Frye v. United States
United States Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit
293 F. 1013 (D.C. Cir. 1923)
Relevant factsFree
Frye (defendant), charged with second-degree murder, sought to introduce expert testimony about a "systolic blood pressure deception test" purporting to reveal whether he was lying, based on the theory that blood pressure rises during deception but stays constant when a person tells the truth. The trial court excluded the testimony, Frye was convicted, and he appealed.
IssueFree
Whether expert scientific testimony is admissible only if the underlying scientific technique has gained general acceptance in the relevant scientific community.