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The impeachment of witnesses and defendants with their prior convictions is an antiquated practice that warrants critical examination. Many of the premises for allowing the prior convictions of testifying defendants and other witnesses to be admitted at trial have been demonstrated to be flawed, perpetuating systemic racial biases while undermining defendants' constitutional rights to testify and present evidence. This video series delves into this practice and its consequences.
Videos:
- The Dilemma of the Defendant with a Prior Record Lessons from the Wrongfully Convicted (Professor John H. Blume)
- Convicted by the Past How Criminal Records Affect Jury Trials (Professor Valerie P. Hans)
- Litigating ER 609: Examples from Washington (Lila Silverstein)
- Prior Conviction Impeachment and Race (Panel discussion with Professors Asees Bhasin, Montré Denise Carodine, and Jasmine Gonzales Rose)
This content--along with other videos and training material on our platform--is free, but registration is required. Upon clicking the link below, you will be prompted to log in or register for an account in our TalentLMS platform.
Please note these recordings are intended solely for the defense community. By registering to view this content, you affirm that you are not a full-time, part-time, or contract prosecutor or employed full-time or part-time by a prosecutor/agency that prosecutes cases at the local, state, or federal levels. You also affirm that you are not in law enforcment, including a probation officer.You also agree not to share materials from this program with prosecutors or law enforcement.
These videos are hosted on TalentLMS, a learning management system, where you will also find additional resources created for defense lawyers. We encourage you to read the brief guide below on navigating TalentLMS prior to signing up for an account.
If you have already registered with us, please bookmark https://defense-justiceforall.talentlms.com/ and be sure to sign back in with your same credentials for your next visit. On TalentLMS, you may view the recordings as often as you want and at your own pace. Feel free to return to past videos marked "completed" and check out future content offerings as they become available.
If you need help accessing the content or have any further questions, please contact us at JFA@nacdl.org.
