Could it be a Trait?

You may as well smile. Life is periodically going to give you lemons. What you do with them is your business though. Jenna Raine takes the metaphorical "lemonade" posture and sets it to music in It is what it is () which begins with a recitation of life's little problems and then hits a bit with the refrain:

Hey! Lemons make lemonade, 

Flowers bloom in the rain

Growing up is a pain, And it is what it is

Okay! It's not the end of the world, 

There's always light where it burns

Just remember the words, 

And it goes like this 

It is what it is, what it is, what it is, what it is It is what it is, what it is, what it is, what it is

A sound mental health outlook. Some things just happen.

The lyrics returned to me recently when I read about the young lady arrested in Georgia for speeding. You read that right, arrested for speeding. You must drive pretty fast in Florida to get arrested for speeding, but my curiosity was piqued. The headline about her smiling mugshot was a draw, but the addition of "Locked up Miss America" made it a "must-click."

The story is somewhat amusing because she was not just pulled over, but pulled over "twice in a matter of minutes." To be fair, I have been pulled over twice in one day before, but that is a whole other story. On this lady's first stop, she was ticketed "for going 79 mph in a 55 mph zone." Ticket in hand, she pulled out and ramped it up a bit to "84 mph in the 55 mph zone."

That reminded me of a joke told about a comedian who was stopped for 85 in Iowa. He explained to the trooper that he was trying to get to 88 MPH to get "back to the future." Try that one on next time you are conversing with an officer. I dare you.

Speaking of Iowa, and not meaning to run anyone down (sorry), the news reported an incident there where troopers "stopped 30 cars for speeding, and one driver was even jailed after they were allegedly caught doing a mighty 144 mph." There was one problem: "The stopwatch they were using was set to kilometers instead of miles." 

First, a stopwatch? That seems unlikely. But even so, it means Iowans do not understand the metric system any better than the rest of us. See 144 Kilometers per hour is more like 90 MPH. If the young lady in Georgia tries that defense, perhaps she was only going 84 KPH or 52 MPH?

But the real story is that this college student smiled in her mugshot, posted a bond, and headed back out on the highways. She went viral and received a lot of attention. The comments reported were untoward and even "unhinged." Her own response was perhaps the best though: "I had no idea you could get arrested for speeding." Well, a lot of folks likely think that.

People Magazine had an interesting article that included some comments by the student's parents. In that interview, she assured that "she's since learned her lesson."

Her story continues, supporting the concept of habit. She smiled again in her next mugshot days later. Yes, that "learned her lesson" bit was maybe premature (not an April Fool's joke). She was most recently arrested by campus police for "loitering/prowling and obstructing a law enforcement officer." 

It appears she and others were in a campus building after hours ("oh, the humanity!"). They all fled the police, but this lady was found "crouching behind a wall ... in an apparent attempt to hide." Running and hiding are apparently obstruction at UGA. I have watched people on the news set up campsites on campus that were not arrested. 

I am hearing Stadler and Waldorf now: "What does this have to do with workers' compensation?"

Well, the smiling reminded me of striving for comprehension with my students in evidence class. Section 90.404 generally precludes "evidence of a person's character or a trait of character," subject to some exceptions. There are also specific times when proof of other crimes may be admissible for some purposes.

This made me think. Could the prosecution in the latest arrest for loitering/prowling introduce evidence of the earlier arrest for speeding (ignore for a moment that prior incident is an arrest and not a conviction)? Not likely. Doesn't it prove she is a scofflaw? Not likely.

But what of the smiling that made this young lady famous? Could cheerfulness or bravery be a character trait? Would smiling in one booking photo raise the chance of comparing that to a second booking photo? The first photo (speeding) could not be introduced to prove she did or did not smile in the second (loitering) unless she introduced it to prove her trait or the prosecution does so to rebut her allegation of the trait.

Similarly, the first speeding could not be introduced to prove that she was more than likely speeding the second time. That would be more of an attempt at habit than a trait.

But, is bravery or cheerfulness a "trait?" Would her refusal or neglect to smile on the second mugshot be meaningful? Atlanta News First reported that she in fact did smile in the second. Does this prove that she has a tendency to be strong, unflappable, and confident? Is her demeanor and presentation a "trait" for the purpose of evidence and admissibility?

The story she has provided us is a sound example of identifying traits, and the role they might have in an evidentiary proceeding. In looking for traits, the careful litigator may strive to introduce such evidence of trait when relevant and persuasive. The effect depends on the behavior being a trait, and demonstrating its relevance to the finder of fact.

Can you show that "It is what it is, what it is, what it is, what it is It is what it is, what it is, what it is, what it is?"