Many businesses and even homes today record multiple angles with security cameras and doorbell cameras positioned around the building. If these cameras caught an accident on video, can they be used in an injury claim?
Generally, any video that was recorded and accurately captures the events as they occurred can be admissible in court. This includes all kinds of security and surveillance video used in stores, homes, or even by the government. However, you should always have our lawyers help you obtain footage so we can make sure it is properly preserved and authenticated.
For your free case evaluation, call the Las Vegas, NV personal injury lawyers at Mitchell Rogers Injury Law today at (702) 702-2622.
What is Needed to Admit Video Evidence in a Personal Injury Case?
Nevada law allows for the introduction of nearly all “relevant” evidence, regardless of what form it takes. This means video and photo evidence can be admitted, as long as it meets a few bars to entry.
Relevance
For evidence to be relevant, it must make the existence of some fact important to the case more or less likely to exist. This basically tracks with the everyday definition of “relevance”: it has to have something to do with the case at hand.
Authentication
The video must be the actual video of what happened. This means that it has to accurately depict what happened, which anyone who saw the events/area and saw the video can confirm.
Additionally, we need to prove that this was the specific video taken from the camera. That means saving the files or tapes/discs from the security system in such a way that we can prove that video came from the camera and was not doctored in between.
Laying the Groundwork
We also need to be able to have someone testify about the video and how it was obtained so that we can introduce the video in court. Evidence cannot just be introduced; we need to show it while there is a witness on the stand who can authenticate it and say why it would be relevant.
What Kinds of Video Can Be Used?
All kinds of video evidence are admissible, including these common sources
Security or Surveillance Video
If there are security cameras set up in a store or outside a building, then the surveillance footage can typically be admitted for any injuries or accidents it caught on video.
Doorbell Camera Video
Doorbell cameras are just one type of security camera, so their footage is typically admissible just like any other security video.
ATM Cameras
Sometimes the security camera on an ATM is well-positioned to catch an accident on camera. We can potentially seek out the video from the company that owns/operates the ATM.
Dash Cams
Many people put cameras on their cars to protect them in case of a car accident. If this camera caught your accident, we can also ask for this footage.
CCTV and Traffic Cameras
If there are local cameras that are set up by the government, we may be able to find the video and request it. However, many government-owned cameras do not record and are used only in emergencies and for monitoring live traffic conditions.
Cell Phone Video
If someone happened to pull out their phone and record what was happening, our Nevada personal injury lawyers can ask them for that video to use it in your injury case.
Pros and Cons of Security Video in a Nevada Injury Case
Sometimes video is an indispensable part of your case, for reasons such as these:
- It captured something you didn’t see while you were knocked out or before you arrived at the place your injury happened.
- There were no other witnesses, and this is the only evidence besides your own testimony about what happened.
- Objective video doesn’t lie or bend the truth.
However, it can also hurt your case if
- It shows you acting rude before or after the accident, which could turn the jury against you.
- It contradicts your story.
- A bad camera angle provides a misleading video of what happened and hurts your claim.
FAQs for Using Security Video in an Injury Case
What if Someone Else Owns the Camera?
If the video came from a camera that the victim or defendant owned, it will be simplest to obtain it as part of the discovery (i.e., evidence exchange) stage of your case. However, we can also have the court subpoena relevant evidence and footage owned by someone else, such as a store across the street from where you fell.
Can I Use Edited Video?
Security video is typically always recording, meaning the “full video” would be days or weeks of footage from the last date the camera automatically deletes. Because of this, footage almost necessarily needs to be edited or trimmed down in some way.
However, you cannot edit the video in misleading ways, cut out relevant parts either side might be able to use to their advantage, or otherwise “doctor” the video in unfair ways. You can potentially speed it up, slow it down, rewind, zoom, trim, and potentially even add circles or arrows to video, but you must explain those changes to the jury so they are not misled.
How Do I Obtain Security Video?
In many cases, you can just ask for it. Our lawyers can contact stores or homes where there was a potentially good angle on a security camera and simply ask the owner to give us a copy of the video.
We can also send preservation letters that tell the owner we want to use the video for trial, and direct them to save it so we can subpoena it later. If we send demand letters to the defendant, then their video gets deleted or “goes missing” later, we may be able to ask the court to sanction them and potentially tell the jury to assume the video would have hurt their case.
Does the Video Need to Be in a Particular Format?
Our lawyers can be the ones to request and obtain the video so that we can make sure we get it in a proper format that we can authenticate its source and show it was accurately preserved without tampering. The specific format needed might depend on the courthouse’s audio/visual technologies and setups, but we can usually hook up a computer to play whatever file format we need to.
Call Our Personal Injury Lawyers in Nevada for Help Today
For a free review of your potential case, call Mitchell Rogers Injury Law’s Henderson, NV personal injury lawyers at (702) 702-2622 today.