ipl-logo

Eyewitness In Criminal Justice

1806 Words8 Pages

However, when the administrator tells the witness that the perpetrator might not be in the lineup, then that influences the witness to most likely not identify anyone and thus the witness is less likely to incorrectly identify any of those in the lineup (Kovera & Borgida, 1351). Thus, in regards to the knowledge of the lineup administrator, when they know who the suspect is and know if they are in the lineup or not then they can influence the witness’s identification process (Kovera & Borgida, 1351). As a result, Kovera and Borgida recommend that the administrators be blind as to whether the suspect is present or not in the lineup as to not interfere with the witness’s memory (1351).
Additionally, studies have shown that presenting the suspects …show more content…

Context consists of such factors as emotion and environment, and it is necessary to recreate those factors in order to access the memory that has been naturally primed to be recalled in reference to them (Cutler, Penrod, Martens, 629). Thus, when addressing these identification errors made by eyewitnesses and when trying to fix them it is essential that the officials involved in the criminal justice system who are questioning the witnesses “reinstate the context surrounding an event” (Cutler, Penrod, & Martens, 629). In other words, eyewitness identification errors need to be fixed, as well as discrepancies of reliability and accuracy within a jury and among the jury members. Furthermore, authors Kovera and Borgida discuss how social psychologists are not allowed in the courtrooms even though that would be very beneficial as they can share the knowledge of these phenomena that can often lead to injustices (1376). Perhaps the first step to more forcefully addressing and working on these influential estimator and system variables as well as jury biases will be to change that rule. But for now the most important part is that the realization of these social psychological concepts becomes widespread enough so that it becomes second natural to be aware of any biases or misjudgments occurring as a result of them. In other words, there are many issues and errors that occur within the legal system due to these social psychological aspects, and they thus must be more widely acknowledged, addressed, and fixed for they have the power to change a verdict and thus possibly ruin a life if a suspect is falsely convicted as a

Show More
Related
1139 Words | 5 Pages

Eyewitness accounts play a huge role in general in trials and verdicts, but may be unreliable many times, with certain views placed on evidence provided by children. Unreliability may arise from not being able to recount the identity of the accused, the actions and speech occurring during that time, the relationship of individuals towards the person in question, and many

Read More
702 Words | 3 Pages

This week’s topic was very interesting to learn about how important eyewitnesses can be when a crime and accidents do occur. In the case that was presented in the 60-minute segment of Ronald Cotton and Jennifer Thompson is exactly how legal system can fail us when it comes to the eyewitnesses’ identification testimony and how a person’s perception and memory can be altered. The aspect of psychology and law research from this week’s course material is most relevant to the topic of perception and memory. The memory has different stages the first is encoding the process of entering perception into memory.

Read More
1118 Words | 5 Pages

The case highlights the problems associated with flawed eyewitness identification, prosecutorial misconduct, and inadequate legal representation. By addressing these issues through comprehensive reforms, such as improving eyewitness identification procedures, increasing accountability for prosecutors, and providing adequate resources for public defenders, we can work towards a more just and equitable system. The case of Lamar Johnson not only underscores the importance of rectifying individual wrongful convictions but also emphasizes the broader implications for our society and the urgent need for criminal justice

Read More
423 Words | 2 Pages

It is unlikely that social consequences of false memories can be avoided. Elizabeth Loftus was intrigued to study false memories, and is perhaps personally responsible for subsequent developments throughout the history of false memories. Some of this history addresses various theories aimed at isolating how or why false memories occur. These include Source Monitoring Framework, Activation Monitoring Theory, Fuzzy Trace Theory, and strategies for persuasion which can lead to the development of false memory. Such persuasion leads to the present discussion concerning how persuasion in the judicial system has created false confessions and wrongful eyewitness testimonies, due to the Misinformation Effect.

Read More
983 Words | 4 Pages

In “Memory in Canadian Courts of Law”, Elizabeth Loftus introduces the readers to incidents in Canadian courts where “faulty memory of eyewitnesses” have unintentionally convicted innocent Canadians, causing them to carry a burden of being treated as a criminal even if they were later acquitted in order to use it as a tool to motivate those interested in the court system to display the horrendous flaw of eyewitnesses testifying in courts operating under the adversarial system such as in Canada. The flaw cannot be eliminated “unless or until better proof becomes available for these types of claims”. Ultimately, Loftus wants Canadians who cares about the legal system and the wellbeing of other Canadians who may be confronted with the possibility

Read More
1188 Words | 5 Pages

In the book “Picking Cotton”, the former Burlington Police Chief Mike Gauldin, who was the lead detective on Jennifer’s case, was certainly sure that Ronald Cotton was the guy he was looking for after Jennifer picked him twice (Jennifer, Ronald, Erin 80); also, on the McCallum’s case, the polices also chose to trust eyewitnesses when they did not have enough physical evidences. Furthermore, judges can be wrong sometime. Wise and Safer, who are authors of the report “ what US judges know and believe about eyewitness testimony”, surveyed 160 U.S. judges to determine how much they know about eyewitness testimony on a small test( Wise, Safer, 427-432). However, the survey responds the average judges in the U.S. only 55% correct within 14 questions (Wise, Safer, 431-432). Moreover, most of the judges who were surveyed did not know key facts about eyewitness testimony.

Read More
469 Words | 2 Pages

Individuals can often mistake objects or others for something else. Moreover, crimes are committed without notice, so people may remember them incorrectly due to the sudden nature of said offense. Additionally, the conditions of the environment can have a massive effect on a person's perception of a situation (Albright 2017). For instance, in Matthews' case the witness, “Cheramie identified Johnson, [Ryan Matthews], as the gunman,” even though DNA evidence proves he was not the person that shot Vanhoose (University of Michigan Law School

Read More
1428 Words | 6 Pages

Psychological Monographs: General and Applied, 2(4), i-109. Greene, E., & Heilbrun, K. (2011). Wrightsmans psychology and the legal system (7th ed.). 20 Davis Drive Belmont, CA 94002 USA: Wadsworth, Cengage Learning. Thompson-Cannino, J., Cotton, R., & Torneo, E. (2010).

Read More
1559 Words | 7 Pages

To be certain, they feel that “you could consider special marks on his face and body, but their significance could only be established by witnesses who recollected the person earlier”(Davis 63). The witnesses are expected to have detailed visual recollections. The justice committee is influenced by legitimate identities within a specific community but also strives to provide a fair trial. The reader can relate this

Read More
320 Words | 2 Pages

The description of the Lockerbie bombing may provide image on how lengthy and complicated an investigation and a trial process could be. Eyewitness would have to go through repeated interviews. The purpose of this procedure is to assess the consistency and accuracy of the testimony. Unfortunately, it is often not realized that repeated interview may also have a negative effect on the quality of the testimony given. A study by Sharps, Herrera, Dunn, and Alcala investigated the effect of repeated questioning in the format based of police procedure (2012).

Read More
754 Words | 4 Pages

This specific procedure necessitates the witness to view each photo separately from the rest so not to pick the suspect due to his/her close similarity. When reviewing photos sequentially, one will be more likely to compare the photo to their memory rather than to the others grouped together. Lineups continue to be called to question from the defense in that there is always the possibility the results may produce a false identification of a suspect. This is commonly due to the officer inadvertently providing verbal or no-verbal clues as the witness reviews the lineup. In addition, lineups are to be construct so those displayed have similarities such a facial hair, eye glass, or skin tone.

Read More
1447 Words | 6 Pages

Part One is very informational and contains the bulk of the book’s research. The information was presented in a thesis format; Loftus stated a claim and then supported her ideas with research and quotations from experts in the field of law and memory. Part One is helpful for psychologists, attorneys, and interested law people. The major principles concerning the errors in eyewitness testimony are supported by research and are accepted by psychologists (Kassin, Ellsworth, & Smith, 1989). Part One will contribute to the future of psychology by showcasing how the memory works and the different ways it is manipulated and changed: this will allow jurors and lawyers to become more wary when dealing with a traumatized

Read More
1703 Words | 7 Pages

The human memory of complex and highly charged events is invariably incomplete. Police officers cannot be expected to encode and retain every one of the countless details that make up a use-of-force incident” (Simon). This will provide officers help to get the facts needed for the case. Therefore, there will be more hard evidence that can also be used in court. In addition, “Human memory is also susceptible to a

Read More
688 Words | 3 Pages

Near Misses and Wrongful Convictions Erroneous convictions are a terrible injustice to those convicted and have the potential to deteriorate the public’s trust in the criminal justice system. An in-depth study was conducted by the National Institute of Justice and discussed by Dr. Jon Gould and John R. Firman during the presentation, “Wrongful Convictions: The Latest Scientific Research and Implications for Law Enforcement”. This study attempts to discover why some cases arrive into the system are near misses—this is an innocent person cleared or acquitted of all charges based on factual evidence—and other cases arrive into the system a different way become wrongful convictions, which these people are also factually innocent, it was just

Read More
767 Words | 4 Pages

The concept of jury nullification is not one that is broadly known or spoken about in the discipline of law. This is because until more recent years the concept was considered a complex subject that garnered plenty of conversation and debate. To understand the controversy that surrounds this particular area of the law, a definition of jury nullification is in order. It is known that the jury’s role is to act as the unbiased and impartial voice of judgment during the proceedings of a court case.

Read More

More about Eyewitness In Criminal Justice

Related Topics

Open Document