This case establishes that law enforcement must prove the reliability of specialized software like Torrential Downpour under Rule 702 before its results can be admitted as evidence.
The court clarified that under rule 405(a), character witnesses may only testify to reputation or opinion on direct examination, but may be cross-examined about specific relevant instances of conduct.
Courts must exclude late-disclosed evidence under Rule 26 unless the party demonstrates harmlessness or good cause for the failure.
Courts may deny bindover when witness testimony is so internally contradictory that it cannot support a reasonable inference regarding a defendant’s identity as the perpetrator.
Utah appellate courts will not find eyewitness testimony inherently improbable unless it is physically impossible or apparently false, even under challenging observation conditions.
The Utah Supreme Court clarified the evidentiary requirements for defendants seeking pretrial dismissal under the justification statute.
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