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You Are a Defense Attorney Defending a Client Against a Murder

question 45

Multiple Choice

You are a defense attorney defending a client against a murder charge. Your client is the former boyfriend of the victim, and it has been established by several witnesses that the breakup was not a pleasant one. Your client was identified as a suspect from the very beginning. During the trial, the prosecution presented a witness who claimed to overhear your client praying for forgiveness in his holding cell. The prosecution also presented the murder weapon, which was a softball bat with your client's fingerprint on the handle. Your client was convicted. The witness who the prosecution called to testify about supposedly overhearing your client pray is an example of a jailhouse informant. The prosecutor had doubts about the veracity of this testimony, especially considering that the witness demanded that his own charge be dropped in return for his testimony. The prosecutor decided to present the witness anyway, figuring that it might not be totally proper, but that since he was convinced your client was guilty, it was ok to bend the rules in order to secure the conviction. This is an example of:

Definitions:

Breached

The act of breaking or failing to observe a law, agreement, or code of conduct.

Real Estate

Property consisting of land and the buildings on it, along with its natural resources and rights.

Legal Position

A statement or principle of law that pertains to a particular factual situation, representing an argument or standpoint in legal proceedings.

Principal's Right

The authority or entitlements a principal has in a legal or contractual relationship, especially in relation to an agent acting on their behalf.