In the grand scheme of trial, evidence is needed to convince jurors to return a verdict of guilty or not guilty. Evidence can take different forms such as physical evidence, substantive evidence. Regardless of the type of evidence presented, to be admissible, it must be relevant to the case. “Relevance refers to any material fact or evidence that has the tendency to make the existence of a matter in question more probable than it would be without that fact (evidentiary value)” (Britz, 2008, p. 344). examination of the legal standard of relevance of evidence will be discussed. Furthermore, the rules for inclusion and exclusion of evidence will be carefully examined based on their wording. In the final section we will present examples of evidence that could be both relevant and irrelevant to certain crimes. As mentioned above, relevant evidence refers to any material fact or evidence that makes the existence of a problem more likely than it would be without facts. When evidence has been presented and the decision to include it has been made because it passed the constitutional test and did not violate collection procedures, the evidence supporter will need to demonstrate the materiality, competence, and relevance of the evidence (Britz, 2008, p. .273). The relevance of an item evaluates the materiality of the item and its evidentiary value. The judge will conduct an evidentiary competency assessment, however, the jury may decide, in deliberation, that a specific item or witness is not credible, thus refusing to consider it. To have a full understanding of the evidence you need to understand the definition of materiality under the Federal Rules of Evidence. There are several reasons why one might believe the evidence is legal... middle of paper... the killer in the drug case. This would be considered irrelevant. In conclusion, as shown in this article, evidence is needed to convince jurors to return a guilty or not guilty verdict. Evidence comes in different forms, such as physical evidence, substantive evidence. When evidence is presented, its acceptance at trial depends on its relevance to the case to be admissible. “Relevance refers to any material fact or evidence that has the tendency to make the existence of a matter in question more probable than it would be without that fact (probative value)” (Britz, 2008, p. 344). Works Cited Britz, M. T. ( 2008). Criminal trials. Boston. Pearson Allyn & Bacon.Federal Rules of Evidence (2011) Retrieved December 18, 2011, from http://www.law.cornell.eduSpencer v. Texas, 385 US.. 554, 560 (1967)
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