Rule 704. Opinion on Ultimate Issue

• Library: South Carolina Evidence Annotated (SCBar) (2023 Ed.)

Rule 704. Opinion on Ultimate Issue

Testimony in the form of an opinion or inference otherwise admissible is not objectionable because it embraces an ultimate issue to be decided by the trier of fact.

Note:

This rule is identical to former Rule 43(m)(3), SCRCP, and former Rule 24(c), SCRCrimP. It is identical to the federal rule as it existed prior to the 1984 amendment which added subsection (b) to the rule to prohibit expert testimony on the ultimate issue of whether a criminal defendant is insane.

Annotations Rule 704

Criminal Defendant's Guilt or Innocence

Such testimony is admissible, "so long as the expert does not opine on the criminal defendant's state of mind or guilt or testify on matters of law in such a way that the jury is not permitted to reach its own conclusion concerning the criminal defendant's guilt or innocence." State v. Prather, 429 S.C. 583, 840 S.E.2d 551, 562 (2020).

Forensic Psychology

"Testimony regarding the motives of the person who committed the crime is forensic psychology, and no expert may testify to the state of mind of a criminal defendant." State v. Prather, 429 S.C. 583, 840 S.E.2d 551, 566 (2020) (Dissent, Few, J.).

Generally

Rule 704, SCRE, is identical to Rule 704 of the Federal Rules of Evidence as it existed before a 1984 amendment. The federal...