Anyone who likes to watch cop shows on TV has watched countless hard-fought courtroom battles over the admissibility of a critical piece of evidence. These arguments are not about the truth of evidence; they are about if the jury will ever get to see this evidence.
Why Is Admissibility so Important?
Inadmissible evidence cannot be used against the defendant during a trial. Prior to trial, an experienced criminal defense lawyer in Jefferson County, MO will thoroughly review and analyze all of the evidence; the attorney will prepare arguments on the inadmissibility of evidence where needed.
What Causes Evidence to be Considered Admissible?
Relevance: generally, evidence must be relevant to the case in order to be admissible. If the evidence does not prove or disprove something important to the case, then it would not be considered part of the case against the defendant.
Reliability: Witnesses are judged by the reliability of their testimony. An impartial witness would generally be considered to offer more reliable testimony than a friend of the defendant or a jailhouse witness who has been promised a deal in exchange for testifying.
What Factors Could Make Evidence Inadmissible?
It Is Misleading: Misleading evidence would be evidence that is introduced solely to distract the jury’s attention from the main points of the case.
It Is Unfair and Prejudicial: Evidence that would outrage the jury while not adding to the basic facts of the case would be considered unfairly prejudicial.
It Wastes Time: Numerous witnesses testifying to the same thing could be considered a waste of the court’s time.
Hearsay Evidence: This is often excluded, since the evidence may consist of testimony by one person as to what was said by someone else. However, there are many exceptions to the rule.
Expert Witnesses: An expert witness must prove that he has the credentials to testify on this subject.
Character Witnesses: Witnesses with nothing to add except their opinion of the character of either the defendant or victim are normally excluded.
Privileged Information: If the information came from a privileged source, it is excluded. Attorney/client privilege or the defendant’s right against self-incrimination are very important privileges.
Contact Wegmann Law Firm when your freedom is at risk. You need a very experienced criminal defense lawyer in Jefferson County, MO who will fight aggressively to protect your rights.
