Q: Is it illegal or unethical for a lawyer to edit evidence?
I'm concerned about a situation in Jamestown, TN, where a plaintiff's lawyer may have edited a defendant's email and attached it as supporting evidence in a contempt of court order. This has not yet been brought to the judge's attention. The defendants were charged with contempt of court based on this evidence.
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A: It would be unethical, and probably a felony, to tamper with evidence. However the defendants should be able to produce the original email prior to tampering. Their lawyer needs to get in gear on this and let the Judge decide what he wants to do about it.
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