NUMBERS DON’T LIE…IF WE UNDERSTAND THEM

We are lawyers because we were not the strongest at science or math, or so the popular trope goes.  But numbers pervade the courtroom – employment discrimination statistics, medical causation analysis, DNA probabilities, and occasionally the likelihood that a particular person committed the crime or that the act was criminal rather than accidental.  So it

A New (Confusing) Change to Pennsylvania’s Hearsay Rules

On October 25, 2018, the Pennsylvania Supreme Court adopted two amendments to the Pennsylvania Rules of Evidence – the definitions of PRESENT SENSE IMPRESSIONS and EXCITED UTTERANCES both had new language added.  Each rule now concludes with the following statement: When the declarant is unidentified, the proponent shall show by independent corroborating evidence that the

The Indigent’s Right To Demand Expert Assistance

Imagine being the lawyer assigned to handle a high-profile, “cold” [twenty year old] murder case where the evidence was all scientific:  The swab from [the victim’s] left fingernail included a mixture of DNA profiles…[and] defendant’s DNA profile matched the major donor’s. Vaginal and rectal swabs…also matched defendant’s DNA profile.“  What do you need?  You need

The Danger of the Non-Leading Cross-Examination

If news accounts are accurate, Paul Manafort’s lawyers twice asked non-leading questions, on cross-examination, of the Government’s most important witnesses – the defendant’s accountant and Rick Gates, the latter the sometimes partner of or aide to Manafort.  And again, if the news accounts are accurate, the answers hurt. What occurred?  In each instance, the lawyer

Lawyers, Liars and Privileged Communications

If a client tells a lie to her/his lawyer, is that communication still privileged? The answer is indisputably “yes,” and if a report in the Philadelphia Inquirer (http://www.philly.com/philly/news/breaking/ex-state-chief-justice-backs-embattled-former-state-prosecutor-20180801.html)  is accurate a former State Supreme Court Justice got that question wrong. What’s the background?  A lawyer disciplinary hearing was looking into whether a former prosecutor improperly

“Liar” and “Malarkey” – Words for Prosecutors to Avoid

It is tempting, and understandably so, for any lawyer to argue to the jury that an opposing witness is a “liar,” that the witness’ story is “malarkey,” or that the story given was “an insult to the jury’s intelligence,” as long as the proof supports those conclusions.  But a recent 1st Circuit decision warns prosecutors

WHEN COURTROOM POWERPOINTS ARE TOO POWERFUL

Visuals are essential in today’s trials.  Many jurors are visual learners; many have reduced attention spans from years of watching television or online video; and many jurors ‘expect’ a show as part of a modern trial. And Powerpoint and other visuals can be potent evidence, crystalizing complex legal concepts and hitting powerful emotional chords.  This