The explosion of expert evidence in our courtrooms in the last several decades has been accompanied by increasing concerns about "junk science" and "pseudo-science". After many years of debate within the legal and scientific communities regarding the nature and extent of junk science, the US Supreme Court, in the 1993 landmark case, Daubert v. Merrell Dow Pharmaceuticals, Inc. articulated an entirely new set of criteria based on the scientific method for the admissibility of expert testimony. In 2000 the Supreme Court of Canada in R. v. J.-L. J. referenced Daubert as a relevant authority and expressly adopted the same elements of analysis. Expert evidence in both countries must now obey the rules of science to be admissible. Science lessons for lawyers and judges have now been mandated by the highest courts in both Canada and the United States.
Expert Evidence in Criminal Law: The Scientific Approach by Alan D. Gold is the first and only Canadian book on expert evidence entirely from a scientific perspective.
The book is written in plain language making it easily accessible to lawyers and judges approaching the topic for the first time. At the same time it contains all the principles and knowledge needed to expose bogus experts and junk science, and to reduce inflated expert evidence to its proper valuation.
Everything from forensic identification evidence, including fingerprints and toolmarks, to psychological and psychiatric evidence such as post traumatic stress syndrome are discussed and evaluated according to the rules of science, and the deficiencies and weaknesses of the evidence are demonstrated in detail.
Summary Table of Contents
Foreword
Preface
CHAPTER 1: Introduction
CHAPTER 2: The U.S. Revolution
CHAPTER 3: The Admissibility of Expert Opinion Evidence
CHAPTER 4: Science: Some Basic Concepts
CHAPTER 5: Science and the Forensic Sciences
CHAPTER 6: Science and Psychiatric and Psychological Evidence
CHAPTER 7: Science and Syndrome Evidence
CHAPTER 8: Science and "Consistent with" Evidence
CHAPTER 9: Science and Social Science Evidence
CHAPTER 10: Problematic Procedural Issues
CHAPTER 11: Proposals for Change
Table of Cases
Index
About the Author: Alan D. Gold practises criminal law at the trial and appellate levels and has appeared as counsel before all levels of courts in Ontario, as well as in other provinces, and in the Supreme Court of Canada. He is a member and past president of the Criminal Lawyers' Association, and an inductee of the American College of Trial Lawyers and the National Association of Criminal Defence Lawyers (US). Mr. Gold is one of Canada's most respected commentators on criminal law matters. His Criminal Law Netletter, which is available on Quicklaw, is read by thousands of Canadian and international criminal lawyers each week.
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