Evidence law assignment

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FWQ92

Business Finance

Description

Max is on trial for shoplifting from a store. He was caught outside the store with the unpaid item in his shopping cart. During his case in chief Max testified that he had merely forgotten the item was on lower shelf of his shopping cart and he had inadvertently neglected to pay for it. During cross examination by the prosecutor, Max was asked whether he was arrested three years ago because he had written a “bounced” cheque at the same store. Defence counsel objected saying that the charge had been dismissed. How should the judge decide on the admissibility of the evidence? Discuss.

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Explanation & Answer

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Evidence Law
Introduction
In the case described, the prosecutor attempts to use the defendant's history of prior
charges as evidence to establish his guilt in the present case. The judge, in this instance, has
to determine whether this evidence is admissible or not. In evidence law, admissible evidence
refers to any document testimony or tangible evidence presented before a judge in a court of
law to consider in deciding the case. Before using evidence in a court of law, the judge must
first determine its admissibility (Murphy). Judges consider any evidence presented in a court
of law admissible if it satisfies three essential requirements. These are that it is relevant,
material and competent.
Further, the exclusionary rule must not bar the use of the evidence (Murphy).
Consequently, any evidence that satisfies all these criteria is said to be admissible. During
trials, the evidence is declared inadmissible to guarantee that it is reliable and that any
conclusions drawn from them are fair to both sides in the case.
Discussion
i.

Relevance

Initially, the judge would have to determine whether the evidence provided was
relevant to the case at hand. The eviden...


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