Witnesses/Impeaching Flashcards
The Federal rules of evidence allow any party to impeach a witness even
The party that called the witness
The Virginia rules of evidence adheres to the common law rule of impeaching witnesses which
does not allow a party to impeach its own witness, unless the witness proves to be adverse
In Virginia, when party’s own witness proves to be adverse, that party can impeach their witness only
by Prior inconsistent statement
The Federal rules of evidence permits impeachment of a fact witness through a
character witness based on reputation or opinion evidence
The Virginia rules of evidence permits impeachment of a fact witness through a
Character witness based on reputation only
The Federal rules allow a cross-examiner to inquire about
Specific instances of dishonest conduct probative character for truthfulness but prohibits the use of extrinsic evidence
In Virgina, a cross-examiner can only inquire about
1) specific instances of unajudicated testimony
2) Prior false accusations of sexual assault by a complaining witness in a sexual assault cases
In Virginia, you cannot impeach a witness with
Specific instances of conduct for the purpose of attacking credibility
The Federal rules permit impeachment of witnesses for prior convictions when
The conviction or release of confinement is within 10 years
The Federal rules permit impeachment of a defendant for prior convictions
1) The conviction or release of confinement is within 10 years; and
2) The probative value outweighs the risk of prejudice
The Federal rules permit that all witnesses may be impeached with convictions of
Crimes (misdemeanor or felony) for crimes involving dishonesty
IF older than 10 years, the probative value must substantially outweigh the risk of unfair prejudice
The Virgina rules permit that a witness may be impeached with prior _______ regardless of time limit
1) Felony convictions; or
2) Misdemeanors involving moral turpitude
When impeaching a criminal defendant or party in a civil case, Virgina only allows
The fact they have a conviction and the number of convictions
The Federal rules allows a party to impeach a party by prior inconsistent statement without
Giving the witness any advance warning.
Upon request, the party disclose the statement to opposing counsel
The Virgina rules requires a party impeaching by prior inconsistent to
Alert the witness to the statement and its circumstances under which it was made before impeaching the witness by contradiction
If the witness denies making the statement, and if its a written statement, you must show it to the witness
