Deck 3: Evidence-Basic Concepts

Question 1

The term "competency" is used to describe whether certain evidence is admissible or not.

Answer 1

True

Question 2

Most jurisdictions permit judges to take judicial notice of all public statutes or laws of the United States as well as those of their own state.

Answer 2

True

Question 3

Corroborative evidence is evidence that contradicts other evidence already given,tending to weaken or refute the prior evidence introduced.

Answer 3

False

Question 4

Conclusive presumptions are sometimes referred to as "irrebuttable."

Question 5

A court may take judicial notice after the party seeking judicial notice has rested their case.However,a court may not take judicial notice of a fact on appeal.

Question 6

Judicial notice is never a substitute for evidence.

Question 7

"Relevant evidence" and "material evidence" are interchangeable terms.

Question 8

A police officer should be aware that there is no presumption of innocence.

Question 9

Since criminal intent is an essential element of most crimes,an insane defendant would not be capable of forming such intent.

Question 10

A presumption is a device that is a substitute for evidence in all jurisdictions.

Question 11

A true presumption requires the jury to find the presumed fact from the existence of the basic fact and may be called a mandatory presumption.

Question 12

The degree of evidence that a defendant claiming insanity is required to produce is consistent throughout all jurisdictions; including under the Federal Rules of Evidence (FRE).

Question 13

The "burden of proof" refers to the admissibility of evidence at trial.

Question 14

Contradictory evidence and corroborative evidence are antonyms.

Question 15

Relevant evidence is always admissible in court.

Question 16

Prima facie evidence is evidence that requires an eyewitness.

Question 17

Presumption and inference are synonyms.

Question 18

Evidence is relevant if it makes the existence of a fact of consequence more probable or less probable than it would be without the evidence.

Question 19

A common presumption is that a person who has been missing for five years is dead.

Question 20

Presumptions are recognized because they follow in the normal course of human experience.

Question 21

Who decides what facts are of consequence,and thus material?

A)the police officer.
B)the jury.
C)the judge.
D)the attorney general.

Question 22

A court may judicially notice:

A)recordings and photographs.
B)evidence lawfully obtained by a police officer.
C)eyewitness testimony.
D)the existence and content of public laws.

Question 23

While Sunday is usually judicially recognized as a day of rest,national holidays such as the Fourth of July are typically not judicially recognized.

Question 24

A "true presumption" consists of an obvious fact and an inferred fact.

Question 25

To be admissible in court,evidence must be

A)relevant and not substantially unfairly prejudicial.
B)reliable.
C)necessary.
D)exculpatory.

Question 26

The primary reason for a stipulation is to:

A)eliminate unnecessary procedural roadblocks.
B)save time and expense.
C)make a point judicially noticed.
D)delay trial.

Question 27

Contradictory evidence is

A)evidence used to disprove a fact that has been asserted.
B)evidence that is supportive of other evidence already given.
C)evidence that is repetitious of an earlier testimony.
D)additional evidence of a different character,supporting an aspect of the case.

Question 28

A preponderance of the evidence is said to be

A)clear and convincing.
B)fifty percent plus a feather.
C)fifty percent.
D)a good chance.

Question 29

A prima facie criminal case is made when the prosecution has established that a crime has been committed and:

A)that the accused was probably present.
B)that the accused probably committed it.
C)that the accused has no clear and convincing alibi.
D)that the accused had a motive.

Question 30

Relevant evidence should be admitted

A)when the evidence is prejudicial.
B)when the evidence is improperly obtained by the police officer.
C)when the evidence is hearsay.
D)when the evidence passes FRE 403 balancing test.

Question 31

All of the following could be examples of prejudicial evidence except:

A)the defendant's prior convictions.
B)photographs of the decomposed body.
C)religious beliefs of the defendant.
D)medical examiner's report.

Question 32

The universal rule in the United States is that the results of the polygraph,or lie detector test,are admissible in court.

Question 33

Material evidence does not have to be relevant to be admitted.

Question 34

Corroborative evidence:

A)may be seen as evidence necessary to the party's claim or defense.
B)cannot be distinguished from cumulative evidence.
C)may not be used during cross examinations.
D)is the same thing as exculpatory evidence.

Question 35

The term "competency" is used when a judge decides:

A)whether certain evidence is admissible or not,or whether a person can testify.
B)whether certain evidence,or a witness,is reliable.
C)whether a witness is mentally challenged.
D)whether a certain piece of evidence is the original.

Question 36

According to FRE 401,relevant evidence is:

A)"evidence that has any tendency to make a fact more or less probable than it would be without the evidence; and the fact is of consequence in determining the action."
B)"evidence that must make the existence of any fact that is of consequence to the determination of the action more probable or less probable than it would be without the evidence."
C)"evidence that must make the existence of any fact that is of consequence."
D)"evidence that is competent."

Question 37

The burden of proof is upon the prosecution,and the defendant is entitled to a presumption of innocence unless and until the prosecution satisfies its burden.

Question 38

The presumption that the prosecution must overcome,to find a defendant guilty beyond a reasonable doubt is

A)the presumption of insanity.
B)the presumption of innocence.
C)the presumption of penance.
D)the presumption of guilt.

Question 39

A stipulation is an agreement between the judge and the attorneys as to the existence of a particular fact or group of facts.

Question 40

Prima facie evidence is often the result of a violation of:

A)a treaty.
B)the defendant's Fifth and Sixth Amendment rights.
C)a state statute.
D)federal law.

Question 41

Which of the following has not gained acceptance and thus is not judicially recognized as a scientific fact or principle?

A)Radar for determining speed
B)Polygraph,or lie detector test
C)Fingerprint analysis
D)Hair structure

Question 42

If judicial recognition of vernacular or street slang is common during a trial,why should the police officer make an effort to be specific in his or her use of language during testimony?

Question 43

Prima facie evidence that a homicide has been committed includes:

A)one individual observing another shoot a third person.
B)an unverified tip by an anonymous informant.
C)discovery of unburied human remains.
D)a person missing for more than three years.

Question 44

When a true presumption operates,the jury is told:

A)that they may find a presumed fact to exist even when there is no evidence of the presumed fact,other than the evidence of the basic fact.
B)that they must find a presumed fact to exist even when there is no evidence of the presumed fact,other than the evidence of the basic fact.
C)that they may find a presumed fact to exist.
D)that they must find a presumed fact to exist.

Question 45

The law of evidence is designed to:

A)ensure the timeliness of evidence presented at trial.
B)question the relevancy of evidence presented at trial.
C)ensure the accuracy of evidence presented at trial.
D)protect the defendant at both civil and criminal trials.

Question 46

Explain why evidence that is not relevant is not admissible,but not all relevant evidence is admissible.

Question 47

Judicially noticed facts are treated differently in civil and criminal trials,what is the difference?

Question 48

Which of the following operate as a substitute for evidence

A)judicial notice.
B)corroborative evidence.
C)stipulation.
D)contradictory evidence.

Question 49

A judge may not take judicial notice of a fact if:

A)the fact is in dispute.
B)the subject is generally known within the jurisdiction of the trial court.
C)one of the parties makes a request for notice and supplies the court with the necessary information to verify the fact.
D)the subject is capable of accurate and ready determination.

Question 50

Why do a majority of jurisdictions refuse to allow a presumption as evidence?

Question 51

Witnesses whose memories have been hypnotically refreshed:

A)are materially unreliable.
B)are banned from testifying.
C)must have reasonable restrictions placed on the use of the portion of their testimony that may have resulted from the hypnosis.
D)have severe restrictions placed on the use of the portion of their testimony that may have resulted from the hypnosis.

Question 52

A judge may take judicial notice of all of the following except:

A)the location of a street in a city.
B)a federal statute.
C)the patterns or whorls of fingerprints found at a crime scene matching the defendant's.
D)the day of the week on which a holiday fell upon.

Question 53

What are the two types of presumptions used in the law of evidence? Explain.

Question 54

If there is no prima facie case made in the government's case-in-chief:

A)the judge may declare a mistrial.
B)the prosecution has satisfied its burden of proof.
C)the defendant will likely be convicted anyway.
D)the defendant is entitled to a judgment of acquittal.

Question 55

The "balancing test" serves to exclude some evidence

A)even though that evidence may have some arguable relevance.
B)if the defendant requests the test be applied.
C)if the crime was a felony or tried in a federal court.
D)if the crime was a felony or tried in a state court.

Question 56

A judge may take judicial notice of a fact because:

A)a jury is not competent to decide the issue.
B)the judge feels the fact is irrelevant to the case.
C)the judge wants to save time and money.
D)none of the above.

Question 57

During a criminal case,a jury must be given discretion to accept or reject a judicially noticed fact because:

A)a criminal jury is typically more intelligent than a civil jury,and hence better able to decide what evidence is materially relevant.
B)a defendant's Sixth Amendment right to a jury trial will be violated.
C)a criminal trial is not under the same time constraints as a civil trial.
D)it is the jury's,not the judge's job to take judicial notice of a fact.

Question 58

Name some of the more common rebuttable presumptions.

Question 59

Evidence may be categorized within four general headings.What are these four headings?

Question 60

The issues of balancing and competency are not included in the definition of:

A)corroborative evidence.
B)relevant evidence.
C)cumulative evidence.
D)material evidence.

Question 61

Describe a situation would allow the accused in a sexual assault case to introduce evidence that a victim has had consensual sexual relations with someone else to show that he or she likely consented to sex with the accused.

Question 62

What is meant by the term "burden of proof"?

Question 63

There is no legal presumption that a "person is presumed to know the law." How then can someone be arrested,tried,and convicted of an act,without knowing the act was illegal?

Question 64

There exists a general presumption of sanity,however,explain how the burden shifts once a defendant raises the issue as an affirmative defense.

Question 65

Why can't the accused in a sexual assault case introduce evidence that a victim has had consensual sexual relations with someone else to show that he or she likely consented to sex with the accused?