LESSON : THE VERDICT AND NEW EVIDENCE

Questions:

1. An agglutination test is a standard method of determining blood groups. What blood groups did ML Cowan discover when she tested the "crusted stains" of blood on Marilyn Sheppard's watch?

2. When was the agglutination test conducted? Were the results confirmed?

3. if Marilyn Sheppard's blood was-group 0 and Sam Sheppard's blood was group A, what reasonable deduction could be made by the defense concerning the information on this card?

4. The defenSe claims this card was never made available to them. Was it made available to the prosecution?

5. A key argument made by the prosecution in the 1954 trial was the lack of forensic evidence indicating the presence of an "intruder" in the Sheppard house at the time of the murder. What justification can you give for the prosecution's position, given the information on this work card?

6. The jury was never shown this laboratory work card, if it had been shown to the jury, do you believe it would have been sufficient to raise "reasonable doubt" in the minds of the jurors? Why or why not?

7. Regardless of the new evidence presented by the defense, all efforts to appeal the verdict of the jury in the Sheppard trial were denied: Write a Letter to the Editor of your local newspaper favoring or opposing this decision by the various courts of appeal.