Michael Kramer, Attorney at law

1311 Mamaroneck Ave
Suite 340
White Plains, NY 10605
mk@michaelkramerlaw.com

Call for a Free, 20-min,
Traffic Ticket Strategy Session

(914) 709-7161

Michael Kramer, Attorney at law

Interviewer: What’s the difference between expert witnesses and character witnesses?

Expert Witnesses

Michael Kramer: Expert witnesses testify to facts which are not common knowledge to a jury or a judge, and therefore an expert witness can aid the evaluation of certain evidence. Character witnesses would be just a person who’s put on by the defense to bolster the character of the defendant, and hopefully paint a picture of the defendant that is much more favorable to a jury.

Interviewer: Can you provide some examples of expert witnesses?

Michael Kramer: There are expert witnesses in any field of endeavor you can think of. There are expert witnesses in drug evaluation, there are expert witnesses on field sobriety tests, and chemical tests in DWI cases. There are expert witnesses on identification testimony.

The Judge Decides Whether the Jury Considers the Testimony of the Expert Witness

Depending upon the facts of the case there is always an expert out there that has written a book about it, or given a lecture about it, that you might want to consult. Now, whether that particular expert can qualify as an expert in a particular case, or offer expert testimony in a particular case, that’s decided on a case by case basis at trial when you proffer that evidence. A judge decides whether it will aid a jury in its determination.

Interviewer: So for instance, a toxicologist would be considered an expert witness in a DWI case or a DUI case, correct?

Michael Kramer: Correct.

Character Witnesses’ Roles Are More Limited in a Trial

Interviewer: Who would make a good character witness?

Michael Kramer: Character testimony is somewhat limited. You can’t call a witness who knows a defendant and who testifies to every good deed that defendant has done in their life.

Basically, character witness testimony is limited to a reputation of a defendant in the community for truthfulness. Although you’d like to bring in the grandmother of the defendant, who the defendant has taken care of for thirty, forty years, or someone whose life perhaps a defendant has saved. Again, a judge will have to make the decision whether that bears on the issue of the truthfulness, veracity of the particular individual on trial.

Can Calling Too Many Witnesses Hurt the Defense?

Interviewer: Do you think that there are cases where too many witnesses can hurt a trial?

Michael Kramer: The more witnesses that testify the more chance there are for inconsistancies. You do take a chance when you resort to overkill and put on so many witnesses that the prosecutor is able to develop inconsistencies. The prosecutor’s job is to take minor inconsistencies and then blow them out of proportion. They then argue that because of these inconsistencies they’re not telling the truth, so you always take that chance.

Calling Too Many Witnesses Can Harm Both the Defense and the Prosecution’s Case

The prosecutor likewise takes that chance when he over-tries a case and puts on too many witnesses to corroborate something a previous witness has testified. There’s always a chance that inconsistencies in testimony will be brought out, and will be blown out of proportion and come back to haunt them.

Calling Reluctant Witnesses

Interviewer: Have you ever worked with cases where a witness is hesitant or reluctant?

Michael Kramer: Certainly. There are witnesses who for one reason or another don’t like coming to court, and don’t like testifying.

Interviewer: How do you work with these witnesses?

Some Witnesses Have to Be Subpoenaed to Testify

Michael Kramer: If they are extremely necessary to the case and they’re still uncooperative they have to be subpoenaed, and they have to come in to testify forcefully. That’s a last resort, because if you’re calling a witness to bolster your case, you don’t want that witness to be adverse to you. You want them to cooperate and offer the testimony that you feel they have to offer.

Most witnesses for the defense are cooperative witnesses. They feel that they’ve seen something or heard something that might be relevant, and they want to come forth as a public duty, as a civic duty. They do this rather than see a defendant who is perhaps innocent get convicted because they decided not to testify.

If the Defense Attorney Feels There Is a Lack of Convincing Evidence against the Client, He or She Will File a Motion to Dismiss

Interviewer: In New York, could a case get scratched due to lack of evidence?

Michael Kramer: Either there’s enough evidence to bring the case or there’s not. If a prosecutor thinks there’s enough evidence, but a defense attorney thinks there’s not enough evidence then a motion will be filed. The judge will decide whether to dismiss it or not.

Michael Kramer, Esq.

Call for a Free, 20-min,
Traffic Ticket Strategy Session
(914) 709-7161