United States v. Saelee
United States District Court for the District of Alaska
162 F. Supp. 2d 1097 (D. Alaska 2001)
Saelee (defendant) was charged with importing opium hidden in returned candy bar packages, and the prosecution sought to have forensic document analyst John Cawley testify about similarities between Saelee's handwriting and the address label, without stating a firm conclusion, hoping to present the testimony as lay opinion rather than expert testimony subject to stricter scrutiny. Saelee moved to exclude Cawley's testimony under the rules governing lay and expert opinion.
Whether a forensic document analyst's testimony comparing similarities between two handwriting samples, offered without a firm conclusion, may be admitted as lay opinion testimony rather than expert testimony subject to a reliability analysis.