Opinion ID: 2320625
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: The CSI Effect Redux

Text: The concurring opinion in Atkins considered at length the reputed underpinning for giving instructions like that given in Atkins or here, the so-called CSI effect, the competing theories about the effect, and the inconclusive state of scholarly research on the topic. [3] The CSI effect refers generally to various theories that assert that exposure to courtroom or criminal investigative fictional media may influence jurors' objective evaluation of an actual trial. Since Atkins was decided, several additional studies have been published, or access to them made available, with equally inconclusive results as reported in the Atkins concurrence. One study used a science-rich episode of The Simpsons television cartoon comedy to evaluate the influence of the episode on viewers' perception of science. See Lindy A. Orthia, et al., How Do People Think About the Science They Encounter in Fiction? Undergraduates investigate responses to science in The Simpsons, Int'l J. of Sci. Educ., Part B., Abstract, available at http://www. tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/21548455. 2011.610134 (last visited 20 Oct. 2011). The research found that viewers' impression of science was influenced highly by their own personal and religious beliefs, historical knowledge, political persuasion, and exposure to other television programs. Id. The bottom line of this study was that the effects of seeing science integrated in the context of a television fictional program, if any, were neither linear or predictable. Another study subjected mock jurors, who viewed an actual recorded criminal trial, to a battery of questions aimed at identifying the factors involved in evaluating the information presented in the trial. [4] Dante E. Mancini, The CSI effect reconsidered: is it moderated by need for cognition?, N. Am. J. Psychol. (Mar. 2011). The results of this study indicated that, although viewership of forensic-themed television shows increased skepticism of scientific evidence favoring the prosecution's case, it did not influence the final verdict. The study, however, identified a psychological personality trait, need for cognition, as an important and determining factor that moderated the effect of viewership. [5] The results of this study indicate that additional studies are required to determine the exact causative factors related to a juror's perception and evaluation of evidence. Yet another scholarly paper found that exposure to crime drama was significantly and positively related to the belief that forensic evidence is infallible. Amber L. Ferris, Examining the CSI Effect: The Impact of Crime Drama Viewership on Perceptions of Forensics and Science (Aug. 2011) (unpublished Ph.D. dissertation, Kent State University). Ms. Ferris also found a significant positive relationship between viewing crime dramas and the expectation of forensic evidence in every trial. Id. Massachusetts added recently to its ongoing judicial discourse on the CSI effect in Commonwealth v. Perez, 460 Mass. 683, 954 N.E.2d 1 (2011), see also Atkins, 421 Md. at 466-67, 26 A.3d at 998. (explaining the Massachusetts view, found in Commonwealth v. Seng, 456 Mass. 490, 924 N.E.2d 285, 295-98 (2010), and Commonwealth v. Bowden, 379 Mass. 472, 399 N.E.2d 482 (1980), that there is little empirical evidence about the existence of the CSI effect.). The issue in Perez was a question during jury voir dire that asked whether the jurors believed that the Commonwealth is never able to prove a case beyond a reasonable doubt unless it presents scientific evidence to corroborate witness testimony. [6] Perez, 460 Mass. at 689, 954 N.E.2d 1. The defendant did not object timely to the jury instruction; therefore, the issue was unpreserved and the appellate court reviewed only for plain error. Id. The court found no abuse during voir dire because the questions were aimed at seating a jury that would be capable of deciding the case without bias. Perez, 460 Mass. at 691, 954 N.E.2d 1. The form of questioning did not suggest to potential jurors that a lack of scientific evidence could not be considered in determining whether a reasonable doubt existed as to the defendant's guilt. Id. (citing Commonwealth v. Young, 73 Mass.App.Ct. 479, 899 N.E.2d 838, 844 (2009)). Noting the tension between allowing the scientific evidence question in voir dire, but excluding it from jury instructions, as was the case in Bowden, the court cautioned that trial judges should exercise caution in composing the voir dire questions so as not to frame them in a way that presumes or insinuates guilt of the defendant. Id. As shown in the most recent studies and Perez, the scholarly research on, and judicial view of, the CSI effect remains as inconsistent and inconclusive as it was when we decided Atkins.