Thanks JG
"Oh what a tangle web.........."
Authenticating Trayvon Martin’s Digital RecordsPosted on June 8, 2013 by Richard Hornsby
Authentication or identification of evidence is required as a condition precedent to its admissibility. The requirements of this section are satisfied by evidence sufficient to support a finding that the matter in question is what its proponent claims. - Florida Statute 90.901
A major issue in the George Zimmerman case is whether Trayvon Martin’s cellular phone and social media records (collectively digital records) will be admissible in court.
And as a threshold matter, Judge Nelson has indicated skepticism that these records can even be authenticated – i.e. that it can be proven they are what they purport to be.
Likely, this skepticism is based on the belief that Trayvon Martin would be the only person who could authenticate them. However, this belief is mistaken.
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Multimedia RecordsMultimedia records (i.e. videos and pictures) are actually some of the easiest records to authenticate.
When it comes to visual evidence, such as pictures or videos of a person, the defense (or state) would only need one person to testify that the person in the video or picture is the person in question. See Bryant v. State, 810 So. 2d 532 (Fla. 1st DCA 2002) (Any witness can testify that a photograph is a fair and accurate representation of the individual, and the photographer’s testimony is not necessary to authenticate the photograph.)
Notably, under Florida’s evidentiary code, the definition of photographs includes “still photographs, X-ray films, videotapes, and motion pictures.” Florida Statute 90.951
....more at linkhttp://blog.richardhornsby.com/2013/06/ ... l-records/