ComCon Publishes New Jury Research Update on Jurors’ Exposure to Flawed Scientific Evidence

Sept. 21, 2010 - PRLog -- The fourth September, 2010 Issue of ComCon’s free Online Jury Research Update is now published and answers the question of how often  jurors are presented scientifically flawed evidence during trials.

Daubert and other cases decided in the 1990s (e.g., Daubert v. Merrell Dow Pharmaceuticals, 1993; General Electric v. Joiner, 1996; Kumho Tire v. Carmichael, 1999) require that judges base admissibility decisions for scientific evidence on its scientific validity as opposed to relying entirely on its general acceptance in the professional community.

The just published Issue of ComCon’s free Online Jury Research Update (OJRU) summarizes two research studies showing  that judges do not fully understand the Daubert factors, admit evidence that is scientifically flawed and exclude evidence that is scientifically valid.

ComCon, a trial and jury consulting firm in Los Angeles, publishes the free OJRU four times each month to provide practical answers to questions about trying cases to juries based on social science research.  

Issues of the OJRU in the last two months answer questions about per diem requests for damages, jurors' understanding of reasonable doubt instructions, discussion of jury instructions in deliberations, how the racial composition of juries affects capital sentencing, which side in civil cases most often mistakenly rejects settlement, and the types of civil cases in which settlement is most often mistakenly rejected.

OJRU Issues in the four years since its inception answer questions on voir dire, juror characteristics, jury decision-making, judicial instructions, persuasive strategies, graphics, language, evidence, witnesses, experts, judges, attorneys, plaintiffs, defendants, civil case issues (settlement, liability, damages), criminal case issues (due process rights, defenses, etc.) and specific types of cases (employment, sexual assault, death penalty, personal injury, malpractice, etc.) .

The OJRU is a free publication of ComCon Kathy Kellermann Communication Consulting hosted at http://www.kkcomcon.com/CCOnlineJuryResearchUpdateByDate.htm.  

ComCon posts announcements on Facebook of new Jury Research Updates, Visual Resources, Slide Shows, Litigator Links, Trial Books, Persuasion Tips and Litigation Articles added to the free Kollectionns on ComCon’s website. To receive these announcements, “Like” ComCon on facebook at http://www.facebook.com/ComCon.

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About ComCon: Litigation, trial and jury consultants specializing in persuasion and making cases compelling for motions, hearings, depositions, mediations, arbitrations, trials and appeals. For more information, please see http://www.kkcomcon.com or contact clientservices at kkcomcon.com.