Professional Documents
Culture Documents
TWENTY-ONE
The Investigator and The Legal System
eighth edition
LEARNING OBJECTIVES
Distinguish between detention, arrest, and charging Explain the benefit of a police officer=s making an arrest under the authority of a warrant Define and describe probable cause Discuss the risk factors involved in making a premature arrest Briefly outline the steps in a trial process Assess the importance of a criminal investigators knowing the rules of evidence Describe the hearsay rule and the philosophy under which the exception to this rule have evolved Explain the reason for the existence of evidentiary privileges Discuss the role of an investigator as a witness in a criminal trial Explain the purpose of cross-examination
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ARREST
The process of taking a person into legal custody to answer a criminal charge
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PROBABLE CAUSE
A condition in which an officer has suspicion about an individual and knowledge of facts and circumstances that would lead a reasonable person to believe that a crime has been, is being, or is about to be committed
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EVIDENCE
Anything that tends logically to prove or disprove a fact at issue in a judicial case or controversy
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PROOF
The combination of all the evidence in determining the guilt or innocence of a person accused of a crime
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JUDICIAL NOTICE
The doctrine of judicial notice is an evidentiary shortcut. Judicial notice is designed to speed up the trial and eliminate the necessity of formally proving the truth of a particular matter when the truth is not in dispute.
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TYPES OF EVIDENCE
Direct Evidence
Direct evidence usually is the testimony of witnesses that ties the defendant directly to the commission of the crime
Real Evidence
Sometimes referred to as physical evidence, real evidence is connected with the commission of the crime and can be produced in court
Demonstrative Evidence
Demonstrative, or illustrative evidence consists of maps, diagrams, sketches, photographs, tape recordings, videotapes, X-rays, and visual tests and demonstrations produced to assist witnesses in explaining their testimony
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Opinion Evidence
Matters of description in which a nonexpert may give an opinion include color, size, shape, speed, mental condition, identity, race, and language
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THE INTRODUCTION OF DEMONSTRATIVE EVIDENCE AT TRIAL Demonstration evidence includes items such as:
maps diagrams sketches photos tape recordings
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EXPERT WITNESS
A person who is called to testify in court because of his or her special skills or knowledge; permitted to interpret facts and give opinions about their significance to facilitate jurors understanding of complex or technical matters
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HEARSAY EVIDENCE
The fact that stories tend to be changed when they are repeated makes their reliability and truthfulness questionable. For this reason, the hearsay rule was created. Hearsay is derived from heard say
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EVIDENTIARY PRIVILEGES
Defendants and other witnesses have a right to have certain matters of communication barred from disclosure in court
Confidential communications between husband and wife Confidential communications between attorney and client Grand jury proceedings that are confidential requirements of law are barred
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