Question of the Week
What’s the Weirdest Evidence You’ve Seen Presented in Court?
Posted Nov 4, 2009 12:24 PM CST
By Molly McDonough
During a dinner conversation recently with a newly elected judge, we learned that defendants often, and unexpectedly, whip out their cell phones with photographic proof of whatever point they're trying to argue.
Talk of cell phone evidence jogged our memory about this "Case Oddity" post from the blog Defending People, in which author Mark Bennett discusses the challenge for defense lawyers who have to contend with a chalk outline that prosecutors have placed on the floor to represent the corpse in an ongoing murder trial.
This made us wonder about other bizarre or unique ways evidence has been presented in court. So tell us, what's the weirdest or most unique evidence you've seen presented to a judge?
Share your anecdotes in the comments below.
Read last week's answers to this question: What Inappropriate Halloween Costumes Have You Seen at the Office?
Featured answer:
Posted by Lori, "We used to encourage everyone in the office to dress up for Halloween. I’m not sure why. This practice stopped after the managing partner’s legal assistant dressed as a french maid, complete with fishnets, short skirt, and stilettos. She carried a little duster around as well. While this was disturbing attire for the office, her outfit was surpassed by one of the male associates. The guy is 6’4”, at least, and he dressed as a Hooter girl with fake breasts, a blond wig, and the tightest orange shorts I’ve ever seen on a man. After this, we were no longer allowed to dress up for Halloween."
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Comments
James
Nov 5, 2009 6:47 AM CST
Plaintiff, a married man, sought lost consortium damages, claiming invasion of his privacy had made him impotent. His attorney blackboarded damages reckoned at $50 per prospective sex opportunity. In front of plaintiff’s wife. Who scowled at the lawyer.
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Robert
Nov 6, 2009 6:25 AM CST
Divorce case: Plaintiff introduced a videotape of Defendant having sex with the family dog. This was not the bombshell Plaintiff intended, the bombshell was when the Judge asked “Who is holding the camera?”
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Erik
Nov 6, 2009 7:09 AM CST
Breach of K case: Plaintiff, a CA mom who alleged her daughter was an incorrigible drug addict who needed to be at a MN university with a renowned drug treatment program, sought to enjoin defendants, the grandparents, from paying for her daughter to go to a university lacking such program in family’s CA hometown. Evidence submitted: Photos of daughter doing lines of coke and looking totally wasted at some college party. Daughter was stupid enough to borrow mom’s camera, take the pictures at the party, and then put the camera back in mom’s possession w/o erasing the pics first.
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Jules
Nov 6, 2009 7:49 AM CST
Products Liability case, a mechanical penile implant. In order to show the jury of seven women and one man why the product was defective we had to show a video of the plaintiff, completely naked going through various motions to show how the device, that was still implanted in him, failed to work properly. It actually went much better than how I imagined it would in the nightmares I had leading up to the presentation. The jury awarded us a very high verdict and in discussion with them afterward it turned out the video was a very powerful piece of evidence that the defense could not overcome.
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Kathy
Nov 6, 2009 7:53 AM CST
Labor Injunction Case: Slashed Truck Tire. The Judge declined to admit it into the record.
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Kathi
Nov 6, 2009 8:02 AM CST
In a summary appeal case where the charge was hunting out of season, the game wardens brought the deer head which they had preserved by soaking it in brine for many months while awaiting a hearing date. The head was wrapped in the plastic that dry cleaners use and the still-damp head was dripping a bit. It was placed front and center on counsel table and when questioned by the judge as to why the game wardens went to all this trouble, they told the court that they thought it needed a “corpus delecti” in order to convict the errant hunter. The hunter was convicted and the judge declined the generous offer of the wardens to retain the evidence.
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chiquita
Nov 6, 2009 8:05 AM CST
A frying pan in a case where the wife was charged with domestic abuse.
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veritas
Nov 6, 2009 8:22 AM CST
Man dies intestate after hanging himself in a jail cell. Sister files in Probate Court a handwritten Happy Birthday card deceased sent her, as a holographic will.
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cogito ergo sum
Nov 6, 2009 8:32 AM CST
A health club that rented the basement of a 100-year-old NYC building sued its landlord and the restaurant on the main floor of the building. The health club complained that the building’s plumbing system ruined its business because of constant backups into the facility. My client the restaurant had allegedly failed to filter the grease out of the waste water before allowing it to flow into the building’s waste pipes, with the result that the fats congealed in the traps and blocked waste water from flowing out to the sewer.
We never did get to trial - the case settled - but the plaintiffs pre-marked as trial exhibit 1 a large jar filled with congealed gunk - someone opened up the floor of the health club, accessed the building’s sewer trap and removed a glob of solidified grease. They were going to present that to the jury.
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Rich Leng
Nov 6, 2009 8:43 AM CST
In a criminal perjury trial, the elderly defense attorney sought to introduce a picture of himself taken in WWII aboard ship, shirtless, holding a sextant. When asked the relevancy, he replied “It shows what a good looking guy I was.” The exhibit was admitted without objection. His client was convicted.
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Tom
Nov 6, 2009 8:49 AM CST
Domestic Violence against boyfriend after in-home fight: Boyfriend claimed that he was lashing out after Girlfriend threw a pie at him. About 4-5 months after the incident, he brought the pie to court… along with the shirt he was wearing that had pie remannts
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Jenny
Nov 6, 2009 8:53 AM CST
I’ve seen some weird evidence at trial, but the one I remember most vividly was a pile of scrap metal that opposing counsel wheeled into court – in a little red wagon apparently bought for the occasion, proudly announcing he collected it that morning. He couldn’t authenticate it himself and obviously hadn’t disclosed it in discovery, so it wasn’t admissible, but we were entertained.
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John W Roper
Nov 6, 2009 9:23 AM CST
Not my case, but about twenty years ago I was waiting for a specially set domestic hearing to wrap up so I could get other business spoken to.
Husband was being crossed on unreported income when he startled his own lawyer by suggesting that his bookie, waiting outside the hearing room, be called to testify.
This revelation so enthralled the court that an immediate sua sponte recess ensued and counsel were directed to chambers for “discussion” of the matter. I never inquired as to why the witness would have a comfort level offering sworn testimony of criminal activity in that particular setting.
Some witnesses just need to be examined “privately”—heh heh.
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Old Patent Guy
Nov 6, 2009 9:45 AM CST
A former colleague was the attorney for an inventor of an improvement in pantyhose and was having difficulty getting the male patent examiner to understand why the improvement was not obvious in view of the prior art. He finally scheduled an interview with the examiner and took with him two models, one wearing the prior art pantyhose and the other wearing the inventive pair, in order to demonstrate his client’s improvement. His client’s claims were allowed, and the patent issued.
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Elizabeth
Nov 6, 2009 9:51 AM CST
In my criminal procedure class, the professor would take out a photo from one of his cases as a prosecutor - the victim had been shot and had written in his own blood, on the hood of the car, who did it.
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Jack
Nov 6, 2009 9:52 AM CST
Uninsured motorist case. Coverage issue: was claimant married to policy holder. Plaintiff alleged he was common law spouse to policy holder. We moved for summary judgment. Among normal evidence (tax returns, leases, etc) showing him as single, I introduced a medical record from an ER room in Alabama. He sought treatment for a penile fracture which occured during “vigorous sex” when he “missed the bull’s eye.” (Quotes from medical report.) The admissibility argument was based on the fact that the woman with whom he was having the vigorous intercourse was not the policy holder, and thus his conduct was inconsistent with marriage to the policyholder (at least, in the South:).
The court granted summary judgment on an unrelated notice issue and did not address the marital relationship.
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Jen
Nov 6, 2009 9:57 AM CST
In a domestic abuse case, plaintiff introduced part of a weave as the piece that the defendant pulled out during an argument.
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Searle Mitnick
Nov 6, 2009 10:26 AM CST
I clerked for an appellate judge. The year before, he had been assigned to write the opinion in a case in which the plaintiff, who had fallen off the toilet, was suing her landlord for negligence. He told me that for months, he was carrying the entire record of the case in the trunk of his car. The toilet seat was Exhibit A. For those who are truly curious, the case is Sachs v. Pleasant, 253 Md. 40, 251 A. 2d 858
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Sheila Barton
Nov 6, 2009 10:36 AM CST
When sitting as a judge on a small claims case, I entered the courtroom to see a dog sitting in a chair at the defense table. The defendant in a dog bite case had brought his dog to court to show that he was a gentle creature who could not possibly have attacked the plaintiff. In spite of the well-behaved dog, I found for the plaintiff.
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JW
Nov 6, 2009 10:45 AM CST
MedMal case involving excessive scarring following breast implant surgery. Plaintiff produced no pics during discovery and before resting with case had client stand in front of jury, unbutton blouse, etc and show jury how the surgery turned out—defense verdict.
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Debra Bollinger
Nov 6, 2009 11:05 AM CST
A Jerusalem artichoke that was the subject of an investment contract regulatory case back in the 1980s.
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Anon
Nov 6, 2009 11:50 AM CST
Photographs of copious amounts of dog feces placed by landlord amongst the tenants stored belongings, some of which were elevated 3-4 feet off the ground. Landlord’s attorney actually argued that the landlord’s dogs climbed inside kayaks to take a dump . . . .
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Thank You
Nov 6, 2009 11:54 AM CST
Clerking for State’s Attorney’s Office, man charged with burglary, entered into a garage, opened a refrigerator, stole a “lemon pie.”
It was hilarious!
Believe it or not, I have other good ones, but modesty requires that I do not share them.
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J. Bull
Nov 6, 2009 12:47 PM CST
Misdemeanor Drug paraphernalia case- the state introduced a spark plug claiming it was a pot pipe and followed it up with a three foot bong with a sticker on it stating “the way to a women’s heart is through her F***ing Ribcage”. This led to my objection, “You Honor, that bong is clearly more prejudicial then probative. We need to redact that Bong!” The state then agreed to give my client credti time served.
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fred rodgers
Nov 6, 2009 1:06 PM CST
I entered the courtroom of our recently opened new courthouse to discover that one of the parties had spread a tarp that was spread with hay. It was for a UCC case about the mustard content of alfalfa defendant sold plaintiff rancher for his horses. Plaintiff contended the feed had more mustard than usage in the trade and it made made his horses sick. What it also accomplished was to make our new courtroom redolent of hay for months afterward, causing sneezing, watery eyes and itching.
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Ally Howell
Nov 6, 2009 1:11 PM CST
My client was a single mom who had been married several times before. I called her (but not to her face) “fertile Myrtle”. She had given birth to a dozen children – three of whom lived with one of her former husbands, five of whom lived with her, two of whom lived with a former mother-in-law, and the other two who lived with another ex-husband.
One of the children who still lived with her was conceived and born outside of marriage. The father never wanted to acknowledge the child. So, my client’s most recent ex-husband had in their divorce papers acknowledged the child as his and agreed to pay support for the child. (Where are those kind of guys in every other case?)
Later, the true father of the daughter born outside of marriage was married. He and his new wife found out that they could not have children of their own because she was sterile. So, the father seized on the idea of acknowledging this daughter and getting custody of her. When my client would not agree with his plan, he hired a lawyer and instituted a paternity and custody case. We counter-claimed for support in the event that the court found him to be the father.
At trial, the husband’s lawyer called several witnesses in an attempt to prove that my client was a poor mother. Both witnesses were women who claimed to be familiar with my client’s mothering skills and who opined that my client’s mothering skills were deficient without giving any details. Both also stated that in their opinion the father was the better parent.
On cross-examination of one of the witnesses, the following occurred:
MS. HOWELL: You were previously married to MS. Jones were you not?
THE WITNESS: Yes, I was.
Q – You were divorced from him in this county were you not?
A – Yes, I was.
Q – Your Honor may I approach the witness.
THE COURT; Go ahead.
Q – Mrs. Jones is that your signature there on this affidavit in your divorce file which I
obtained from the clerk of the court?
A – Yes, it is.
Q – Before you signed that affidavit, did you swear to tell the truth to the Notary?
A – Yes.
Q – In this affidavit you state that MS. Jones threw your clothes and belongings out of the
house and on to the porch and lawn. Is that correct?
A – Yes, it is.
Q – In this affidavit your further state that MS. Jones grabbed you by your hair and drug
you out of the house on to the lawn. Is that correct?
A – Yes, it is.
Q – Did MS. Jones in fact do what you stated in the affidavit?
A – Yes, he did.
Q – Because of the things you said he did to you, you asked the court for an order of
protection did you not?
A – Yes, I did.
Q – You asked for the order of protection because you were scared of him. Is that
correct?
A – Yes it is.
Q – Were you truly scared of him at the time of your divorce from him?
A – Yes.
Q – Is this the same MS. Jones about whom you testified earlier as being a good man, a
peaceable man, and a man who would be a good father?
A – Yes, sir.
Q – Mrs. Jones, I am confused. Which is MS. Jones a peaceable, loving man who would
make a good father or a violent man of whom you were very afraid?
A – Well, you know how it is. You say what you have to say.
Needless to say we won the case because the judge found the father’s evidence
and witnesses to not be credible.
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Daniel Reitman
Nov 6, 2009 1:51 PM CST
Case 1: A dissolution in which husband, pro se, tried to get spousal support. He testified that he planned to use the money to open a business that would employ 25 people. I took one look at the judge’s face and knew he wasn’t getting support.
Case 2: Domestic violence hearing. The respondent found, on the petitioner’s computer, a statement by the petitioner’s sister that tended to suggest fabrication of the sister’s expected testimony. What made this unusual was that the statement was encrypted by randomly inserting the letter R preceded by a random vowel. Once these were stripped out, the statement was legible and the sister acknowledged it on cross.
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AndytheLawyer
Nov 6, 2009 3:49 PM CST
At an 8:30 a.m. motion calendar, opposing counsel was drunk—not visibly, but he smelled like a broken bottle of bottom-shelf whiskey. I called this to the court clerk’s attention and, when the judge took the bench and called our case he asked both of us to approach the bench. The other lawyer’s breath was enough evidence for the court to continue the matter—and to refer him to The Other Bar (an “AA” for attorneys).
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K. Starr
Nov 6, 2009 4:35 PM CST
A blue dress “adorned” by a high-placed public official.
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LawGirl
Nov 6, 2009 6:00 PM CST
Two come to mind:
1) In a Divorce case, where custody modification was at issue, ex-Husband brought in a bag full of sex toys that his child had collected for him to bring to Court. Although he made a valient argument that the toys had been disinfected, they weren’t admitted.
2) In a Resisting Law Enforcement / Attempted Murder case, the Defendant was accused of shooting at police officers while they took shelter behind the doors of their cruiser. The Prosecutor brought in the car door. (I guess pictures just would not have been good enough.)
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Bob O
Nov 6, 2009 7:16 PM CST
Divorce/custody case. Husband recorded everything. Everything. He produced hundreds of hours of recordings in response to discovery requests. He filed on my client (wife) for contempt alleging that wife had purposely hit him with her car, causing him serious and painful injuries to his hip. The incident allegedly occurred in a gravel covered parking lot. On the eve of the hearing I discovered among the hundreds of hours of recordings that he had recorded the entire 20 some minute event. Two judges patiently listeded to the entire recording (the case was appealed de novo). There was no sound of an impact & after you could hear my client’s vehicle roar off in the distance, you could clearly hear the husband walk to his car in a normal gait. Neither judge heard arguments. I wanted to argue, “if you don’t hear a hit, you must acquit”. Both judges must have thought that, though. They both denied the contempt and protective order.
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Lew
Nov 6, 2009 9:52 PM CST
A used condom. Seriously. Saw it happen before my own eyes. Move for admission - granted. Clerk handed plastic baggy to guy to put it in.
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ORL ASA
Nov 7, 2009 8:40 AM CST
Pro Se female defendant in stalking case. It was going to be tough to prove the element of maliciousness because there were never any overt threats of violence. As part of her case in chief she sought to introduce a bag of her hair. She hoped to disprove a police report that had described her hair as brown, when clearly it was more black/dark brown. I had no objection to her entering her hair into evidence, but the judge unfortunately did.
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Robert
Nov 7, 2009 11:31 AM CST
A whole paddlefish frozen for two years prior to trial. In the prosecution of an illegal paddlefishing case.
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Jackcatscal
Nov 8, 2009 11:49 AM CST
Bill Lerach hauling a box of shredded Enron documents into federal court in Houston. That was before he went to jail, of course.
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egor
Nov 9, 2009 9:48 AM CST
A big slab of aged wedding cake. In a small claims court case against the wedding cake baker because the cake was not as envisioned by the bride.
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zakinma
Nov 11, 2009 9:55 AM CST
Eviction for nonpayment of rent and violation of lease for failing to cooperate in landlord’s bug eradication efforts. Tenant counterclaimed for unsanitary conditions. Tenant produced a baggie of live bedbugs she claimed to have collected from her unit, and went on to identify each one by name . . . .
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Trentonator
Nov 13, 2009 11:16 AM CST
Had a rape client who’s defense was that he was so well hung that the victim would not have been able to “accomodate” his large endowments. His own wife testified on his behalf, and she was a very large woman, who said if he’d had sex with that girl “She’d a KNOWED it! Thought about re-enacting the scene from Blazing Saddles “Excuse me while I whip this out!” but we did not go to those “lengths. Jury acquitted him.
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cwallace
Nov 17, 2009 11:39 AM CST
During a trial where I was representing the defendant in a claim for damages to a piece of equipment, the Plaintiff’s attorney brought in photographs of the damaged item blown up to 4’x6’ exhibits. Turns out that while they had not been provided during discovery I asked the court (and opposing counsel) if I could use their exhibits during my cross of the first witness. Of course no objections - just looks of surprise! Based in large part on their own photographs that they did not provide in discovery - case won.
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