Our office is proud to announce that Attorney Brian Jones will be presenting on the difficult subject of Child Witness Cross Examination on April 13, 2018 at the Ohio Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers (OACDL) Continuing Legal Education (CLE) seminar series. This OACDL seminar is scheduled in Dayton at University of Dayton Law School in The Courtroom at Keller Hall from 1:00 pm to 4:15 pm.
Attorney Brian Jones will navigate this precarious topic and dissect the issues that make child witness cross examination such a complicated practice area, such as:
child witnesses who have experienced trauma and sensitivity
asking the right questions
the limits of memory and the cognitive ability of children
maintaining favorability with the jury members
and much more...
“Children can be intimidating to defense attorneys," explained Attorney Jones. "By our nature, people want to protect children. We fear juries will have blind faith in the word of a child. In reality, that fear resides in our own hearts because even criminal defense attorneys are humans with compassion and empathy. We don’t want to be responsible for hurting a child, re-victimizing a child, or even embarrassing a child. I’ve cross examined dozens of children, studied child psychology and trial tactics, and developed a plan for cross examining children. At the conclusion of the examination, the jury will understand the limitations of a child’s memory, the inherent biases of the child, and have reasonable doubt as to the truthfulness of the child’s statement.”
If you're interested in attending this OACDL CLE seminar, follow the link to register here. Registration is only $85 for OACDL members. Attorney Jones' appearance will be followed by a presentation on Science in the Courtroom, by Stephen Goldmeier, Esq. of the Office of the Ohio Public Defender, Columbus, with a happy hour immediately thereafter at Flanagan's Dayton.