Legal aspects of forensics

Civil Law

private law◦ Regulates noncriminal

relationships between individuals, businesses, agency of government, and other organizations

The Canadian Criminal Justice System

Criminal Law• public law

• regulation and enforcement of rights

• Cases tried are always the person vs. the crown• 2 main categories:

1. Summary Offence:

2. Indictable Offence:

The Canadian Criminal Justice System

How does the Constitution Act impact Forensic Investigations?

• Choose two items to analyze

CONSTITUTION ACT, 1982CANADIAN CHARTER OF RIGHTS AND FREEDOMS

 Whereas Canada is founded upon principles that recognize the supremacy of God and the rule of law:

Guarantee of Rights and Freedoms1. The Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms guarantees the rights and freedoms, subject only to limits prescribed as can be demonstrably justified in a free and democratic society.

Fundamental Freedoms2. Everyone has the following fundamental freedoms:(a) conscience and religion;(b) thought, belief, opinion and expression, including press and other media of communication;(c) peaceful assembly; and(d) association.

Legal Rights7. To life, liberty and security of person and the right not to be deprived thereof.8. To be secure against unreasonable search or seizure.9. Not to be arbitrarily detained or imprisoned.10. On arrest or detention(a) to be informed promptly of the reasons therefor;(b) to retain and instruct counsel without delay and to be informed of that right; and(c) to have the validity of the detention determined by way of habeas corpus and to be released if the detention is not lawful.

CONSTITUTION ACT, 1982

11. Any person charged with an offence has the right(a) to be informed without delay of the offence;(b) to be tried within reasonable time;(c) not to be compelled to be a witness against themselves;(d) to be presumed innocent until proven guilty in a fair and public hearing by an independent and impartial tribunal;(e) not to be denied reasonable bail without just cause;(f ) except under military law tried before a military tribunal, to trial by jury where the maximum punishment for the offence is imprisonment for five years or a more severe punishment;(h) if acquitted of the offence, not to be tried for it again and, if found guilty and punished for the offence, not to be tried or punished again; and(i) if found guilty of the offence and if the punishment for the offence has been varied between the time of commission and the time of sentencing, to the benefit of the lesser punishment.

Legal RightsCONSTITUTION ACT, 1982

12. Everyone has the right not to be subjected to any cruel and unusual treatment or punishment.13. A witness who testifies in any proceedings has the right not to have any incriminating evidence so given used to incriminate that witness in any other proceedings, except in a prosecution for perjury or for the giving of contradictory evidence.

CONSTITUTION ACT, 1982Legal Rights

Steps in Pursuing Justice

• Police investigate what happened• Crime scene is documented and searched for

evidence• All info is assembled into a report and sent to

crown attorney• Investigation continues until probable cause is

established• An arrest warrant is issued for the suspect• The suspect is arrested

• Individual is booked, fingerprinted, photographed and informed about his/her rights

ADMISSIBILITY OF EVIDENCE

The judge must be satisfied that the evidence is:[1]

• relevant,• material,• not barred by rules of admissibly• not subject to discretionary exclusion.

Federal Rules of Evidence

• Probative

• Material

Hearsay (is not admissible in the court of law)

Admissibility of evidence

A violation of Charter rights may lead to the exclusion of otherwise admissible evidence

Rules of Admissibility

The most frequently encountered rules of exclusion include:

Discretionary Exclusion• judge must determine the probative value of the evidence

• judge must determine the prejudicial effect of the evidence because of its tendency to prove matters which are not an issue or because of the risk that the jury may use the evidence improperly to prove a fact in issue.

• judge must balance the probative value against the prejudicial effect.

Authentication: Process for admitting objects as evidence. • Somebody will explain what they are, validate

them, and express an opinion of how genuine the object is, or relate them to the issues in the case.

• Police officers often testify about collection process to show chain of custody was observed.

• Although all of the formal rules of evidence may be satisfied, the trial judge may exercise his or her discretion to exclude graphic photographs (such as those of victims’ remains), if he or she considers that their prejudicial effect to the accused is greater than their relevance to the trial.

Admissibility of evidence

Presentation of Evidence

Admissibility Hearings• Direct Examination• Cross Examination Issues• Outside Experts

Courtroom Proceedings

Trial Presentation• Direct Examination• Cross Examination

Issues• Redirect• Outside

Experts/Rebuttal Witnesses