AEquitas - Champions for Justice

September 30, 2018April 15, 2021

Prosecuting Strangulation Injury

Strangulation is one of the most lethal forms of violence employed by perpetrators of intimate partner violence. Nonfatal strangulation often results in little or no visible injury to the victim, despite the fact that the victim has been placed at risk of death or serious injury that may not manifest until much later. But in the absence of visible injury, other telltale symptoms may be present. It’s critical for law enforcement officers and other first responders to identify these symptoms of strangulation, document the indicators, and offer and encourage appropriate medical evaluation and treatment. This presentation addresses common misconceptions about strangulation injury and focuses on the real signs and symptoms, medical evaluation and documentation, risk factors, and trial strategies.

This webinar recording should qualify prosecutors for 1.5 hours of continuing legal education (CLE) credits. Prosecutors are encouraged to contact their state bar association in reference to application requirements and related fees.

September 30, 2018May 18, 2021

Prosecuting Cases Involving Victims with Developmental Disabilities: A Focus on Sexual Assault

The traumatic impact of sexual assault may further exacerbate already-existing issues for victims with developmental disabilities. Their condition may affect their participation in a criminal investigation and testimony at trial. Prosecutors must be prepared to address the impact of the disability on the victim and on the dynamics of the crime, particularly when assessing the offender’s behaviors, victim selection, and steps taken to perpetrate the crime. This webinar helps prepare prosecutors to anticipate issues and evidence prior to trial, file and argue pretrial motions, develop trial strategies that take into account the victim’s intellectual/developmental disabilities and mental health issues, introduce relevant evidence at trial while excluding the irrelevant, and consider appropriate sentencing options.

This webinar recording should qualify prosecutors for 1 hour of continuing legal education (CLE) credits. Prosecutors are encouraged to contact their state bar association in reference to application requirements and related fees.

September 30, 2018June 9, 2021

Overview of Stalking and Technology: Prosecution Strategies

Stalking affects 6.6 million people in the United States each year and every day, in courtrooms throughout the country, stalking victims recount the fear and distress they have experienced as a result of this crime. Stalkers create and exploit vulnerabilities in their victims, relying on technology and manipulation of the justice system to conceal their crimes and cast doubt on their victim’s credibility. This webinar gives an overview of stalking and the modern technology stalkers use. It discusses investigation and prosecution strategies as well as interviewing techniques designed to maximize victim participation and safety. It also addresses the correlation between stalking and other forms of violence and examines the role of stalking in assessing lethality. The presentation emphasizes the importance of using a collaborative approach between law enforcement, victim advocates and prosecutors to assist victims and hold offenders accountable.

September 30, 2018May 13, 2021

Making Your Case: Evidence-Based Prosecution

A recurring concern in domestic violence cases is whether and how the victim will testify at trial. Many victims are subject to intense pressures—including intimidation and manipulation—that discourage them from participating in a criminal prosecution. When victims do participate, they may minimize the level of violence or the defendant’s culpability, recant prior statements, or testify for the defense. While these cases present unique challenges, they can still be prosecuted successfully. This webinar focuses on: evidence-based considerations that enable prosecutors to remain victim-centered and to try cases where the victim is an absent or reluctant witness; investigative techniques that support a comprehensive approach to the identification and documentation of evidence, including evidence of intimidation and manipulation; trial strategies, including the use of expert testimony to explain victim behavior, that will enable the jury to return a guilty verdict regardless of whether or how the victim testifies.

September 30, 2018May 24, 2021

Making it Stick: Protecting the Record for Appeal

Obtaining a conviction in a sexual assault, domestic violence, or human trafficking case is usually a hard-won victory, whether by guilty plea or by trial. Having a case reversed on appeal can result in a re-trial with stale evidence, reluctant witnesses, and a victim who is forced to relive the case when she is finally beginning to heal. Though the appellate process is unavoidable, a prosecutor can bring a measure of finality to the criminal justice process by carefully building a strong trial court record that supports the conviction and the sentence imposed and withstands appeal challenges. This webinar discusses the proper creation and protection of the record during all phases of a criminal case, focusing on investigation, charging, plea agreements, trial preparation and strategy, summation, and sentencing. It addresses pretrial motions, and trial briefs on anticipated trial problems, and demonstrates how strategic charging decisions can result in admission of evidence that might otherwise be excluded.

September 30, 2018June 1, 2021

Keep Calm and Understand Elonis v. U.S.

The decision of Elonis v. United States, 135 S.Ct. 2001 (2015), in which the United States Supreme Court reversed the defendant’s conviction for posting on Facebook threats to harm his wife and others, has caused a good deal of concern among prosecutors, civil attorneys representing victims in protective order proceedings, law enforcement, and advocates. The webinar analyzes the Court’s opinion, breaks down its meaning for the investigation and prosecution of cases involving online threats and stalking, and explains why the Elonis decision is not cause for alarm. The presenters, one of whom authored an amicus brief in the Elonis case, suggest strategies for charging and presenting evidence in cases involving threats or stalking on public forums, such as Facebook, to maximize the likelihood of a conviction that will stand up on appeal.

This webinar recording should qualify prosecutors for 1.25 hours of continuing legal education (CLE) credits. Prosecutors are encouraged to contact their state bar association in reference to application requirements and related fees.

September 30, 2018April 29, 2021

It’s About Context, Not Character: Admitting Evidence Under R. 404(b)

Proving a crime of intimate partner violence challenges prosecutors to place the criminal act in the context of the relationship’s dynamic of ongoing power and control, with various forms of abuse that may span years or decades. The fullest possible picture of the relationship better enables the jury to understand the defendant’s motive and intent to inflict harm upon the victim. This can be done through admission of other crimes, wrongs, or acts under Federal Rule of Evidence 404(b) and equivalent state or tribal evidence rules or statutes. This webinar identifies types of evidence that may be admissible for purposes permitted under the Rule, suggests ways in which admissibility under the Rule can be argued, and discusses important considerations to avoid reversible error on appeal.

September 30, 2018May 14, 2021

Introducing Expert Testimony in Sexual Violence Cases

Experienced professionals familiar with the dynamics of sexual violence understand that victims have individual responses to trauma that are often counterintuitive to public expectations. Without the benefit of a proper explanation, however, jurors may wrongly interpret a victim’s actions during and after an assault as reasons not to believe the victim’s testimony. Expert testimony to explain victim behavior is often the best way to dispel myths and educate the jury to make an informed decision based on a view of the evidence within an accurate context. This webinar describes the impact of trauma on victims, including cognitive and behavioral reactions, and discusses the effect of common victim behaviors on factfinders’ assessments of victim credibility. It discusses the law related to the prosecution’s introduction of expert testimony on victim behavior, how to identify experts qualified to testify on this subject, and what the parameters of such testimony should be.

September 29, 2018May 14, 2021

Introducing Expert Testimony in Domestic Violence Cases

Popular perceptions of how victims should respond to physical and emotional trauma often conflict with the way victims actually behave; these misconceptions can severely affect the fact finders’ assessment of victim credibility and, ultimately, the case outcome. Introducing expert testimony to explain victim behavior is a way to dispel myths and assist the jury in making an informed decision based on the evidence. This webinar describes common victim behaviors and dynamics in intimate partner violence cases, as well as their impact on fact finders’ assessments of victim credibility. The presenter discusses the law related to the admission of expert testimony to explain victim behavior and suggests ways to identify qualified experts. The presentation highlights the importance of deciding whether to introduce expert testimony in a case and explains the value of consulting with experts during trial preparation regardless of whether such testimony will be introduced.

September 29, 2018May 17, 2021

Higher Education: Dispelling Myths to More Effectively Prosecute Campus Rape

Research shows the vast majority of sex offenders are non-stranger rapists and serial offenders. These offenders are often overlooked because they benefit from the common misconceptions and false expectations about a rapist’s relationship to their victim and the frequency of their offending. To more effectively identify, investigate, and prosecute non-stranger rapists on campus, prosecutors must overcome common myths and misconceptions about sexual violence, especially if judges and juries believe them. This webinar provides a comprehensive overview of sex offenders with an emphasis on non-stranger rapists and focuses on strategies for overcoming the unique challenges these offenders present on campus.