Eyewitness identification

An assembly of intellectual psychologists started to conduct eyewitness credential trials in the 70s. By the 90s, they had amassed a wealth of evidence showing that witnesses were often mistaken and that lineup and identification procedures could considerably rise or cut eyewitness accuracy. A study of criminal justice officials by criminologists C. Ronald Huff, Arye Rattner, and Edward Sagarin in the 80s anticipated that…

particular way in which a question was asked, the type of feedback given, social pressure to do the right thing, and the time delay between the event and the testimony can all affect accurate information (Matlin, 2012). The relationship between eyewitness memory and recall is minimal. A person may appear confident in their memories, but actual recall of events is lacking. According to Wise as stated in Matlin’s Cognition, 8th edition “This research has practical applications for the legal…

Fortunately, according to the police report, it was the only substantial information that served as the basis for Smith’s arrest (besides her match to a very generic description), and show-up identifications are known to be unreliable. The action of law enforcement presenting a suspect face to face with a victim of crime is undeniably suggestive and could lead to wrongful conviction. Numerous factors deem visibility that night questionable. First…

A DNA fingerprint, therefore, is a DNA pattern that has a unique sequence such that it can be distinguished from the DNA patterns of other individuals. DNA fingerprinting is also called DNA typing. DNA fingerprinting was first used for sample identification after the geneticist Alec J. Jeffreys from the University…

necessary amount of evidence of innocence is the main reason why innocent people get convicted during trial. But what else can cause these convictions? The main causes are eyewitness misidentification, forensic science mistakes, and false confessions. “ 71% of overturned convictions examined by the U.S. innocence project involved eyewitness misidentification,” (Geddes…

Eyewitness misidentification is the most common cause of wrongful convictions, accounting for at least seventy-two percent of convictions overturned through DNA testing (The Innocence Project). This being said, eyewitness errors may happen for several reasons, including suggestive police interviewing, an incorrect belief about what the witness saw, and the malleability…

qualification” has a disproportionate racial impact—excluding qualified people from serving as jurors.” Next, they stated that “a variety of racial issues combine to dramatically increase the risk of sentencing innocent people to death. For example, eyewitness identification, the leading cause of wrongful convictions, is even less reliable when the witness is identifying someone of a different race. In 2000, A Broken System, a landmark study on the capital justice system by researchers at…

people sentenced to death after the wrongful conviction of murder. He was 17 at the time of his conviction and was executed in 1993 at 26 years old. About 12 years after his death, investigations show that he likely didn’t commit the murder. The one eyewitness withdrew his testimony, and Cantu’s co-defendant later admitted he allowed his friend to be falsely accused. He says Cantu wasn’t even there the night of the murder. After reading through more stories similar to his I found a quote that…

As Nell remembers Blanton’s murder, she struggles with her identification of DuPree as the murderer. Striving to understand how she might have accused the wrong man, she seeks out the help of a hypnotist and of a professor who is an expert on the issue of eyewitness testimony. Learning that police officers can mislead witnesses with subtle gestures, she questions Clay’s pursuit of DuPree as the killer and starts…

and he was seething with anger having to even provide this vindication to essentially clear two officer’s names. The eighth principle is the right of the defendant to be brought before a court. This was proven throughout the documentary; Avery and Dassey’s rights to a public trial by jury were upheld. This is corresponded with our seventh amendment to the U.S. Constitution, which is the right of the accused to a trial by jury, these are due process rights. Avery’s trial was very lengthy and…