Digital Commons Network^™

Nullification At Work? A Glimpse From The National Center For State Courts Study Of Hung Juries, Paula Hannaford-Agor, Valerie P. Hans

Faculty Publications

In 1998, the National Institute of Justice awarded a grant to the National Center for State Courts ("NCSC") to examine the frequency and various causes of hung juries. One of the factors that the NCSC project staff investigated was jurors' perceptions of the fairness of the law they were asked to apply in felony trials as well as jury and case characteristics that are often associated with jury nullification. The project also asked judges and other court actors to rate the strength of the evidence in the case. Thus, the project enabled researchers to examine jurors' views, the evidence, and …

Harmonizing Rules 609 And 608 (B) Of The Federal Rules Of Evidence, Donald H. Zeigler

Articles & Chapters

No abstract provided.

Revenge Or Mercy? Some Thoughts About Survivor Opinion Evidence In Death Penalty Cases, Joseph L. Hoffmann

Articles by Maurer Faculty

No abstract provided.

Are Police Free To Disregard Miranda?, Steven D. Clymer

Cornell Law Faculty Publications

Convictions Of Innocent Persons In Massachusetts: An Overview, Stanley Z. Fisher

Faculty Scholarship

Scholars documenting the incidence and causes of wrongful convictions in the United States have focused on cases arising all across the country. Because reform of the practices that lead to such errors of justice must largely take place on the state level, there is value in examining wrongful convictions in particular jurisdictions. This article attempts to identify and briefly describe all known cases of conviction of innocent persons in Massachusetts from 1800 to the present time. Part I discusses the criteria for identifying "the innocent." For the purpose of gaining support for needed reforms in the law, the most persuasive …

The Blooding Of America: Privacy And The Dna Dragnet, Jeffrey S. Grand

Cardozo Law Review

No abstract provided.

The Legal Context And Contributions Of Dostoevsky's Crime And Punishment, William Burnham

Michigan Law Review

Dostoevsky's Crime and Punishment is of more than average interest to lawyers. The title perhaps says it all in terms of content. The chief protagonist, the murderer Raskolnikov, is a law student on a break from his studies. And the pursuer of the murderer is a lawyer, an examining magistrate. But the more subtle and more important legal aspects of Crime and Punishment concern the time period in Russian legal history in which the novel was written and is set. The 1860s in Russia were a time of tremendous legal change. Among other things, an 1861 decree emancipated the serfs …

Chambers V. Mississippi: The Hearsay Rule And Racial Evaluations Of Credibility, Andrew Elliot Carpenter

Washington and Lee Journal of Civil Rights and Social Justice

No abstract provided.

Introduction, Ellen Yaroshefsky

Cardozo Law Review

No abstract provided.

Closing Remarks, Barry Scheck

Cardozo Law Review

No abstract provided.

Thinking Outside The Box: How The Enforcement Of Ethical Rules Can Minimize The Dangers Of Prosecutorial Leniency And Immunity Deals, Michael S. Ross

Cardozo Law Review

No abstract provided.

No Sauce For The Gander: Valuable Consideration For Helpful Testimony From Tainted Witnesses In Criminal Cases, H. Richard Uviller

Cardozo Law Review

No abstract provided.

What Is True? Perspectives Of A Former Prosecutor, Steven M. Cohen

Cardozo Law Review

No abstract provided.

Expanding The Evidentiary Frame For Cooperating Witnesses, Daniel Richman

Cardozo Law Review

No abstract provided.

A Canadian Perspective On The Role Of Cooperators And Informants, Steven Skurka

Cardozo Law Review

No abstract provided.

Witness Coaching By Prosecutors, Bennett L. Gershman

Cardozo Law Review

No abstract provided.

When Prosecutors Prepare Cooperators, Joel Cohen

Cardozo Law Review

No abstract provided.

A Defendant's Right To Exculpatory Evidence: Does The Constitutional Duty To Disclose Exculpatory Evidence Extend To New Evidence Discovered Post-Conviction, Todd E. Jaworksy

St. Thomas Law Review

This note will first address Brady and the modifications made to the disclosure law by subsequent cases. Second, this note will explain the ethical obligations concerning a prosecutor's duty to disclose exculpatory evidence post-conviction as set out by the Model Rules of Professional Conduct. Third, this note will critically examine various case law in which the constitutional duty to disclose is seemingly extended to encompass post-conviction, newly discovered exculpatory evidence in the hands of the prosecutor. Finally, this note will conclude with an analysis and opinion of the disclosure law, discussing why the constitutional duty should be extended post-conviction.

Mitigation Evidence And Capital Cases In Washington: Proposals For Change, Mary Pat Treuthart, Anne Branstad, Matthew Kite

Seattle University Law Review

Part II of this article examines the United States Supreme Court's recognition of the importance of mitigation evidence in capital cases. Part III then focuses on the role of mitigation evidence in Washington's death penalty scheme. The following section, Part IV, addresses the public policy implications when mitigation evidence is not presented. Finally, Part V proposes changes to the current sentencing procedure in Washington involving capital crimes.

The Ethics Of Evidence, J. Alexander Tanford

Articles by Maurer Faculty

Professor J. Alexander Tanford offers a unique perspective on the ethics of evidence, illustrated by examples of his own personal experiences as well as excerpts from film and literature. This Article is a must read for any litigator as it addresses the issue of where the line is to be drawn regarding evidence in the courtroom.

Expanding The Evidentiary Frame For Cooperating Witnesses, Daniel C. Richman

Faculty Scholarship

One telling feature of this conference as a whole has been the extent to which speakers have focused on the cooperation dynamic outside the courtroom. Prosecutors should take more pains to avoid suborning or even unconsciously encouraging perjury by the cooperator who is looking for a lower sentence. Courts and disciplinary authorities should ensure that such pains are taken.

What's interesting is how little attention has been given to changing what happens in front of the jury. Since our assignment has been to think "outside of the box" (which usually means proposing something interesting but really wrong or dangerous), I'd …

Toward The Formation Of "Innocence Commissions" In America, Barry C. Scheck, Peter J. Neufeld

Articles

The article advocates for the establishment of "innocence commissions" to investigate and address wrongful convictions in the U.S. criminal justice system. Drawing parallels to the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB), which investigates transportation accidents, the authors propose that these commissions would identify systemic defects leading to wrongful convictions and recommend reforms to prevent future miscarriages of justice. They emphasize the need for independence, subpoena power, and public accountability to ensure the commissions' effectiveness.

Dial-In Testimony, Richard D. Friedman, Bridget Mary Mccormack

Articles

For several hundred years, one of the great glories of the common law system of criminal justice has been the requirement that prosecution witnesses give their testimony in the presence of the accused" face to face," in the time-honored phrase-under oath, subject to cross-examination, and, unless unfeasible, in open court. In the United States, this principle is enshrined in the Confrontation Clause of the Sixth Amendment, which provides that "[i]n all criminal prosecutions, the accused shall enjoy the right ... to be confronted with the witnesses against him." But now a new way is developing for witnesses for the prosecution …

The Conundrum Of Children, Confrontation, And Hearsay, Richard D. Friedman

Articles

The adjudication of child abuse claims poses an excruciatingly difficult conundrum. The crime is a terrible one, but false convictions are abhorrent. Often the evidence does not support a finding of guilt or innocence with sufficient clarity to allow a decision free of gnawing doubt. In many cases, a large part of the problem is that the prosecution's case depends critically on the statement or testimony of a young child. Even with respect to adult witnesses, the law of hearsay and confrontation is very perplexing, as anyone who has studied American evidentiary law and read Supreme Court opinions on the …

Proposed Amendments To Fed. R. Crim. P. 26: An Exchange: Remote Testimony, Richard D. Friedman

Articles

Recently, the Supreme Court declined to pass on to Congress a proposed change to Federal Rule of Criminal Procedure 26 submitted to it by the Judicial Conference. In this Article, Professor Friedman addresses this proposal, which would allow for more extensive use of remote, video-based testimony at criminal trials. He agrees with the majority of the Court that the proposal raised serious problems under the Confrontation Clause. He also argues that a revised proposal, in addition to better protecting the confrontation rights of defendants, should include more definite quality standards, abandon its reliance on the definition of unavailability found in …

The Economic Analysis Of Evidence Law: Common Sense On Stilts, Richard O. Lempert

Articles

There was a time when the empire of Law was not overrun by economists. The economists had their own fiefdoms to be sure-there was the Duchy of Antitrust and the Kingdom of Regulatory Law-but the economists lived in peace within these borders, welcoming many unlike themselves into their midst, only gently proselytizing their students in the first few classes of a term, and swearing fealty to the law. It is true that a few marauders from beyond the borders saw the wealth of the empire and sought to colonize it, but even the most daring, Archbishop Coase and Duke Gary …

Admissibility Of Plea Agreements On Direct Examination- Are There Any Limits?, James D. Carlson

University of Miami Law Review

No abstract provided.

Perry Mason Meets The "Legitimate Tendency" Standard Of Admissibility (And Doesn't Like What He Sees), Brett C. Powell

University of Miami Law Review

No abstract provided.

Expert Testimony On Eyewitness Identification: Admissibility And Alternatives, Thomas Dillickrath

University of Miami Law Review

No abstract provided.

Casting Light On The Gray Area: An Analysis Of The Use Of Neutral Pronouns In Non-Testifying Codefendant Redacted Confessions Under Bruton, Richardson, And Gray, Bryant M. Richardson

University of Miami Law Review

No abstract provided.