Smith's Criminal Case Compendium
Smith's Criminal Case Compendium
Table of Contents
Smith's Criminal Case Compendium
About
This compendium includes significant criminal cases by the U.S. Supreme Court & N.C. appellate courts, Nov. 2008 – Present. Selected 4th Circuit cases also are included.
Jessica Smith prepared case summaries Nov. 2008-June 4, 2019; later summaries are prepared by other School staff.
Instructions
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The court rejected the defendant’s argument that the trial court erred during jury selection by unduly restricting the defendant’s inquiry into whether prospective jurors could fairly evaluate credibility if faced with evidence that a person had lied in the past. The trial court properly sustained objections to the defendant’s improper stakeout questions and questions tending to indoctrinate the jurors. Additionally, the trial court did not close the door on the defendant’s inquiry into whether the prospective jurors could fairly assess credibility. Rather, the defendant was permitted to ask similar questions in line with the pattern jury instructions, which were an adequate proxy to gauge a prospective juror’s ability to fairly assess credibility at trial.