PrepTest 103, Section 1, Question 5
Attorneys for a criminal defendant charged that the(35 more words not shown)
Which one of the following(9 more words not shown)
- AIt leaves open(10 more words not shown)
- BIt establishes that(6 more words not shown)
- CIt shows that(10 more words not shown)
- DIt demonstrates the(9 more words not shown)
- EIf true, it(10 more words not shown)
Reading the argument
Of course there might be no evidence left if the government destroyed it. That's the accusation.
The defense says favorable evidence existed and was destroyed. The government's reply says there is no favorable evidence. Even if that statement is true now, it doesn't tell us what existed before. Imagine a helpful document was shredded yesterday. Pointing out that the document isn't here today wouldn't answer the charge that someone shredded it.
What we’re looking for
That doesn't prove the defense is right, either. We haven't established that the evidence existed or that anyone destroyed it. We're evaluating the government's response, and our prediction is simply that it fails to settle the accusation. “There isn't any now” doesn't establish “We never destroyed any.”
Working the answers
- ACorrect
The reply leaves the alleged destruction unresolved. There might never have been favorable evidence, or there might have been favorable evidence that was destroyed. The government's statement is compatible with both possibilities. It therefore doesn't answer the specific charge about what happened to the evidence.
- B
Nothing in the reply establishes that the defense exaggerated. If evidence really was destroyed in a coverup, saying there is none now would fit that accusation. We would need more information to decide whether the charge is accurate, exaggerated, or entirely false.
- C
The government's statement doesn't reveal what the defense attorneys knew. They might have information about evidence that no longer exists, or they might be making an unsupported accusation. We can't determine their knowledge from this reply.
- D
We don't know whether the government searched its files. It could have searched thoroughly and found no favorable evidence. That would still leave open whether such evidence had been removed or destroyed earlier. A reply that fails to resolve the accusation doesn't prove that no search occurred.
- E
Even a true reply wouldn't disprove the charge. The defense isn't saying that favorable evidence is currently sitting in the government's files. It is saying the government destroyed that evidence. Its present absence could be exactly what we would expect if the charge were true.
More Strategy of Argument questions
Learn the LSAT our way
Our platform drills Strategy of Argument questions at your level and adjusts as you improve.