Chapter 6 - § 6.10 EXPERIMENTS, DEMONSTRATIONS, AND JUROR VIEW OF PREMISES

• Jurisdiction: Colorado

§ 6.10 EXPERIMENTS, DEMONSTRATIONS, AND JUROR VIEW OF PREMISES

§ 6.10.1—Experiments and Demonstrations

Colorado

➢ General. "For evidence of an experiment to be admissible it must aid rather than confuse the jury in its resolution of the issues, and it must tend directly to establish or to disprove a material issue in the case." People v. McCombs, 629 P.2d 1088, 1090 (Colo. App. 1981).

➢ Substantial Similarity Required. "In order not to confuse or to mislead the jury, the conditions under which an experiment is conducted must be substantially similar to those present on the occasion of the incident at issue." States v. R.D. Werner Co., 799 P.2d 427, 431 (Colo. App. 1990).

➢ Animations Admissible. A computer animation may be in the form of a re-creation of an event or illustrations of a general principle. People v. Cauley, 32 P.3d 602, 607 (Colo. App. 2001). An animation that demonstrated the "mechanism of injury" for shaken-baby syndrome was admissible as demonstrative evidence because it was (1) authentic under CRE 901; (2) relevant under CRE 401 and 402; (3) a fair and accurate representation of the evidence to which it related; and (4) more probative than prejudicial per CRE 403. Id. See generally People v. Douglas, 2016 COA 59, for a discussion of the differences between animations, which are demonstrative evidence, and simulations, which are scientific evidence.
➢ Trial Court Discretion. The trial court has discretion to determine the competency of any experiment as evidence. Publix Cab Co. v. Colorado Nat'l Bank, 338 P.2d 702, 716 (Colo. 1959).

Federal

➢ General; Video Animation. Proposed animation evidence must be carefully and meticulously examined for proper foundation, relevancy, and the potential for undue prejudice. Robinson v. Missouri P.R.R., 16 F.3d 1083, 1088 (10th Cir. 1994).

➢ Substantial Similarity Required for Re-Creation. For an experiment or demonstration attempting to show a re-creation of the accident to be admissible, substantial similarity must be shown. Four Corners Helicopters, Inc. v. Turbomeca, S.A., 979 F.2d 1434, 1440 (10th Cir. 1992); Hinds v. General Motors Corp., 988 F.2d 1039, 1048 (10th Cir. 1993).

➢ Demonstration of Principles. Experiments used to assist experts in demonstrating principles that formed the basis of an opinion have a lower burden of admissibility than purported re-creations. Pandit v. American Honda Motor Co., 82 F.3d 376, 381 (10th Cir. 1996). Tests may be dissimilar from an actual accident if

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