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Pooh-Bah
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Pooh-Bah
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On the news they mentioned that a "material witness" was detained in relation to the WTC attack. My question is, what exactly is meant by "material witness"? Does it mean a very important witness or is there something more specific in terms of legalese about it?
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Carpal Tunnel
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Carpal Tunnel
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A "material witness" is one able to give useful information of which
he has important firsthand knowledge, not hearsay.
Dict.:
Law: important enough to affect the outcome of a case
the validity of a legal instrument, etc. "a material witness"
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Joined: Jul 2000
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old hand
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old hand
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I'd say that a material witness is one who can provide information about the event, as opposed to a character witness who gives background infomation on the personality of someone, usually the defendant I would assume.
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Carpal Tunnel
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Carpal Tunnel
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Interestingly, in my edition of Black's Law Dictionary (the standard work of its kind), the term "material witness" does not appear. A civil litigator with whom I checked had no solid definition, but suggested it might be a term of criminal law rather that civil law.
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Pooh-Bah
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Pooh-Bah
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From cnn.com: Aided by a federal grand jury in White Plains, New York, the investigation has detained 80 people for questioning and has four people under arrest as material witnesses.
So they arrest a material witness, which implies wrongdoing, as if the witness were also invovled in the crime. Or maybe they are "arrested" for safekeeping -- i.e. sequestered so somebody like the mafia or a terrorist can't "grease" them.
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Joined: Nov 2000
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Carpal Tunnel
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Carpal Tunnel
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Or maybe they are "arrested" for safekeeping
In general, yes. Also my understanding that material witnesses are arrested and detained so they don't disappear, especially if they are foreign nationals or there is reason to believe the person(s) might otherwise make themselves scarce so as not to get involved.
Or so I understand.
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Pooh-Bah
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Pooh-Bah
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A quick google of "material witness" yields, sadly, an appeal concerning the material witness warrant of Terry Lynn Nichols which was issued in connection with the grand jury proceeding against Timothy McViegh. "The warrant stated on its face that "the Witness's testimony is material in a criminal proceeding, and he has attempted to leave the jurisdiction of the United States, and it may become impracticable to secure his presence by subpoena." Apparently, a material witness is one whose testimony is material to the case, but might flee if subpoenaed and must therefore be arrested. http://www.law.emory.edu/10circuit/feb96/95-3130.wpd.htmlSparteye?
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Carpal Tunnel
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Carpal Tunnel
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Hell, I've been a material witness on any number of occasions. Sandra's forever going into draperies and buying the stuff. And I have to watch. On that score, I also tend to be a material carrier ... 
The idiot also known as Capfka ...
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Carpal Tunnel
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Carpal Tunnel
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Another interesting difference between your side of the pond and ours. Here drapery refers to the cloth itself, there drapery seems to refer to the store itself.
TEd
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Carpal Tunnel
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Carpal Tunnel
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More than that, draperies, out of context, would to most US's mean window clothes.. heavy weight, or ornate curtains. (simple cloth, gathered, on a window is a curtain), but Scarlet O'Hara pulled down the velvet drapes to make her dress.
If you meant Dress shops, or clothing stores.. (as i presume you did) you'd never call them a drapery here!
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