How to Cross-Examine the "Expert":

In virtually every single drug case and sex-offense prosecution I am asked to evaluate and appeal, I see the government using "experts" to testify in general terms about their past experience investigating other people charged with crimes (as a way to insinuate that the person on trial at that moment is also guilty).  In this installment, I offer commentary on this unfair tactic being employed by prosecutors in trials all over the country, leading to unfair convictions.

           

By the time cases like these come across my desk, it is too late to mount a challenge to the "expert's" opinion, mostly because trial attorneys do not attack "experts" in pre-trial motions and hearings.  And, as discussed in previous blogs, if there is no objection to a specific area of evidence or testimony during trial, then the issue cannot later be appealed.  So then, the next best way to handle the damaging "expert" is for the trial attorney to go after him or her with a zealous cross-examination.  Attack must be lodged against the "expert's" lack of credentials (i.e., education at a recognized university as opposed to in-house police department classes), lack of acknowledgment across the country as an "expert" (i.e., no published articles, and no listing in any accepted peer-review literature as a national authority on any topics), and lack of a scientific basis for the opinions offered.  No defense lawyer should be afraid to expose sham expert testimony.

If you have a family member or friend fighting the battle against a wrongful conviction, or if you are a lawyer seeking assistance with an appeal or post-conviction matter, please call this office immediately.  There are always time deadlines limiting when these claims can be raised.  If you wish to learn more about the process, call now.

Jonathan Laurans wants you to be educated as to what you may be facing.  If you or a loved one has been convicted of a crime in Missouri, Kansas or Texas, or in any federal court, contact him immediately.  Visit his website at www.kansascitymoattorney.com and then call him at (816) 421-5200 for a FREE initial legal consultation.