Exculpatory and Inculpatory Evidence and the Importance of Each in a Criminal Trial
BY: Dr. Peter A. Barone, Esq.
Exculpatory Evidence
The Brady Rule, named for Brady v. Maryland, 373 U.S. 83 (1963), requires prosecutors to disclose materially exculpatory evidence the government's possession to the defense. "Brady material" or evidence the prosecutor is required to disclose under this rule includes any evidence favorable to the accused which is seen to be evidence that goes towards negating a defendant's guilt, that would reduce a defendant's potential sentence, or evidence going to the credibility of a witness.
When addressing some evidence that could be introduced into a criminal evidence which is labelled to be “Exculpatory Evidence” is evidence that indicates the defendant did not commit the crime he has been accused of. Exculpatory evidence is exactly opposite of what is known as “inculpatory evidence. Inculpatory evidence is that which is considered to be evidence that indicates the defendant did actually commit the crime he or she was charged with committing. When there is some type of evidence that is neither exculpatory nor inculpatory this type of evidence is likely to be excluded from court as irrelevant, because it doesn’t support either side’s arguments and to be allowed into a criminal proceeding or a criminal trial it must be relevant and material to some issue in the case.
In the case of Brady v. Maryland, the U.S. Supreme Court held that if a prosecutor has access
to exculpatory evidence, he is required to share that evidence with the
defense. In addition, failing to disclose the information to the defense
may result in the case being thrown out in a motion to dismiss, as a mistrial,
or being overturned on an appeal.
The Supreme Court based this ruling on the Constitution’s due process clauses wherein it held
that part of a prosecutor’s responsibility to seek justice is to make sure that
all evidence, not just evidence
that supports the prosecutor’s case, is available at trial for review and
assessment by the judge in a bench trial and the jury in a jury trial.
If the
prosecution does not disclose material exculpatory evidence under this rule,
and prejudice has ensued, the evidence will be suppressed. In fact if the
prosecutor does not reveal the exculpatory evidence the evidence will be
suppressed regardless of whether the prosecutor knew the evidence was in his or
her possession, or whether or not the prosecutor intentionally or inadvertently
withheld the evidence from the defense. The defendant bears the burden of
proving that the undisclosed evidence was material, and the defendant must show
that there is a reasonable probability that there would be a difference in the
outcome of the trial had the evidence been disclosed by the prosecutor. This is
considered to be evidence such as a statement, tending
to excuse, justify, or absolve the alleged fault or guilt of a defendant.
Inculpatory EvidenceWhen discussing evidence which is known as Inculpatory Evidence it is understood that this is evidence that establish the guilt of an accused. This type of evidence indicates that a defendant committed a crime. Inculpatory evidence also shows, or tends to show, the criminal defendant's involvement in the criminal act which the defendant has been charged with in the criminal trial. In criminal law, evidence that favors the prosecution's case is called the inculpatory evidence and this type of evidence is the opposite of what is known as exculpatory evidence, which indicates the innocence of the accused.
Example
If a man is stabbed to death by a knife and if that particular knife is then found in possession of the individual’s wife. When this particular knife is located this knife will be considered as inculpatory evidence against the wife.
This type of evidence, inculpatory evidence, is critical for the prosecution of a criminal defendant due to the fact that in a criminal case in the United States the prosecutor has the complete burden of proving each and every single element of the crimes that the defendant has been charged with in a criminal trial. This is the exact type of evidence that is needed by the prosecution to accomplished their goals and objectives of the burden of proof.
Reference
Brady v. Maryland, 373
U.S. 83 (1963).
