Agenda

1. Lizzie Borden: Trial Strategy, Constitutional Protections, and a Case Built on Circumstantial Evidence

   1. The Case: Lizzie Borden was tried for the brutal axe murders of her father and stepmother in one of the most sensational trials of the 19th century. Explore the evidence, courtroom strategies, and constitutional protections behind the famous acquittal—and consider whether gender bias, weaknesses in the circumstantial case, or brilliant lawyering ultimately carried the day.
   2. The Murders, Suspects, and Evidence Against Lizzie Borden
   3. Prosecution vs. Defense: Competing Trial Theories
   4. Brilliant Cross-Examination: What Worked and Why
   5. Excluding Lizzie's Inquest Testimony: Right to Counsel and Due Process
   6. Circumstantial Evidence and the Prosecution's Burden
   7. Gender Bias and the Verdict: Was Justice Done?

2. Charles Manson: Publicity, Plea Strategy, and the Trial of the "Manson Family"

   1. The Case: Charles Manson didn't personally commit the Tate-LaBianca murders, but prosecutors sought to hold him responsible for directing his followers to kill. The resulting trial became a spectacle involving a charismatic cult leader, extraordinary publicity, multiple defendants, cooperating witnesses, and the death penalty. Examine how prosecutors built the case—and the difficult strategic decisions both sides faced along the way.
   2. Helter Skelter, the Manson Family, and the Tate-LaBianca Murders
   3. Investigation, Search of Spahn Ranch, and Building the Case
   4. Plea and Cooperation Strategy: Turning One Defendant Against the Others
   5. Voir Dire, Sequestration, and Trying a Case Under a Media Microscope
   6. Salacious Evidence: Probative Value vs. Unfair Prejudice
   7. Joint vs. Separate Trials, Undue Influence, and the Death Penalty

3. Jodi Arias: Digital Evidence, Self-Defense, and Trial Publicity

   1. The Case: Jodi Arias offered multiple explanations for the killing of her ex-boyfriend Travis Alexander—from denial, to mysterious intruders, to self-defense. But digital evidence and forensic clues told their own story. Follow the prosecution and defense through a sensational televised trial involving premeditation, domestic violence claims, aggressive advocacy, expert testimony, and two deadlocked penalty-phase juries.
   2. From Denial to Self-Defense: Arias's Changing Stories
   3. Building the Circumstantial Case With Digital and Forensic Evidence
   4. Premeditation vs. Self-Defense: Competing Trial Strategies
   5. Cross-Examination, Graphic Evidence, and Dueling Experts
   6. Trial Publicity and Televised Proceedings
   7. Prosecutorial Conduct, the Death Penalty, and Hung Juries

4. Karen Read: Reasonable Doubt, Prosecutorial Ethics, and Trial Publicity

   1. The Case: Boston Police Officer John O'Keefe was found dead in the snow outside another officer's home, and his girlfriend, Karen Read, was accused of hitting him with her SUV and leaving him to die. The defense offered a dramatically different theory—and attacked the investigation itself. Follow the case through a mistrial and second trial while examining reasonable doubt, alternate-perpetrator theories, intense publicity, and the special ethical obligations of prosecutors.
   2. ABA Model Rules 3.6 and 3.8: Trial Publicity and Prosecutorial Duties
   3. The Investigation, Evidence Collection, and Circumstantial Case
   4. Prosecution vs. Defense: Two Very Different Stories of What Happened
   5. The Alternate-Perpetrator Defense: Reasonable Doubt or Dangerous Speculation?
   6. Overcharging, Investigative Gaps, and Other Ethical and Strategic Issues
   7. Lessons From the First and Second Trials

5. Lindsay Clancy: Postpartum Depression, the Insanity Defense, and Criminal Responsibility

   1. The Case: The Lindsay Clancy case presents one of criminal law's most difficult questions: how should the justice system treat a parent accused of killing her children while allegedly suffering from severe postpartum mental illness? Examine the charges, the insanity defense, and the competing arguments surrounding intent, mental illness, and criminal responsibility.
   2. The Deaths, Charges, and Key Facts of the Case
   3. The Insanity Defense: What Must Be Proven?
   4. Postpartum Depression and Criminal Responsibility
   5. Charging Decisions and the Risks of Overcharging
   6. Trial Strategies and Key Moments During Trial

6. Legal Ethics Game Show: What Would You Do?

   1. The Challenge: Think you know legal ethics? Put your instincts to the test. Using famous fictional lawyers and real attorneys involved in high-profile cases, this interactive game show puts you in the hot seat: What would you do when loyalty, publicity, money, winning, and professional responsibility collide?
   2. Rules and Issues Discussed: Rule 1.1 – Competence Rule 3.3 – Candor Toward the Tribunal Rule 1.7 – Conflicts of Interest Over-Zealous Advocacy Ex Parte Communications