14 Facts About Circumstantial evidence

Circumstantial evidence is evidence that relies on an inference to connect it to a conclusion of fact—such as a fingerprint at the scene of a crime.

An explanation involving circumstantial evidence becomes more likely once alternative explanations have been ruled out.

Circumstantial evidence allows a trier of fact to infer that a fact exists.

Forensic evidence supplied by an expert witness is usually treated as circumstantial evidence.

Circumstantial evidence is especially important when there is little or no direct evidence.

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Circumstantial evidence is used in civil courts to establish or refute liability.

Circumstantial evidence is prevalent in attempts to recover damages from alleged tortfeasors.

Circumstantial evidence is used in criminal courts to establish guilt or innocence through reasoning.

One example of circumstantial evidence is the behavior of a person around the time of an alleged offense.

Indeed, the common metaphor for the strongest possible evidence in any case—the "smoking gun"—is an example of proof based on circumstantial evidence.

In practice, circumstantial evidence can have an advantage over direct evidence in that it can come from multiple sources that check and reinforce each other.

Circumstantial evidence normally requires a witness, such as the police officer who found the evidence, or an expert who examined it, to lay the foundation for its admission.

Indeed, if the circumstantial evidence suggests a possibility of innocence, the prosecution has the burden of disproving that possibility.

The 2015 murder trial of Ivan Chan Man-sum from Hong Kong was a conviction based solely on circumstantial evidence without finding the body of his murdered girlfriend.