COLUMBUS Ohio
Judges trying to keep up with scientific advancements say they face difficult decisions in determining what kinds of evidence to allow into courtrooms. As gatekeepers over what testimony is heard by a jury, judges must decide which experts are relevant and which are truly experts.
Their concerns came to light at a three-day science seminar for judges at Ohio State University that ended Friday. The seminar was part of a congressionally mandated program to train judges in developing science.
Science training is necessary to counteract the effects on potential jurors from popular television crime shows like “CSI,” said Judge Stephanie Domitrovich of the Court of Common Pleas in Erie, Pa.
“Because of the CSI effect and the public having these raised expectations about what they think about science, we as judges need to be better gatekeepers,” Domitrovich said.
She said a juror in one of her cases believed, based on a “CSI” show, that handwriting experts could tell gender. They can’t, Domitrovich said.
The judges said it’s important to brush up on science so they are not taken advantage of by so-called “hired guns” medical or scientific experts who are rewarded with money or fame by their testimony in a case.
