Opinion ID: 2623542
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: The Daubert/Alberico Analysis.

Text: {16} In Daubert v. Merrell Dow Pharmaceuticals, Inc., 509 U.S. 579, 588, 113 S.Ct. 2786, 125 L.Ed.2d 469 (1993), the United States Supreme Court rejected the rigid general acceptance test for the admissibility of expert testimony first articulated in Frye v. United States, 293 F. 1013, 1014 (D.C.Cir.1923). The Court held that application of a rigid general acceptance test would be at odds with the `liberal thrust' of the Federal Rules and their `general approach of relaxing the traditional barriers to opinion testimony.' Daubert, 509 U.S. at 588, 113 S.Ct. 2786 (quoting Beech Aircraft Corp. v. Rainey, 488 U.S. 153, 169, 109 S.Ct. 439, 102 L.Ed.2d 445 (1988)). This liberal approach to the admission of evidence is consistent with the intent of the drafters of the Federal Rules of Evidence. As one notable commentator has recognized: Universality of education and the almost instantaneous dispersal of information through modern technology have created a citizenry with a remarkable and historically unique breadth of knowledge, perception, and sophistication. These mature men and women should be treated with the respect they deserve. Excluding information on the ground that jurors are too ignorant or emotional to evaluate it properly may have been appropriate in England at a time when a rigid class society created a yawning gap between royal judges and commoner jurors, but it is inconsistent with the realities of our modern American informed society and the responsibilities of independent thought in a working democracy. 1 Jack B. Weinstein & Margaret A. Berger, Weinstein's Federal Evidence xix (2d ed.2003); see also State v. Mann, 2002-NMSC-001, ¶ 27, 131 N.M. 459, 39 P.3d 124 (Jurors are generally knowledgeable in many areas, and they are entitled to use their common or acquired sense in arriving at a verdict. . . .) (quoted authority omitted). Given the capabilities of jurors and the liberal thrust of the rules of evidence, we believe any doubt regarding the admissibility of scientific evidence should be resolved in favor of admission, rather than exclusion. See Brown v. Gen. Ins. Co. of Am., 70 N.M. 46, 54, 369 P.2d 968, 973 (1962). {17} Rule 11-702 governs the admissibility of scientific evidence: If scientific, technical or other specialized knowledge will assist the trier of fact to understand the evidence or to determine a fact in issue, a witness qualified as an expert by knowledge, skill, experience, training or education may testify thereto in the form of an opinion or otherwise. In Alberico, 116 N.M. at 166, 861 P.2d at 202, we discerned three prerequisites in Rule 11-702 for the admission of expert opinion testimony. First, the expert must be qualified. Id. Second, the testimony must assist the trier of fact. Id. Third, the expert may only testify as to scientific, technical or other specialized knowledge. Id. The first two prerequisites are not at issue in this opinion. In each individual case, the district court must determine whether the proffered expert is qualified under Rule 11-707 to give expert testimony on polygraph results. Additionally, there can be little doubt that polygraph evidence indicating that a defendant or witness is telling the truth or lying about a specific incident at issue would be helpful to the jury. Cf. Anderson, 118 N.M. at 296-97, 881 P.2d at 41-42 (concluding that DNA evidence linking the defendant to the crime scene was helpful to the jury). Thus, the focus of this opinion is on the reliability of the control question polygraph examination. {18} [U]nder the Rules the trial judge must ensure that any and all scientific testimony or evidence admitted is not only relevant, but reliable. Id. at 291, 881 P.2d at 36 (quoting Daubert, 509 U.S. at 589, 113 S.Ct. 2786); accord Torres, 1999-NMSC-010, ¶ 26, 127 N.M. 20, 976 P.2d 20 ([E]videntiary reliability is the hallmark for the admissibility of scientific knowledge.). Thus, the trial court must determine whether the scientific technique is based upon well-recognized scientific principle and whether it is capable of supporting opinions based upon reasonable probability rather than conjecture. Alberico, 116 N.M. at 167, 861 P.2d at 203. In making this determination, we consider: (1) whether a theory or technique can be (and has been) tested; (2) whether the theory or technique has been subjected to peer review and publication; (3) the known potential rate of error in using a particular scientific technique and the existence and maintenance of standards controlling the technique's operation; and (4) whether the theory or technique has been generally accepted in the particular scientific field. Anderson, 118 N.M. at 291, 881 P.2d at 36 (quotation marks and quoted authority omitted). We apply these factors to the control question polygraph examination to determine whether that evidence is sufficiently reliable to satisfy Rule 11-702.