Tampering with evidence

Spoliation

Spoliation of evidence is the intentional, reckless, or negligent withholding, hiding, altering, fabricating, or destroying of evidence relevant to a legal proceeding. Historically, it has also sometimes been referred to as the spoilage of evidence.

The spoliation inference is a negative evidentiary inference that a trier of fact can draw from a party's destruction of evidence that is relevant to an ongoing or reasonably foreseeable civil or criminal proceeding: the finder of fact can review all evidence uncovered in as strong a light as possible against the spoliator and in favor of the opposing party.

However, in U.S. federal courts, updates to the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure in 2015 have resulted in significant decline in spoliation sanctions.

Theory

The theory of the spoliation inference is that when a party destroys evidence, it may be reasonable to infer that the party had "consciousness of guilt" or other motivation to avoid the evidence. Therefore, the factfinder may conclude that the evidence would have been unfavorable to the spoliator. Some jurisdictions have recognized a spoliation tort action, which allows the victim of destruction of evidence to file a separate tort action against a spoliator.

By law enforcement

When police confiscate or destroy a citizen's photographs or recordings of officers' misconduct, the police's act of destroying the evidence may be prosecuted as an act of evidence tampering, if the recordings being destroyed are potential evidence in a criminal or regulatory investigation of the officers themselves.

Examples of evidence spoliation

• Enron scandal, and the Arthur Andersen LLP v. United States case
• Iran–Contra affair, and Fawn Hall's role
• The Metropolitan Police file-shredding
• Conrad Black's removal of 13 sealed evidence boxes from his office during a trial
• CIA Director Richard Helms' order to destroy MKUltra files

References

References

1. (February 2004). "Evidence Tampering". Duke Law Journal.
2. (2 November 2020). "Destruction of document or electronic record to prevent its production as evidence".
3. (2 November 2020). "False charge of offence made with intent to injure".
4. "Wrongful Convictions in Singapore: A General Survey of Risk Factors".
5. [[Black's Law Dictionary]] (8th ed. 2004). For an overview of spoliation, see generally Michael Zuckerman, [https://ssrn.com/abstract=1536805 Yes, I Destroyed the Evidence -- Sue Me?], Journal of Computer and Information Law
6. (1993). "Spoilage of Evidence – Crimes, Sanctions, Inferences and Torts". Tort & Insurance Law Journal.
7. Young, Will. (January 27, 2020). "How Corporate Lawyers Made It Harder to Punish Companies That Destroy Electronic Evidence". ProPublica.
8. "Evidence Spoliation: A Growing New Tort".
9. "Know Your Rights: Protesters and Photographers".
10. (2017-02-09). "Inquiry into Met Police file shredding claims". BBC News.
11. Siklos, Richard. (2007-07-14). "Conrad Black Found Guilty in Fraud Trial". The New York Times.