Showing posts with label Attorneys. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Attorneys. Show all posts

Thursday, April 19, 2007

Crime Show Effects on Real Trials

This came in just recently from a Maricopa County source, Attorney Andrew Thomas.

Of 300 prosecutors in Phoenix's Maricopa County attorney's office:
  • 61 percent say jurors seem to believe forensic crime shows on TV are true.
  • 90 percent have to explain to juries why police don't collect the kind of evidence seen on television.

Of the 102 most experienced prosecutors:

  • 38 percent had at least one trial that ended in an acquittal or a hung jury when forensic evidence was not available to corroborate testimony.
  • 52 percent have seen a defendant receive a more favorable plea offer because there were expected problems with the 'CSI effct' had the case gone to trial.
  • 80 percent reported juror disapproval with the lack of forensic evidence.

Source: Maricopa County Attorney Andrea Thomas