Circumstantial evidence might be compared to a rope comprised of several cords: ‘One strand of the cord might be insufficient to sustain the weight, but three stranded together may be quite of sufficient strength. Thus it may be in circumstantial evidence – there may be a combination of circumstances, no one of which would raise a reasonable conviction, or more than a mere suspicion: but the whole taken together, may create a strong conclusion of guilt, that is, with as much certainty as human affairs can require or admit of.’
Judges:
Pollock CB
Citations:
(1866) 4 F and F 922
Jurisdiction:
England and Wales
Cited by:
Cited – O’Brien v Chief Constable of South Wales Police HL 28-Apr-2005
The claimant sought damages against the police, and wanted to bring in evidence of previous misconduct by the officers on a similar fact basis. They had been imprisoned and held for several years based upon admissions which they said they had . .
Lists of cited by and citing cases may be incomplete.
Evidence
Updated: 26 November 2022; Ref: scu.224509
