A recent article in Time Magazine gave credit to television programming for changes in the modern judicial system. The phenomenon is not new. Back in the 1960’s, “Perry Mason” with Raymond Burr, showed a trial defense lawyer who walked up to the witnessnes’ in the withness chair as he interrogated them. For television purposes Burr approached the witnesses because the traditional style of remaining at the defense table while questioning left either Burr or the witness out of the shot. After years of subsequent lawyer shows on TV, witnesses now expect layers to get out from behind the table and are disappointed if they don’t.
The newest trend in TV is forensic evidence programming. What began with “Quincy” in the 1970’s has exploded in a deluge of police procedural programming. “CSI”, “CSI NY”, “CSI Miami”, “NCIS”, “Bones”, “Criminal Minds”, “Da Vinci’s Inquest”, “Medical Dectives”, “Crossing Jordan”, “Silent Witness”, “Dexter”, “Forensic Files”, “Law and Order” (and it’s spin offs) all show DNA evidence and other evidence revealed and confirmed through forensic investigation. The preponderance of these shows, modern jurors are experiencing what the article labels “The CSI Effect”. That is to say that they expect DNA evidence and are disappointed when it is not given. What they fail to understand is that such testing is very expensive and not appropriate for every case. “To analyze a sample of DNA properly can cost as much as $10,000.” The article expressed concern that unnecessary test will be run in order to placate the TV watching public.
Fecundity: The quality or power of producing abundantly
I enjoyed this article because I am a huge fan of lawyer, police/detective/investigative and forensic shows. I have to admit that while intellectually I understand how expensive forensic investigation is, emotionally I would be a juror who would want DNA evidence and/or other forensic evidence in a trial. The article discusses the danger of where demanding DNA evidence would lead both financially and problematically and in class the idea of privacy rights was introduced. As a citizen I would not want my DNA automatically on file. I suspect that as it becomes cheaper to type DNA the day will come when DNA is taken at a baby’s birth and kept in a national, perhaps international file. I don’t expect it happen in my lifetime, yet I would not be surprised if it did.
“Where CSI Meets Real Law and Order” by Amy Leonard Goehhner; Lina Lofaro; and Kate Novack, Time, November 8, 2004
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