§ 1-8 Direct and Circumstantial Evidence Charge

• Library: South Carolina Requests to Charge - Criminal (SCBar) (2012 Ed.)

§ 1-8 Direct and Circumstantial Evidence Charge

There are two types of evidence which are generally presented during a trial - direct evidence and circumstantial evidence. Direct evidence is the testimony of a person who asserts or claims to have actual knowledge of a fact, such as an eyewitness. Circumstantial evidence is proof of a chain of facts and circumstances indicating the existence of a fact. The law makes absolutely no distinction between the weight or value to be given to either direct or circumstantial evidence. Nor is a greater degree of certainty required of circumstantial evidence than of direct evidence. You should weigh all the evidence in the case. After weighing all the evidence, if you are not convinced of the guilt of the defendant beyond a...