Tuesday, June 21, 2005

5th Circuit Upholds Exclusion of Testimony on "Battered Women's Syndrome"

The Fifth Circuit has upheld a trial court's exclusion of expert testimony on "battered women's syndrome," offered in support of a duress defense in a criminal case. The basis for exclusion involved "fit," not reliability. Whereas the challenged testimony involved the expert's opinion on the woman's subjective state, "the duress defense requires an objective inquiry into whether a defendant's conduct, although illegal, represented her only reasonable alternative to serious bodily injury or death," said the panel (emphasis ours). See United States v. Dixon, No. 04-10250 (5th Cir. June 20, 2005) (Reavley, Jolly, & Prado, JJ.).

posted by pn at 12:53 PM  

0 Comments:

Post a Comment

<< Home

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.