By Thomas G. Wilkinson and Thomas M. O’Rourke The Pennsylvania Supreme Court recently issued two decisions regarding the use of social science experts in criminal cases. As noted by University of Pittsburgh law professor David Harris, however, the opinions appear…
Blog Archives
Psychology In the Courtroom – Is Social Science “Common Sense” or a Tool to Correct Juror Misconceptions?
Tagged with: Alicia case, Criminal Law, Expert Testimony, Eyewitnesses Expert, False Confession, Jurors, Jury Persuasion, Social Science Law, Trial Practice, Walker case
Posted in Prosecution & Defense
Posted in Prosecution & Defense
Social Media Evidence – Authentication
By Hayes Hunt and Brian Kint Despite the relative freedom law enforcement officials have to gather evidence, prosecutors and defense counsel alike are limited as to what information they can introduce into evidence at trial. Perhaps the biggest hurdle attorneys…
Tagged with: authentication, Evidence, Social Media, Social Media Law, Trial, Trial Practice
Posted in Trial
Posted in Trial
Juror Misconduct and Social Media
By Hayes Hunt and Brian Kint The Daugerdas case also shows the importance of continuing juror investigation beyond voir dire. Monitoring jurors’ social networking sites during trial and deliberations can reveal instances of juror misconduct as well. As social networking…
Tagged with: Juror Misconduct, Jury, jury instructions, Social Media Law, Trial, Trial Practice
Posted in Trial
Posted in Trial
Trial and Social Media: Researching Potential Jurors
By Hayes Hunt and Brian Kint Social media is a mainstay in daily life. Over a billion people are registered users of Facebook. The Facebook logo and the logos of other social networking giants such as Twitter are quickly becoming…
Tagged with: Daugerdas, Juror Misconduct, jury selection, Social Media Law, Trial, Trial Practice, voir dire
Posted in Trial
Posted in Trial
Juror Misconduct & Bias – Social Media Investigation
by: Hayes Hunt and Jonathan A. Cavalier Use of social media to explore the histories and potential biases of a jury pool is relatively new, but it is rapidly gaining in popularity. While voir dire can be an effective tool…
Using Social Media to Track Juror’s Online Postings
By Thomas G. Wilkinson, Jr. and Lindsey E. Wilkinson Just as lawyers now routinely conduct due diligence on opposing parties’ social media pages (see our July 20 Sidebar post), some lawyers also are monitoring postings by jurors on social media…
Tagged with: Due Dillgence, Facebook, From the Sideabr, Hayes Hunt, Juror Misconduct, Jurors, Jury, Mistrial, Social Media, Social Media Law, Thomas Wilkinson, Trial, Trial Practice, Twitter law
Posted in Trial
Posted in Trial
The “W” Words of Direct Examination
By Benjamin E. Zuckerman As any trial lawyer knows, direct exams are often more difficult than cross. During cross-examination you are in charge. You make the witness tell your story by asking her leading questions that let you control the…
One Last Question.
I recently attended a large event with a room filled with lawyers and judges. One of the award recipients made the mistake of telling the audience that his acceptance speech was going to be quick and short. It wasn’t. Judges started to talk amongst themselves,…
Tagged with: Attorney, Hayes Hunt, Judges, Jurors, Jury, Lawyers, Public Speaking, Trial Practice
Posted in Trial
Posted in Trial
