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Questions tagged [evidence]

For questions concerning evidence - including the handling of evidence, rejection or admittance of evidence in a court of law, and serving evidence in civil matters.

Canonical answers:

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A man killed my son and married one of the witnesses. Can the witness's statements still be used in court against him?

In Florida a career felon, who is a complete stranger to my son, killed my son. He is being prosecuted for this crime in a state court in Florida. There are two witnesses. One of them is the the girlfriend of the criminal defendant, who saw what…
Alice Shew
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Why can courts refuse evidence?

The question Layman here. This question was inspired by this question and random things I've heard/read over the years. I'm quite confused by a concept that comes up again and again and which people seem to hold for self-evident. And that concept is…
Vilx-
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Admissibility as evidence of photographs taken by a mobile phone

It would appear that Samsung has admitted that images captured using their mobile phones' "Scene Optimizer" feature (which can be disabled) are not necessarily an accurate photograph of what the user thought they were…
Mark Morgan Lloyd
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Why is the defendant presumed guilty in traffic court?

This article says, "When it's your word against the police officer's [regarding a failure to stop at a stop sign], the person with the badge usually wins." It seems like the officer should have to present at least some kind of evidence that the…
tlewis3348
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When does silence imply consent?

Does the saying qui tacet consentire videtur (silence implies consent) carry any weight in civil litigation? For example, suppose that Alice emails Bob, "When I began work we agreed that the rate was $100/hour." Another email from Alice to Bob…
feetwet
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What if police find a dead body during an illegal search?

Suppose police conduct an illegal search of a residence (no warrant, no consent, no probable cause) and find a dead body. There is plenty of evidence in plain sight that it was a murder and also evidence of who the killer is: he is standing next to…
suriv
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Can a lawyer subject the court to a (temporary) ruse for a legitimate purpose?

This question is about the legality of a possible defence tactic that might be used in a criminal trial. It is a variation on things you see in lawyer movies fairly commonly. Suppose that a criminal trial occurs, and the defendant is not already…
Ben
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No evidence is required for an indictment by a grand jury?

I just read the indictment of Christopher Collins, a congressman, for relaying insider information on a company with publicly traded stock, and for "lying" to a federal agent, ie for denying he relayed the information. So, in other words, to deny…
Cicero
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How would mathematical demonstratives be used in a court?

I remember in a children´s show when I was little that one episode featured a court case where the villain was accused of having too much land area in contravention of the laws of the town they were in. Part of the point of the story was to tell…
R-Obsessive
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Are unaudited server logs admissible in a court of law?

Are internal server logs produced by a firm that has no standards compliance certification and does not conduct any third party audits admissible as evidence? If not, what certification is generally sufficient?
pulsejet
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Can evidence a person gives to aid an investigation then be used to prosecute that person for an unrelated crime?

Consider the following scenario: a person consents to giving some evidence to aid the investigation or prosecution of a criminal,with the reasonable, good-faith assumption that the use of that evidence will be limited in scope to the particular…
DerekG
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Is the saying that "cops can use anything you say against you" overstated or understated?

Is everything one says to a cop in the course of an enquiry really admissable as evidence against them? Even if they deny allegations? Why is that?
Statistics
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Self incrimination vs. obstruction of justice / destruction of evidence

Suppose a police officer has probable cause to arrest me based on evidence in plain sight. He wants to initiate a search pursuant to arrest. Before the officer can detain me, I put the (alleged) evidence in a place where it is accessible, but if…
Patrick87
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Could we understand that someone who is still 'innocent until proven otherwise', be 'possibly' guilty?

Although we accept that legally everyone is 'innocent until proven guilty', is it right for people to keep open in their minds the plausibility/possibility that the accused is guilty? Or is this ethically wrong and the correct stance is that not…
Abdul-Kareem Abdul-Rahman
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UK: Is it legal to secretly audio record a meeting or a phone call? Is it possible to use such recording in court?

In the United Kingdom: Is it legal to secretly audio record a meeting (in an office) or a phone call while being a participant? Is it possible to use such recording as an evidence in court or employment tribunal?
unknown
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