The Admissibility of Novel Scientific Evidence: Frye v. United States, a Half-Century Later

Abstract

This Article explores one aspect of this development-the evidentiary standards employed by courts to determine the admissibility of evidence based upon novel scientific techniques. The general requirements for the admissibility of evidence derived from a scientific procedure or technique are discussed in Part I. The standard used most often by the courts-the general acceptance test of Frye v. United States is examined in detail in Part II. Next, the relevancy standard and other alternatives are considered. Finally, the Article proposes a solution designed to promote the use of scientific advances while avoiding the problems identified with Frye and its suggested replacements.