Reconsidering the Admissibility of Expert Forensic Evidence in South African Criminal Proceedings
Expert forensic evidence can be of great assistance in criminal proceedings. However, the question that must be answered is whether and to what extent there is science in any forensic science discipline. In the last twenty years there have been growing concerns about the admissibility and reliabili...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | Afrikaans |
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North-West University
2025-05-01
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| Series: | Potchefstroom Electronic Law Journal |
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| Online Access: | https://perjournal.co.za/article/view/17943 |
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| _version_ | 1849309597349707776 |
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| author | Chevaure Du Pokoy |
| author_facet | Chevaure Du Pokoy |
| author_sort | Chevaure Du Pokoy |
| collection | DOAJ |
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Expert forensic evidence can be of great assistance in criminal proceedings. However, the question that must be answered is whether and to what extent there is science in any forensic science discipline. In the last twenty years there have been growing concerns about the admissibility and reliability of expert evidence in criminal trials. Many common law jurisdictions have raised concerns about traditional admissibility standards and their inability to filter out unreliable expert forensic evidence. As a result of these concerns, a number of these jurisdictions have adopted and now apply reliability criteria for the admissibility of this evidence.
In South Africa, expert forensic evidence is admissible if it is relevant. The reliability of the evidence is determined at the end of the trial when the evidence is evaluated. This article examines this position and argues that the current position does not require an assessment of the reliability of expert forensic evidence at the admissibility stage, allowing expert forensic evidence of doubtful reliability to be admitted. It is argued that the admissibility of this evidence should be reconsidered by introducing a reliability standard as a precondition for admissibility.
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| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-7d63c92d9d5043048160e1ff4cd60a3c |
| institution | Kabale University |
| issn | 1727-3781 |
| language | Afrikaans |
| publishDate | 2025-05-01 |
| publisher | North-West University |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Potchefstroom Electronic Law Journal |
| spelling | doaj-art-7d63c92d9d5043048160e1ff4cd60a3c2025-08-20T03:54:02ZafrNorth-West UniversityPotchefstroom Electronic Law Journal1727-37812025-05-012810.17159/1727-3781/2025/v28i0a17943Reconsidering the Admissibility of Expert Forensic Evidence in South African Criminal ProceedingsChevaure Du Pokoy0https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1977-1302North-West University Expert forensic evidence can be of great assistance in criminal proceedings. However, the question that must be answered is whether and to what extent there is science in any forensic science discipline. In the last twenty years there have been growing concerns about the admissibility and reliability of expert evidence in criminal trials. Many common law jurisdictions have raised concerns about traditional admissibility standards and their inability to filter out unreliable expert forensic evidence. As a result of these concerns, a number of these jurisdictions have adopted and now apply reliability criteria for the admissibility of this evidence. In South Africa, expert forensic evidence is admissible if it is relevant. The reliability of the evidence is determined at the end of the trial when the evidence is evaluated. This article examines this position and argues that the current position does not require an assessment of the reliability of expert forensic evidence at the admissibility stage, allowing expert forensic evidence of doubtful reliability to be admitted. It is argued that the admissibility of this evidence should be reconsidered by introducing a reliability standard as a precondition for admissibility. https://perjournal.co.za/article/view/17943Admissibilityexpert forensic evidencereliability forensic sciencereliability standards |
| spellingShingle | Chevaure Du Pokoy Reconsidering the Admissibility of Expert Forensic Evidence in South African Criminal Proceedings Potchefstroom Electronic Law Journal Admissibility expert forensic evidence reliability forensic science reliability standards |
| title | Reconsidering the Admissibility of Expert Forensic Evidence in South African Criminal Proceedings |
| title_full | Reconsidering the Admissibility of Expert Forensic Evidence in South African Criminal Proceedings |
| title_fullStr | Reconsidering the Admissibility of Expert Forensic Evidence in South African Criminal Proceedings |
| title_full_unstemmed | Reconsidering the Admissibility of Expert Forensic Evidence in South African Criminal Proceedings |
| title_short | Reconsidering the Admissibility of Expert Forensic Evidence in South African Criminal Proceedings |
| title_sort | reconsidering the admissibility of expert forensic evidence in south african criminal proceedings |
| topic | Admissibility expert forensic evidence reliability forensic science reliability standards |
| url | https://perjournal.co.za/article/view/17943 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT chevauredupokoy reconsideringtheadmissibilityofexpertforensicevidenceinsouthafricancriminalproceedings |