Home -> Law Blog Directory -> Criminal Law Blogs -> Defense Newsletter Blog

Criminal Law

: Defense Newsletter Blog

Schmitz: Error to ask "Were-they-lying" questions

By Tim Cone

In U.S. v. Schmitz, No. 09-14452 (March 4, 2011), the Court reversed convictions for theft concerning a program receiving federal funds, in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 666(a)(1)(A), but affirmed mail fraud convictions obtained against an Alabama state legislator who collected $177,000 in salary for a federal program but did little or no work.Reviewing the issue for plain error, the Court found that it was ?error? for the prosecution to repeatedly ask the defendant, on cross-examination, whether prosecution witnesses were ?lying? when they testified to matters inconsistently with the defendant?s version of events. The Court held that ?were-they-lying?? questions are improper for four reasons.First, ?were-they-lying? questions are not permitted by the Federal Rules of Evidence...continue to full post

Full post as published by Defense Newsletter Blog on March 08, 2011 (boomark / email).