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The "CSI Effect" (sometimes referred to as the "'''CSI syndrome'''") is a reference to the phenomenon of popular television shows such as the '' CSI Franchise '', '' Law & Order '', '' Silent Witness '' and '' Waking The Dead '' raising crime victims' and jury members' real-world expectations of Forensic Science , especially Crime Scene Investigation and DNA Testing .N. J. Schweitzer and Michael J. Saks The ''CSI'' Effect: Popular Fiction About Forensic Science Affects Public Expectations About Real Forensic Science. ''Jurimetrics'' , Spring 2007 This is said to have changed the way many trials are presented today, in that prosecutors are pressured to deliver more forensic evidence in court.1Donald E. Sheldon, Young S. Kim and Gregg Barak A Study of Juror Expectations and Demands Concerning Scientific Evidence: Does the 'CSI Effect' Exist? ''Vanderbilt Journal of Entertainment & Technology Law'' MEDIA PORTRAYAL OF FORENSIC SCIENCE On the ''CSI'' and ''L&O'' shows, toxicology and DNA tests often seem to be instantaneous, whereas actual results can take months. Blurry photos and video can be greatly magnified and sharpened to clearly reveal the most minute details, and audio recordings can be similarly processed to an unrealistic degree. Searches of Computer Database s of Fingerprint s, employee records, etc. are shown to be almost instantaneous and nearly foolproof. Furthermore, on some shows virtually all imaginable electronically stored information from building blueprints to old newspapers is readily accessible from the police or intelligence officer's computer, whereas in real life finding such information could take months. Finally, the investigators seem to be able to conjure up highly detailed graphic animations, often in 3D, in a matter of minutes or hours, where in reality specialists would work on such models for days or weeks. Also, on some shows (''e.g.'', the CSI Franchise , '' Without A Trace '', and '' Cold Case ''), eyewitness testimony is presented in the form of Flashback scenes, creating the impression that the witness is being absolutely truthful and has perfect memory of the events they are describing. However, often inaccurate witness testimonies or speculated theories are portrayed in ''CSI'', possibly as a way of redressing this balance. In ''Cold Case'', this often entails events from decades earlier, sometimes witnessed as children. In ''CSI'', the flashbacks are presented in black and white until the reveal, at which point the flashback will be in color, showing the definitive version of events. MANIFESTATIONS OF THE CSI EFFECT Influence on jurors Although speculation as to the validity of the ''CSI'' effect abounds, researchers have only recently begun studying the effect of ''CSI'' on juror behavior.Tom R. Tyler Viewing CSI and the Threshold of Guilt: Managing Truth and Justice in Reality and Fiction Yale Law Journal, 2006 One empirical study of the "''CSI'' effect" suggests that viewers of ''CSI'' and other forensic science shows are more critical of forensic science testimony and less persuaded by it; however, these same differences were not found for viewers of ''Law and Order'' (and other "general crime" shows), which implies that the "''CSI'' effect" is limited to those who watch specifically forensic-science shows.N. J. Schweitzer and Michael J. Saks The ''CSI'' Effect: Popular Fiction About Forensic Science Affects Public Expectations About Real Forensic Science. ''Jurimetrics'' , Spring 2007 Another study surveyed potential jurors and failed to find a link between ''CSI'' viewing and whether the jurors would "demand scientific evidence" in order for them to convict a defendant.Donald E. Sheldon, Young S. Kim and Gregg Barak A Study of Juror Expectations and Demands Concerning Scientific Evidence: Does the 'CSI Effect' Exist? ''Vanderbilt Journal of Entertainment & Technology Law'' A third study examined mock jurors' impressions of a criminal trial and found that ''CSI'' viewers' verdicts were not significantly different from non-viewers.Kimberlianne Podlas The C.S.I. Effect: Exposing the Media Myth Fordham Intellectual Property, Media and Entertainment Law Journal, 2006 Prospective students and other people who overestimate the reality-basis of shows such as ''''. For a recent Delaware Superior Court case taking Judicial Notice of the "CSI Effect" and deeming various inconclusive test results and other evidence admissible in order to mitigate the "CSI Effect," see State v. Cooke, 914 A.2d 1078. While the court accepted the argument that the inconclusive evidence was relevant, it did not accept some of this inconclusive evidence that would not have passed the Daubert Standard of reliability. Influence on the criminal mind The "CSI effect" may also be altering how crimes are committed. Tammy Klein, a criminalist for the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department, and other criminal experts have noticed an increase in criminal cases in which suspects burn or tamper with evidence (e.g. using Bleach to destroy DNA evidence), or attempt to carefully clean the crime scene of trace evidence such as hairs and clothing fibers. For example, critics cite a particular murder case in Trumbull County , Ohio . The prime suspect in this case, described as a ''CSI'' fan, murdered a mother and daughter. He then used bleach to wash his hands of blood and covered the interior of his car with blankets to avoid transferring blood as he transported the corpses, which he then burned along with his clothes and cigarette butts (which he feared would yield trace amounts of his DNA). He attempted to throw the remaining evidence into a local lake, including the murder weapon, a crowbar, but was unable to dispose of the evidence due to the lake's surface being frozen. The surviving evidence was later recovered by investigators and the suspect arrested.2 A more optimistic view of the CSI effect would suggest that these programs send criminals the message that no matter how much they try to cover up their crimes, forensic scientists can track them down. (As Delko said on the Influence on forensic science training programs Highly publicized trials such as those of '', and '' American Justice ''. 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