The police have just arrested Mark Lawson and charged him with the murder of his wife- - it won’t be long before he goes to trial.

Just because Mark’s parents hired our firm to work on this case doesn’t mean we have to argue that Mark is innocent. Your job is to piece the evidence together and make a well-informed judgment about whether Linda Lawson’s death was a homicide or suicide.

Depending on what conclusion you reach, I expect that either the prosecution or the defense will call you to testify at the trial. If you determine that Linda Lawson’s death was a suicide, the defense attorney will certainly want you to testify on Mark Lawson’s behalf; if you conclude her death was a homicide, the prosecution will be calling you instead to take their side.

I’ll go into more detail below, but basically I’d like you to:

• Wrap up your investigation
• Draw your final conclusions about the case
• Wrap up your investigation
  

With the impending trial, you need to wrap up your investigation as soon as possible, requesting any additional case documents you may need and tying up any lose ends in your Progress Report. I’ll do my best to get you the case materials you think you need. As usual, be sure to provide a strong rationale for each request.

Draw your final conclusions
To arrive at your final position on the case, evaluate your current theory based on the strength of the evidence you have to support it. When you think you have enough solid evidence to adequately support your position, draw your conclusions about the case - - is it homicide or suicide? - - and record them in your Progress Report. Whatever position you take, be sure to provide your rationale. Then consider the strength of your position and the evidence you have to support it. How confident are you of your position?

If you are called to testify in court, you’ll be presenting your evidence in front of a jury, and their job is to decide if Mark Lawson is innocent or guilty. These are regular people, with all kinds of different jobs, of all ages. Your testimony is going to influence how they think about the case, so you need to think about how a jury member might evaluate your position and supporting evidence. If someone who didn’t know anything about the Lawsons heard your testimony, what would they believe based on what you’ve told them? Think about the jury’s perspective to help you judge whether your evidence will make any sense.

When you submit your final Progress Report, I’d like you to recap your position and rationale in an email. I look forward to reviewing your findings.

 

Thanks,

K.C. Hammond, P.I.
Hammond Investigations