CALIFORNIA EVIDENCE: CIVIL AND CRIMINAL
...Relevance
......Demonstrative Evidence
.........Photographic/Video Evidence
............Photos: Victims Before Crime
 13 Cards On This Topic:
  • Admissibility of victim impact evidence.
  • No error in admitting photos showing condition of Polly's body as recovered, and 1993 school photos of Polly and two friends who were with her at her home on night of kidnapping.
  • Admitting photos of Vs while alive was proper where two of them looked like two witnesses, all 4 were D's girlfriends, and DA concerned jurors might "lose track" of who they were.
  • Trial court properly admitted video montage of Vs' lives re victim impact, omitting audio portion, including music, and instructing describing witness to be objective and not arouse emotions.
  • No error in admitting 20-minute tape at penalty phase showing still photographs and video clips of V's life to her death at 19, narrated calmly and unemotionally by her mother with musical background.
  • Videotape of pregnant murder V was relevant to proving she owned and wore jewelry that was stolen during murders; though tape made taken at child's birthday party it did not engender emotional reaction, but was neutral.
  • Photos of V while alive properly admitted for identification purposes while examining different witnesses, and also to identify V as subject in autopsy photographs.
  • Photos of murder Vs while alive "generally admissible" when prosecutor seeks to introduce them at penalty phase.
  • Photos of V, in 8th mo. of pregnancy, relevant to jury's assessment of obviousness of pregnancy near time of murder of V and her viable fetus.
  • Photos of Vs before murder admissible only if relevant; may not be used to generate sympathy.
  • Photo of prosperous, attractive V, while alive, properly admitted as relevant to motive for robbery and murder by D, whose sister's husband was having affair with V.
  • While photos of Vs while alive may not be admissible at guilt phase, same considerations do not apply in penalty phase.
  • Photos of Vs while alive may be admitted to show relative physical size of individuals involved in case.


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