The U.S. District Court for the District of Montana uses the digital Jury Evidence Recording System (JERS) to allow evidence admitted at trial to be viewed via touchscreen monitor by the jury during deliberations. JERS reduces the need to handle physical evidence while allowing the jury to view evidence multiple times, play audio and video recordings, and zoom in on pictures and documents. The courtroom deputy is responsible for adding and removing exhibits to JERS during trial and is responsible for working with the parties to ensure that submitted exhibits can be brought into the JERS system. JERS is NOT designed to present evidence in the courtroom.
SUBMITTING EXHIBITS FOR JERS:
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Parties must submit all proposed exhibits on a DVD, CD, or USB drive to the clerk’s office in the division where the trial is being held within the time prescribed by the case scheduling order or no later than the Wednesday before trial. The DVD, CD, or USB drive must be labeled with the case title, case number, and name of party submitting the exhibits.
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All documents and images must be marked with an exhibit number on the first page consistent with the hard copies provided to the Court and in the orientation (portrait or landscape) that ensures the greatest ease of viewing.
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Required Naming Conventions
a. Each file MUST be saved using the following formats:
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exhibit number_exhibit description.file extension
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exhibit number-exhibit subpart letter_exhibit description.file extension
Exhibits named correctly |
Exhibits named incorrectly |
2_Camera footage.wmv |
2 - Camera footage.wmv |
3_Contract.pdf |
3.Contract.pdf |
62-a_photo of gun.jpg |
62-1.photo of “murder weapon”.jpg |
62-b_letter from John to Jane.pdf |
62-2 forged document.pdf |
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Additional Requirements:
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File names must not contain quotation marks.
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Files names must not be argumentative. File names and descriptions will display on the exhibit list provided to the jury during deliberation and must be accurate.
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Files incorrectly named cannot be loaded into JERS and may be returned.
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Acceptable File Types:
Documents and Images: .pdf, .txt, .jpg, .bmp, .tif, .gif, .png
Video and Audio Recordings: .avi, .asf, .mpg, .mp3, .mp4, .wav, .wmv, .3gpp