Courtroom Testimony - The Waiting Game

[Forensics_Guy]

When considering a career in forensics, be sure to take a class in public speaking. doing the analysis is one thing, but if you can not intelligently explain your findings to a jury you might as well have not done any of the work to begin with.

Also be prepared to spend a lot of time outside a courtroom waiting, waiting, waiting. i always try and have a positive outlook - hey I'm getting paid to sit around and wait. I usually bring a book to read, play games on my treo smartphone (a must have to keeping your calendar/subpeonas organised), or hopefully my wife will be getting me a PSP for my birthday.

Don't be suprised if you show up, only to have one side stipulate (that is to not challenge/accept your findings in exchange for you not testifying). A lot of the time your conclusions are not disputed by either side, and the opposing council might decide your testimony is potentially more damaging than just accepting your results. But they won't tell you that until they actually see you show up. If you don't show up, then they can always prevent your findings from being admitted on the basis that you never showed.

 

[pizzapie]

I'd like to see the CSI shows show a little bit more of the court aspect of being an investigator/forensic scientist. I mean NY has shown it once, Miami a few times, but it's usually because a shooting goes on in the courtroom and I don't watch LV.

We visited the state crime lab for one of my college classes, and the person who led our tour said that they spend three days a week in the lab, and two in court.

 

[Calihan]

You should give LV a try, maybe rent the first season DVDs. They've done the court aspect a couple times, personally I'm glad they do it rarely. It's not horrible, but having it overdone could ruin the show.

 

[Laetri]

Invisible Evidence was a good LV one courtwise.

 

[Calihan]

Laetri said:
Invisible Evidence was a good LV one courtwise.

That was the first court related CSI episode I thought of.

 

[never_a_promise]

Simple Man is a relatively good courtroom episode of CSI:Miami, but CSI:LV has the best courtroom episodes.

 

[wibble]

I agree that LV is the best CSI show for courtroom stuff - they usually do those scenes pretty well, and I'm glad they include them because I think it adds an interesting facet to the dimension of the show. It's kind of refreshing to see this aspect of life as a CSI

I only recently watched Simple Man from season 1 of Miami, but I thought it was good, and Horatio's lines are pretty funny :lol:

 

[never_a_promise]

Horatio's lines are always funny Wibble :lol:, NY hasn't really made a step into that direction yet but when they do im sure that it will be worth waiting for.

 

[SamStokes]

yeah but the whole point of CSI is the Crime Scene Investigation. I know even tho after you have the evidence and have built up a strong enough theory, i mean these things take weeks to come up with, the court ide of things is boring, there wouldn't be much to see, on unusual suspect i think it was, you see Doc al robbins just giving all the things he found out, TOD, COD, Laserations, and stuff then Nick stepping up to say what he found in the suspects house, Yawn, trust me the thought of court makes me bored, the whole forensics thing is so much more exiting, well thats what i think, you may just see them looking at pictures, sending swabs and prints off to the lab for analysis but it's much more than that, i prefer the lab stuff than going to court, stepping up in court may look fun, but if they don't go down for it, you find yourself with enemies, which trust me you don't want in that job.