From: Mike Godwin <mnemonic@eff.org>
Date: Tue, 28 Sep 93 13:31:33 PDT
To: allan@elvis.tamu.edu (Allan Bailey)
Subject: Re: Disturbing statistics on wiretaps
In-Reply-To: <9309281950.AA04308@elvis.tamu.edu>
Message-ID: <199309282026.AA18872@eff.org>
MIME-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain


 
Allan writes:

>   I don't think e-mail over the Intenet will ever be used in court
> since anyone capable of reading the RFC would be able to forge email.
> So, anyone could claim that the email being used as evidence is a
> forgery _and_ be able to prove it by doing it or demonstrating it.

This is not how evidence works. The fact that Internet mail can be forged
may cast doubt on the authenticity of a message, but it wouldn't result in
its inadmissibility. The jury can make its own decision about whether
the mail is authentic, based on full information about the possibility
of forgery.


--Mike