11th Cir. Pattern Jury Instr. (Criminal) S19

Intentional flight or concealment by a person during or immediately after a

crime has been committed, or after a person is accused of a crime, is not, of course,

sufficient in itself to establish the guilt of that person. But intentional flight or

concealment under those circumstances is a fact that, if proved, may be considered

by the jury in light of all the other evidence in the case in determining the guilt or

innocence of that person.

Whether or not the Defendant’s conduct constituted flight or concealment is

exclusively for you to determine. And if you determine that the Defendant’s

conduct constituted flight or concealment, whether or not that conduct showed a

consciousness of guilt on the Defendant’s part is also exclusively for you to

determine.

If you find that there was flight or concealment, you should also consider

there may be reasons for this conduct that are fully consistent with innocence.

These may include fear of being apprehended, unwillingness to confront the police,

or reluctance to confront the witness.

And may I also suggest to you that a feeling of guilt does not necessarily

reflect actual guilt of a crime that you may be considering.