evidence — Online Journal — Columbia Undergraduate Law Review

fMRI v. the Frye & Daubert Standards of Evidence: Re-searching for the Truth

Although jurors are tasked as fact-finders in deciding criminal cases, the human brain is not inherently proficient in discerning truth-telling behavior. A 1991 study, for instance, revealed that Secret Service personnel were only able to detect liars about sixty-four percent of the time. Laypersons, who primarily comprise juries, fared worse, with accuracy rates no better than chance. Technology has attempted to fill this void by developing lie-detecting tests. However, from Lombroso’s 1895 pulse and blood pressure readings to Larson’s 1921 polygraph test, all existing pieces of technology have faced reliability concerns. Specifically, the scientific field of polygraph research likely will never progress far enough, as the “inherent ambiguity of the physiological measures” stifles any hope for improvement through further experimentation. To address these criticisms, functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) has taken center.

Isabella SouzaAugust 22, 2021fMRI, deception, credibility, Frye standard, Daubert standard, criminal law, evidence, juries

Urban Dictionary: The New Expert Witness?

Beyond the evident free speech questions that Iancu v. Brunetti poses, the case also has brought attention to the forms of evidence presented in court. In its argument in linking the name “Fuct” to its implied expletive counterpart, the USPTO provided an Urban Dictionary definition of ‘fuct,’which defined the term as the past tense of the verb ‘fuck,’’ finding the term to be ‘recognized as a slang and literal equivalent of the word “fucked,”’ with ‘the same vulgar meaning.’”

Daniella ApodacaMay 24, 2019federal, urban dictionary, trademark, free speech, evidenceComment

Rap in the Courtroom: Evaluating the Implications of State of New Jersey v. Vonte L. Skinner

Law enforcement’s animosity towards rap and its refusal to recognize the genre as a complex artistic endeavor can likely be traced to racial prejudices. On one hand, law enforcement views rap negatively because this music directly threatens their authority. On the other hand, multiple studies have demonstrated that rap music “primes the negative culturally held stereotype of urban Blacks.”