Florida judge allows VR simulation of alleged crime to be introduced as evidence

A Florida judge has allowed a virtual reality simulation to be submitted as evidence during an aggravated assault case in 2023, according to a local TV news station in Ft. Lauderdale. And it could be the first time the defense in any criminal court hearing in the country has been allowed to introduce VR into evidence.

Miguel Albisu owns a wedding venue in Florida and has been charged with aggravated assault with a deadly weapon after allegedly brandishing a gun at guests during an altercation. Albisu’s wife and son were attacked on the spot, with his wife sustaining a wrist injury, and Albisu was called to the scene.

At issue is whether Albisu’s decision to threaten bystanders with a gun was a valid form of self-defense under Florida’s Stand-Your-Ground law.

The defense attorney in the case, Ken Padowitz, commissioned an artist to design a simulation of the incident for the Oculus Quest 2 and Broward County Judge Andrew Siegel will allow it to be presented at the trial. The idea is to give everyone in the courtroom the defendant’s perspective.

“We put headphones on the judge, the prosecutors, and the witness and the judge were able to see through my client’s eyes, from his own perspective, what he faced when he was surrounded by intoxicated partisans,” Padowitz said. . WPLG. “They took him, and he felt at that point in time that he needed to draw his weapon to defend his own life and his property.”

News station Local10 in Florida also aired video from the courtroom in December showing the judge and others in court watching the animation.

This isn’t the first time an animated simulation has been put to the test, just the first apparent use of virtual reality. Padowitz is credited with being the first to see confirmed animation as evidence in a criminal case when he was a prosecutor in 1992.

“Since that time, we’ve evolved to this point where our capabilities far exceed what we did in 1992,” Padowitz said. WPLG. “So what we’re doing here today is not only that we showed the judge a computer animation of what happened before my client had to pull out that gun in self-defense for his life, but we also shown in a virtual reality.

The admission of the VR simulation was allowed during a pre-trial hearing before a judge who will determine whether the case is dismissed or goes to a jury trial. If it goes to trial, court proceedings are expected to resume in February.