Thursday, September 04, 2003

DEA Agents Know Marijuana When They Smell It

Some evidentiary objections are doomed from the start. Yesterday, the First Circuit upheld lay opinion testimony from a DEA agent who said he smelled marijuana during a search. See United States v. Santana, No. 02-2697 (1st Cir. Sept. 3, 2003) (Boudin, Torruella, & Baldock, JJ.). The panel ruled that the agent's opinion was grounded in his personal knowledge, as Rule 701 requires, and that expert testimony was not required on this point. What, one wonders, were the defense lawyers expecting?

posted by pn at 9:04 PM  

Fed. R. Evid. 702: If scientific, technical, or other specialized knowledge will assist the trier of fact to understand the evidence or to determine a fact in issue, a witness qualified as an expert by knowledge, skill, experience, training, or education, may testify thereto in the form of an opinion or otherwise, if (1) the testimony is based upon sufficient facts or data, (2) the testimony is the product of reliable principles and methods, and (3) the witness has applied the principles and methods reliably to the facts of the case.