Evidence Flashcards

A murder defendant in Delaware calls a witness to testify to his reputation for peacefulness. On cross-examination, the prosecutor may ask:

Answer: 'Have you heard' or 'did you know' questions about specific violent acts by the defendant, in good faith

Once a character witness testifies, the cross-examiner may inquire in good faith into relevant specific instances of the defendant's conduct, though extrinsic proof is not allowed.

A plaintiff in a Delaware slip-and-fall case offers evidence that the store installed warning signs the day after her fall. The evidence is offered to prove negligence. It is:

Answer: Inadmissible as a subsequent remedial measure

D.R.E. 407 bars evidence of subsequent remedial measures to prove negligence, though it may be admitted for other purposes like ownership, control, or feasibility if disputed.

In a Delaware contract dispute, a party seeks to prove the contents of a written agreement through a witness's testimony, without producing the document or explaining its absence. Under the best evidence rule:

Answer: The testimony is inadmissible because the original or an excuse for nonproduction is required

When proving the contents of a writing, D.R.E. 1002 requires the original (or a duplicate) unless its absence is satisfactorily explained under Rule 1004.

A criminal defendant in Delaware wants to testify that his co-defendant, now deceased, told a friend, 'I did the robbery alone; my buddy wasn't there.' The statement is best analyzed as:

Answer: A statement against penal interest by an unavailable declarant, admissible if corroborating circumstances indicate trustworthiness

Under D.R.E. 804(b)(3), a statement exposing the declarant to criminal liability offered to exculpate the accused requires unavailability plus corroborating circumstances of trustworthiness.

A Delaware jury has returned a verdict, and a juror later offers testimony that jurors misunderstood the judge's instructions during deliberations. Under D.R.E. 606(b), this testimony is:

Answer: Inadmissible, because jurors may not testify about statements or mental processes during deliberations

Rule 606(b) bars juror testimony about deliberations and mental processes, with narrow exceptions for extraneous prejudicial information, outside influence, or a clerical verdict error.

An expert in a Delaware toxic-tort case bases her opinion on unpublished lab data that is inadmissible hearsay. Her opinion is:

Answer: Admissible if experts in the field would reasonably rely on such data

Under D.R.E. 703, an expert may base an opinion on inadmissible facts or data if experts in the particular field would reasonably rely on them.

Delaware follows which standard for admitting expert scientific testimony?

Answer: The Daubert reliability standard as adopted by the Delaware Supreme Court

Delaware has adopted the Daubert framework, requiring the trial judge to act as gatekeeper on the reliability and relevance of expert testimony under D.R.E. 702.