How to Get Evidence Thrown Out in My New York Criminal Trial

How to Get Evidence Thrown Out in My New York Criminal Trial

If you are facing criminal charges in New York, one of the most important things you can do is try to get damaging evidence thrown out before your trial. Having key evidence excluded can greatly improve your chances of being found not guilty. Here is an overview of different ways defense attorneys attempt to get evidence thrown out in New York criminal trials.

File a Motion to Suppress

One of the most common ways to get evidence thrown out is to file a motion to suppress. This asks the judge to prohibit prosecutors from using certain evidence at trial because it was obtained illegally. Some reasons a judge may grant a motion to suppress include:

• Unlawful search and seizure – If the police searched your property or seized evidence without a valid warrant or without meeting one of the warrant exceptions, the fruits of that search could be suppressed. For example, if the cops search your car without consent or probable cause, any evidence found may be excluded.
• Miranda rights violation – If the police interrogate you without first reading you your Miranda rights, your statements could potentially be thrown out.
• Coerced confession – If the police use overly coercive tactics to get you to confess, your confession may be deemed involuntary and suppressed. For instance, denying you food/water or promising leniency in exchange for a confession could lead to exclusion.
• Illegal wiretaps – If the authorities record your conversations without a warrant in violation of wiretapping laws, those recordings would likely be suppressed. This also applies to GPS tracking without a warrant.

Challenge the Admissibility of Evidence

Aside from filing suppression motions, your defense lawyer can also try to prevent damaging evidence from being used at trial by challenging its admissibility under New York evidence rules. Some examples include:

• Relevance – The evidence must be relevant to be admissible. So if certain evidence has little or nothing to do with the charged crime, your lawyer can argue it would be overly prejudicial and should be excluded.
• Authenticity – For evidence to be admissible, the prosecution has to establish its authenticity. If they cannot prove a piece of evidence is genuine, your attorney can dispute its authenticity and attempt to block it.
• Hearsay – Hearsay (out-of-court statements used to prove the truth of the matter asserted) is generally inadmissible unless it falls under certain exceptions. So if the prosecution tries to introduce hearsay evidence that does not meet any exceptions, it may be excluded.

File a Motion in Limine

Another option is for your defense lawyer to file a motion in limine. This asks the judge to prohibit the other side from mentioning or introducing specific evidence at trial. It works similarly to a motion to suppress but gives the judge advanced warning to exclude prejudicial evidence ahead of time rather than objecting in the middle of trial.

Motions in limine are commonly used to exclude things like:

• Prior convictions
• Past drug/alcohol use
• Details about your personal life lacking probative value
• Gruesome crime scene photos
• Hearsay statements

Getting this kind of propensity evidence thrown out early on keeps it from tainting the jury.

Object at Trial

As a last line of defense, your lawyer can object when the prosecution tries to introduce damaging evidence at trial. However, it is far more effective to get evidence thrown out pre-trial through motions to suppress, motions in limine, etc. Still, objections at trial may at least limit the impact of prejudicial evidence or strike it from the record entirely if successful.

Some grounds for objecting to evidence during a New York criminal trial include:

• Leading questions by the prosecutor
• Speculation by witnesses
• Questions calling for hearsay/inadmissible testimony
• Evidence lacking proper foundation or authentication
• Questions outside the scope of direct examination
• Evidence violating the defendant’s constitutional rights

Skilled criminal defense lawyers know how to make quick objections on these grounds and others. Sustained objections can significantly alter the course of a trial.

Getting damaging evidence thrown out – whether through pre-trial motions or objections during trial – requires an experienced attorney familiar with New York evidence rules and case law precedents. Public defenders handle heavy caseloads and seldom have time to extensively litigate evidentiary issues. Retaining experienced private counsel greatly enhances your chances of blocking harmful evidence from being used against you.

For more information on excluding evidence in New York criminal trials, check out the following legal resources:

• How to Get Illegally Obtained Evidence Thrown Out (Avvo)
• New York Exclusionary Rule (FindLaw)
• Motions to Suppress Evidence in New York (NY Lawyers)
• Objecting to Evidence at Trial (Reddit)

Having an experienced criminal defense lawyer in your corner who knows how to effectively challenge evidence can make all the difference in getting charges reduced or dismissed prior to trial. Don’t leave your fate to chance – the stakes are too high.