The reach of digital evidence in modern criminal proceedings is broad and continuing to grow. Prosecutors often use digital evidence to suggest intent, establish a relationship between parties, or piece together a timeline of events.
How can you fight back if you are facing criminal charges? At Greenwood Law in Winston-Salem, our lawyers aggressively defend people throughout the area who have been arrested or are facing criminal charges. Our experienced criminal defense attorneys know how examine and challenge digital evidence that may be collected.
What Kinds of Digital Evidence Can Prosecutors Use?
As our society becomes more digitized, it may feel like Big Brother is watching every move you make and listening in on conversations you have. Common types of digital evidence include:
- Cellphone and computer data: Text messages, emails, and social media communications, are the most commonly recognized forms of digital evidence used in North Carolina criminal cases. Even deleted texts that forensic tools recover can all surface during an investigation. Browsing history on your computer is easy to dig up, sometimes even after it has been erased. Smart devices in your home, like Alexa and Google Assistant, may have information that can be used against a defendant.
- Surveillance video: Businesses along Peters Creek Parkway, residential cameras near neighborhoods off Silas Creek Parkway, and even doorbell cameras can capture footage that becomes central to a prosecution. North Carolina courts have addressed how this kind of video gets introduced, and the process involves establishing that the footage is what the prosecution claims it to be, that the recording system was functioning properly, and that the chain of custody was maintained.
- GPS and location data: A location app built into your vehicle, a tracking device placed on the car of someone who is being investigated, a GPS monitoring bracelet worn as a condition of probation or pretrial release, and location data extracted from a seized cell phone can all be used to put you at the scene of a crime. Your phone’s location history, app data, and even Wi-Fi connection logs can tell investigators a detailed story about where you were and when.
Computers, cellular phones, and vehicles seized during a criminal investigation may contain vital evidence. Call logs, browser history, photos with embedded location metadata, and app activity can all become part of the record. Many types of criminal defenses cases use digitized evidence, not just white collar crimes like embezzlement, fraud, identity theft, and various types of internet crimes. Think of all the times you’ve seen law enforcement car and body cam videos used in DUI and DWI cases.
How Does North Carolina Law Decide Whether Digital Evidence Is Admissible?
Before any piece of digital evidence reaches a jury in a North Carolina courtroom, it has to clear what is sometimes called an “authentication gate.” The prosecutor has to show the court that every document, photograph, or digital file used is what they claim it to be. They must authenticate it. A screenshot of a Facebook conversation, for example, isn’t automatically accepted just because someone printed it out and brought it to court.
North Carolina law provides several ways to satisfy this authentication requirement. Distinctive characteristics within the content itself, things like personal references, writing style, or specific details only certain people would know, can help establish who sent a message. A defendant may argue someone else used an account to send incriminating messages, but if the court allows it to be used in a case, authorship typically becomes a factual dispute for the jury to decide.
Authentication doesn’t mean the evidence is proven true. It means the court is satisfied that the evidence is what the prosecutor says it is. The jury still weighs its credibility and significance.
Video evidence goes through a similar process. Courts look at whether the recording system was operating correctly, whether the footage was properly preserved, and whether the chain of custody holds up. A clip may be authenticated for illustrative use through eyewitness testimony that it fairly and accurately shows what the witness perceived, and gaps in the chain of custody tend to affect the weight of the evidence more than its admissibility.
Beyond authentication, digital evidence still has to pass relevance standards. These are judgment calls that courts make on a case-by-case basis.
Can Digital Evidence Be Challenged?
At Greenwood Bennett PLLC, we challenge every disputed piece of evidence in order to help defend our clients. There is no assumption that digital evidence present is accurate, usable, or helpful.
One avenue for challenge involves how the evidence was obtained. Under the Fourth Amendment and the North Carolina Declaration of Rights, people are protected from illegal searches and seizures. If law enforcement collects evidence without a valid warrant, probable cause, or an applicable exception, a defense attorney can challenge its admissibility. Cell phones, in particular, have generated significant legal questions about when and how law enforcement can search them. This area of law continues to evolve.
Location data isn’t always as precise as prosecutors may suggest. Signal strength, environmental factors, and the limitations of the technology itself can all affect the accuracy of GPS or cell tower data. Call logs can show that a call happened, but they can’t tell anyone what was said or why. Social media accounts can be accessed by multiple people. Forensic analysis can contain errors. These aren’t technicalities. They’re legitimate factual and legal issues that our skilled defense lawyers examine and try to suppress whenever possible.
What This Means If You’re Facing Charges in Winston-Salem or Forsyth County
Cases in Forsyth County move through both District Court and Superior Court at 175 North Chestnut Street, and the volume of digital evidence in criminal matters has grown considerably over the past decade. Whether your case involves a misdemeanor or a felony, prosecutors increasingly rely on electronic records to build their cases.
Digital evidence is a piece of a larger picture, and like any piece of evidence, it can be examined, questioned, and sometimes excluded. If you’re dealing with a criminal matter in the Winston-Salem area, contact our legal team at Greenwood Law sooner rather than later. The earlier we can look at what the prosecution may have, the better positioned you’ll be.