FALL 2001
Peter Keane
GENERAL INSTRUCTIONS FOR EVIDENCE EXAM
The total time for this exam is 3 hours. There are three essay questions which make up
this exam. Each question is worth 1/3 of the total grade. You should plan to spend 1 hour
on each of the essays.
This is an open book exam. Any materials you wish to have with you, you may bring to the
classroom.
QUESTION I - ONE HOUR
Sandra, Buddy and Chester are native-born Americans, living in Catspaw, Idaho who belong to a right-wing anti-immigrant group. They are indicted for murder and other crimes stemming from their sending anthrax filled letters to several Democratic Party United States Senators. The letters claimed to be from Muslims and they caused the deaths of several postal workers. Among the evidence presented by the prosecution is:
1. A letter that the prosecution claims is in Sandra's handwriting. It is written to her fiance and says, "I told my family doctor that I plan to get rid of all those Arabs."
2. Testimony by George, Buddy's neighbor, who says that when he and his wife were driving by Buddy"s home, George's wife said, "Look at that white powder Buddy and Chester are pouring into those bags. Is that cocaine?"
3. Testimony of an employee of Catspaw, Idaho's post office that the business ledger shows several letters were mailed from Catspaw to Senators in Washington.
4. The transcript of a prior civil case where murdered postal workers' families sued Sandra, Buddy and Chester for wrongful death. The transcript has Earl, the former Catspaw barber, testifying to his cutting Sandra's father's hair and hearing her father say "Goddamit, I told Sandra not to use my backpack to haul all them politician's letters to the post office. I had that pack since Korea and now she lost the damn thing. "
Discuss and analyze all evidentiary issues that are raised by these facts. Explain how these issues should be resolved and give your reasons why?
QUESTION II - ONE HOUR
Citibank sues Sid, its former treasurer, for embezzling $50 million.
1. The prosecution calls Emily, leader of a local group which is dedicated to principles of spirituality through drinking iced tea and
wearing properly shined shoes. Emily is asked if Sid told her he was stealing the
bank's money. Emily refuses to answer under the
Clergy-Penitent privilege. Sid says it is fine with him if Emily answers. The judge orders her to answer; she still refuses to answer and she
is held in contempt and jailed.
2. Sid's psychiatrist testifies for the prosecution that in one of their sessions, Sid told the psychiatrist that he (Sid) mentioned to his
lawyer, after the bank fired him, that he had been embezzling for years and simply couldn't help himself
3. Sid's lawyer asks the court, in a motion prior to trial, to take judicial notice that obsessive stealing is
a recognized mental disorder. The lawyer attaches to his motion a copy of the book
DIAGNOSTIC MANUAL III which is the definitively recognized work on mental illnesses. The book describes uncontrollable theft
as a recognized mental disorder.
4. The plaintiff offers evidence that Sid embezzled from 4 other banks which he had worked at before he was employed by Citibank.
5. Sid offers evidence that Citibank sued, for embezzlement, the last 18 treasurers who had worked for the bank before Sid.
6. Sid calls a TV Reporter who is working on the embezzlement story and asks her if she was ever told by three Citibank executives that the charges against Sid were false and that the executives all believed that the bank president was the embezzler.
Discuss and analyze all evidentiary issues raised by these facts. Explain how should those issues be resolved and give your reasons why?
QUESTION III - ONE HOUR
Hip-hop singer "Notorious M.O.M." is sued for copyright infringement for performing a song using music which was originally written, performed and distributed in a different song by the rap singer "Dr. Drip-dry." "Notorious M.O.M"'s defense is that it is not the same music.
1. Drip-dry presents testimony of witnesses who claim they heard a female vocalist, who was definitely not the male singer Drip-dry, perform the song at fundraising gatherings held by Al Qaeda in remote terrorist camps in Afghanistan.
2. A witness testifies that he is an expert on musical tempo, beat, rhythm, and tone. He also says that a CD he listened to which was labeled "Notorious Mom: Warm and Sentimental" is an identical match in all those musical features to Dr. Drip-dry's recorded song "F... all that M.....-...... S... in this C...-....... World!"
3. The witness is asked on cross-examination, "Didn't you say to your Aunt Bessie that you heard the Notorious M.O.M. song on audiotape." The witness denies saying this.
4. Wanda, a 17-year old, testifies that she listens to a lot of "Hip-Hop" and "Rap" music, that she has listened to both the songs and that the music sounds the same to her. M.O.M calls Aunt Bessie to testify that the witness (in 1 & 2 above) told her that she listened to both songs on audio tape and never listens to music on CD.
Discuss all evidentiary issues raised by these facts. State how these issues should be resolved and why.