony disseminated by the state, given the long and complicated history of the LAPD and the African-American community in the area. Simpson had the financial resources to hire a 'Dream Team' of lawyers. Many members of the jury failed to understand the scientific evidence on which the prosecution's case rested, a problem that often arises with cases where DNA is a cornerstone of the prosecution's case.

However, the prosecution also made many notable gaffs that could have been avoided. For example, the police recovered a suicide note written by Simpson's own hand "after he was charged with the murder, but before he was arrested…an innocent person would very likely be outraged about being charged with a murder and eager to find the real killer. Prosecutors never presented the note to the jury" (Lynch 2003). Prosecutors also failed to present a disguise purchased by Simpson before the murders or an interview when Simpson revealed that he had a deep cut on his hands (Lynch 2003). More complete and coherent presentation of the facts, greater scrutiny of the prospective jurors about their scientific fluency and feelings about the LAPD could all have produced a different result.

Question 2

Describe the various courts in the United States. Give specific examples of each.

In the United States the first level of the court system take the form of the trial courts, such as the New York Circuit Court. These courts decide questions of fact, and are made up of judges and juries. The second level is that of the appellate court (such as the New York Court of Appeals) which hears appeals of wrongful procedure and other violations from the trial courts and also a few other kinds of cases involving patents and the international trade. Questions of the constitutionality of a law are decided by the U.S. Supreme Court (Types of courts in America, 2009).

Question 3

What is the importance of daily logs? Who should keep those logs and what should they contain?

Daily logs contain case names, docket number, and dates. They provide a record of the court proceedings by an objective note-taker for public record and encompass history of the day-by-moment doings of the court.

Question 4

What are the pros and cons of a jury trial? Why do you think a defendant may prefer a jury trial?

A jury is supposed to interject human and sympathetic judgment into the legal system, while still be bound by the rule of law. From the point-of-view of a defendant, a jury trial may be advantageous if he or she has a particularly sympathetic story or motivation for his or her crime. For example, a father might kill his or her child's former convicted molester upon hearing pedophile had been recently paroled. The evidence might be against the father legally, but the jury might be more sympathetic than a judge who would simply look over the facts of the case. Conversely, an unsympathetic defendant, a defendant make his or her case mainly on technical legal grounds rather than broader emotional grounds, or a defendant that had been already 'tried and hanged' in the press might prefer a judge, and waive his or her constitutional rights to be tried by a jury of his or her peers.

Question 5

There are many exceptions to the hearsay rule. Select three exceptions and describe them in detail.

The first exception is the present sense impression exception which is "a statement describing or explaining an event or condition made while the declarant was perceiving the event or condition, or immediately thereafter," in other words if the declarant was describing something the witness also saw at the same time of the utterance (Exceptions to the hearsay rule, 2009, Everything2.com). The second is that of the excited utterance, or "a statement relating to a startling event or condition made while the declarant was under the stress of excitement caused by the event or condition" (Exceptions to the hearsay rule, 2009, Everything2.com). The third is that of the "existing mental, emotional, or physical condition," exception when the declarant makes a subjective comment about his or her state of mind, emotion, or feeling (Exceptions to the hearsay rule, 2009, everything2).

Question 5

What are the five subcategories of statements that are Not Offered for the Truth of the Matter Asserted (NOTMA)? Explain these categories.

NOTMA statements include operative legal facts that are not within dispute; statements that reflect the state of mind of the auditor, statements that reflect the subjective state of mind of the declarant or a circumstantial state of mind; statements that reflect the state of mind (knowledge) of the declarant on the "traces of the mind" theory; and finally "evidence that is otherwise not offered for the truth of the matter asserted (NOTMA), but to prove something else" (Garland 2009).

Question 7

What were the advantages of using ELMO in the O.J. Simpson trial? What did it do for technology?

ELMO enables a cinematic presentation of evidence. It has the ability to enhance the clarity and the emotional as well as the intellectual appeal of evidence. "The Electronic Courtroom Visual Evidence Presentation…works like an overhead/opaque projector, instantly transmitting the image of documents, x-rays or physical evidence on up to eight television monitors strategically placed throughout the courtroom. Unlike a simple overhead projector designed for theater or classroom settings, the modern ELMO configuration permits the trial judge, witnesses, jurors and counsel to comfortably view a single piece of evidence from a multitude of vantage points" (ELMO, 2009, Middle District of PA). Its multiplicity of different points of allows for more 'doubt' to be sown in the mind of the jury in a way that has emotional and visual appeal. Its multiplicity also favored the defense in the Simpson case, as the defense does not have to prove that its alternative theory of the crime was correct, merely that it could conceive of a (barely) plausible alternative to the prosecutor's theory.

Question 8

Discuss in detail the advantages and the disadvantages of using projected images rather than hard copies for evidence.

A projected image often has more emotional appeal and resonance in the memory. However, it encourages a collective experience of a particular bit of evidence. People do not have to take the time to individually examine a hard copy in greater detail, which can result in more reflective consideration and possibly a dissenting voice in the jury room that could win vacillating jurors over to a less obvious point-of-view.

Question 9.

Describe the special balancing test used in evaluating the admissibility of prior uncharged felony convictions of a defendant who takes the stand.

The court must weigh the probative or proof-giving (truth-telling) value of the evidence with its tendency to unfairly prejudice the jury when admitting past crimes. If the felony crimes show a pattern in the defendant's past, especially if they are of crimes that tend to occur multiple times like sexual harassment, sexual assault, or rapes, this may increase the probative value of admitting past crimes into the evidence.

Question 10

You are the investigator at a homicide. Describe the steps you would follow to maintain chain of custody of the evidence.

The first person to collect an item of evidence, in this case the investigator, signs and dates the package of evidence. Then, the evidence is transported from the crime scene to the forensic laboratory where the "receiving officer signs the evidence package and dates it. Everyone who handles the evidence does likewise until the analysis is complete. At this stage, the evidence will be given to the police for storage until its presentation in court. The receiving police officer will sign for the evidence and it will be stored in a secure area to minimize the risk of interference or loss. When the case is presented in court, the prosecuting lawyer takes over custody of the evidence and signs to that effect" (Evidence, 2009, eNotes)

Question 11

Explain the pretrial identification procedures. Discuss in detail, with examples, illegal pretrial identifications.

To pass legal scrutiny, lineups should contain at least five people, all participants must be same sex, race, and physical 'type,' wear the same clothing, and the accused should be placed in lineup randomly. Additionally, people known by the eyewitness should not be in lineup, photos should be taken to prove the fairness of its composition if this is called into question in court, different witnesses should view the lineup separately and different witnesses should receive the same instructions about identifying the suspect (Lesson 12, 2009 Slide 7 )