People v. Collins[1] was a 1968 American robbery trial in California noted for its misuse of probability[2] and as an example of the prosecutor's fallacy.

The Court said of the fallacy "we think that the entire enterprise upon which the prosecution embarked, and which was directed to the objective of measuring the likelihood of a random couple possessing the characteristics allegedly distinguishing the robbers, was gravely misguided.

At best, it might yield an estimate as to how infrequently bearded Negroes drive yellow cars in the company of blonde females with ponytails.

The court asserted that mathematics, "...while assisting the trier of fact in the search of truth, must not cast a spell over him.

"[1] In particular, the court expressed its concern that complex mathematics would distract the jury from weighing the credibility of witnesses and the reasonableness of their doubts.