A study suggesting crime dramas heavily influence the way Canadian law enforcers and lawyers carry out their job was presented at a criminal justice psychology conference in Ottawa early this month.

Psychologists from Halifax’s Saint Mary’s University collected information from numerous lawyers, police, potential jurors and followers of the hit television series, CSI, in order to study how their expectations of the legal system are affected by crime shows.

On June 8th, Dr. Marc Patry, one of the people behind the study, appeared on CTV’s Canada AM and said, “It does seem clear that these programs are influencing people's perceptions of the legal system, which is in turn influencing the professionals who work within the legal system and the way in which they interact with the public. So we're seeing this kind of a CSI effect.”

The results of the study echo that of an earlier statement made by Max Houck, director of Forensic Science Initiative at West Virginia University. Houck said that the popularity of CSI has caused police not only to gather more evidence than is actually needed, but to also excessively order expensive tests. In addition, lawyers from both sides of the courtroom expect their respective experts to mirror the precision of the characters in CSI.

Elevated expectations such as the ones Houck explained also appeared in Patry’s study.

“When (police) go to a crime scene ... the victims of the crime will follow them around and ask them, 'Gee did you dust over here for fingerprints and did you check the carpet over here for fiber samples?” Patry told the live morning show.

Moreover, there is some evidence that suggests the CSI effect is reaching the level of lawyer-client interaction. "If I don't throw the judge up against the wall and grab him by the scruff of the neck, then I'm not doing my job. It's that kind of idea," Patry said.

Patry’s study has raised many important questions regarding the Canadian legal system, particularly with regards to pitting reality against fiction.

CSI remains the #1 rated show in America, while its incarnation, CSI: Miami is still the #1 show internationally.

-Lisa Claustro, BuddyTV Staff Columnist

Source: ctv.ca

(Photo Courtesy of CBS)