Exam 13: Results of Examinations and Tests

In the City of Cleveland Heights v. Katz, a police officer observed a vehicle traveling at an elevated level of speed and clocked the vehicle with a radar unit. A municipal court convicted Katz of speeding and he appealed, contending that the radar gun and the instruments used to calibrate the radar gun had not been shown to have been properly tested. What steps must a police officer take to accurately clock a potential speeder with scientific instruments? What steps can a police department be forced to follow in order to prove that an instrument worked properly? Was the radar device properly maintained and serviced? Would you have overturned the conviction? Why or why not?

What is the purpose of implied consent statutes? Have these been held unconstitutional? May evidence of refusal to take a blood-alcohol test be introduced at trial? Explain.

Researchers have made a significant breakthrough in using the DNA code present in blood and other body fluids to link evidence to a specific individual. In considering DNA fingerprinting:

In considering the admissibility of testimony relating to out-of-court tests made from saliva samples that the defendant was required to give to the investigators, courts have generally held that:

Through the use of DNA evidence, a jury convicted the defendant of the rape and murder of four women over a period of time in the case of Commonwealth v. Gaynor. The defendant contended that in the case of mixed samples containing DNA, the testing protocols could not reliably detect primary from secondary contributors of DNA material or from artifact DNA. The Supreme Judicial Court of Massachusetts held that:

How does the "truth serum" procedure differ from the polygraph test? Is evidence obtained while a person is under the influence of "truth serum" admissible in a criminal case? Explain.

Testimony relating to the results of ballistics experiments is:

What was the basic holding in the Daubert case? How did Daubert change prior practice in federal courts? Does the Daubert standard make scientific evidence easier to get admitted when compared to the Frye standard?

Implied consent statutes providing for revocation of the driver's license if a person refuses to take an alcohol test:

Speed detection devices are often used to record the speed of automobiles on highways. When considering the use of such devices:

How is RADAR used to measure speed? What are the general requirements upon which trial courts insist in order to admit RADAR results in court?

In recent years, the courts have reexamined the issue of admissibility of polygraph expert testimony and examination evidence. In regard to the use of the results of polygraph examinations:

What is the principle behind laser speed detection? How has the admissibility of this evidence been facilitated by some state legislatures?

May testimony concerning the results of experiments and tests made out of court be admitted in a criminal trial? What are the requirements? What are the considerations in determining the admissibility of evidence under the Federal Rules of Evidence?

State in nontechnical terms how the polygraph operates. What three approaches have been taken by various courts to determine the admissibility of polygraph evidence? Is polygraph evidence per se inadmissible?

In addition to blood, what other substances are used to determine blood-alcohol content? What other tests are performed, and what conditions must be met before using this evidence in court?