This volume is the third edition of a work which, since its first appearance in 1973, has become the classic short treatment of its subject. The two senior authors, Professors Moenssens and Inbau, have long been associated with forensic science and have collaborated on the treatise since its inception. They are joined on the present edition by Professor James E. Starrs, also an experienced and well-known author on forensic science matters.
Media coverage of the O.J. Simpson trial focused global attention on the forensic sciences and the role of scientific and medical evidence in the courtroom. There was little discussion, however, of books that present a scholarly overview of the subject. Scientific Evidence in Civil and Criminal Cases is one of those texts. Now in its fourth edition, this treatise has more than doubled in size, scope, and value since publication of the original manuscript by Moenssens, Moses, and Inban in 1973. Substantial additions and revisions in the 1995 text appropriately reflect not only developments in the field but also the wisdom and insight gained from the authors' nearly 100 years of combined experience in legal practice and scholarship.
In the considered judgment of this reviewer, this new book by Moenssens, Moses, and Inbau is one of the best books of its type on the market today. In a little over 600 pages, the authors manage to survey the forensic sciences in just enough depth to give the layman sufficient data to discuss a topic intelligently. No attempt has been made to make this a definitive treatise, a training manual for scientists, a compendium of research efforts, or a textbook for practitioners. Each category of evidence is covered as to methodology, significance, and courtroom usage.
With lucid text, four-color illustrations, and abundant examples, Criminal Evidence follows the path of evidence From Crime Scene to Courtroom. Focusing on the Federal Rules of Evidence and their state counterparts, Derek Regensburger offers a clear introduction to the principles of evidence and instructions for collecting, preserving, and presenting evidence in a criminal case. The book surveys the major concepts of evidence law such as relevance and burden of proof, discovery, admission of expert witness testimony, impeachment of witnesses, character evidence, hearsay, authentication of physical evidence, and more. Actual trials and news excerpts bring the material to life as they illustrate the role of evidence in real cases. Videos of mock trial scenes on the book’s website reinforce students’ understanding of key concepts. New to the Third Edition: A new chapter on trial practice and witness preparation Streamlined discussions of the exclusionary rule, Miranda rights, and rape shield laws Updated material on eyewitness identification and admission of confessions, particularly the modification of the corpus delicti rule by many state courts Changes concerning the reliability of forensic evidence due to the release of the 2016 report on the issue authored by the President’s Council on Science and Technology, including the FBI’s rejoinder to that report New and expanded sections on bloodstain pattern analysis, arson investigation, and handwriting analysis New and updated practical examples and Evidence in Action articles to feature more recent events, including the Kyle Rittenhouse trial Professors and students will benefit from: Straightforward text that follows the evidence from collection to trial Accessible three-part organization I. The Collection and Preservation of Evidence II. Pretrial Matters III. Admissibility of Evidence Four-color photographs and exhibits that illustrate evidentiary concepts Evidence in Action, observed in real trials and news excerpts Practical examples that apply legal concepts through hypothetical scenarios Review questions and application problems at the end of each chapter test students’ mastery of the material Short mock trial scenes on the companion website that illustrate key concepts discussed in the text
Scientific Evidence in Civil and Criminal Cases provides those participating in trials with a concise understanding of the scope of commonly encountered types of expert testimony and the nature of results which my be expected from specialists. It explores both the potentialities and limitations of expert proof. It discusses the qualifications needed for expert witnesses from various disciplines and explains the status of the law concerning the types of evidence encountered in a trial. One volume.
The first edition of Statistics and the Evaluation of Evidence for Forensic Scientists established itself as a highly regarded authority on this area. Fully revised and updated, the second edition provides significant new material on areas of current interest including: Glass Interpretation Fibres Interpretation Bayes’ Nets The title presents comprehensive coverage of the statistical evaluation of forensic evidence. It is written with the assumption of a modest mathematical background and is illustrated throughout with up-to-date examples from a forensic science background. The clarity of exposition makes this book ideal for all forensic scientists, lawyers and other professionals in related fields interested in the quantitative assessment and evaluation of evidence. 'There can be no doubt that the appreciation of some evidence in a court of law has been greatly enhanced by the sound use of statistical ideas and one can be confident that the next decade will see further developments, during which time this book will admirably serve those who have cause to use statistics in forensic science.' D.V. Lindley
The Reference Manual on Scientific Evidence, Third Edition, assists judges in managing cases involving complex scientific and technical evidence by describing the basic tenets of key scientific fields from which legal evidence is typically derived and by providing examples of cases in which that evidence has been used. First published in 1994 by the Federal Judicial Center, the Reference Manual on Scientific Evidence has been relied upon in the legal and academic communities and is often cited by various courts and others. Judges faced with disputes over the admissibility of scientific and technical evidence refer to the manual to help them better understand and evaluate the relevance, reliability and usefulness of the evidence being proffered. The manual is not intended to tell judges what is good science and what is not. Instead, it serves to help judges identify issues on which experts are likely to differ and to guide the inquiry of the court in seeking an informed resolution of the conflict. The core of the manual consists of a series of chapters (reference guides) on various scientific topics, each authored by an expert in that field. The topics have been chosen by an oversight committee because of their complexity and frequency in litigation. Each chapter is intended to provide a general overview of the topic in lay terms, identifying issues that will be useful to judges and others in the legal profession. They are written for a non-technical audience and are not intended as exhaustive presentations of the topic. Rather, the chapters seek to provide judges with the basic information in an area of science, to allow them to have an informed conversation with the experts and attorneys.
Though an increasing number of criminals are using computers and computer networks, few investigators are well versed in the issues related to digital evidence. This work explains how computer networks function and how they can be used in a crime.
