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Vanity of the Bonfires: Spoliation of Evidence

By Timothy M. Tippins
December 31, 2013

How do you know when an expert witness is getting ready to testify? By the bonfire in his backyard! Upon his conviction for Watergate-related activities, John Ehrlichman, Richard Nixon's Domestic Policy Adviser, famously said, “As a matter of historical perspective, you can make a pretty good argument that a bonfire on the South Lawn wouldn't have been a bad idea.” Gettysburg Times, 01-02-75, p.1, col. 2. One relatively recent appellate-level decision seems to carry a similar message to forensic custody evaluators.

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