Eyewitness testimony Flashcards
Eye witness testimony
-A witness to a crime giving their own account of events or perpetrator which is used to identify or provide evidence to convict accused in criminal trails.
Sawyer brothers against EWT
-Convicted of robbery based on eyewitness testimony from victim, despite having an alibi and 8 witnesses. The actual culprit later confessed, and the brothers were released. Jurors knew evidence was weak but were tired so went along with the majority.
Baddeley against EWT
-Eyewitness expert Thomson was arrested and placed in a line-up and identified by a victim as the man who raped her. Thomson however was on a live TV discussion about the unreliability of EWT at the time of the crime. Despite this he was arrested, and his alibi dismissed. Later it was found the crime was committed while the victim was watching Thomson on TV and had confused the faces.
Factors impacting EWT
-Stereotypes: counter stereotypical crime
Schema: clock
Sin of bias: personal, social and cultural beliefs
Salience: weapons focus
Stress: shooting + flashbulb memory
Leading questions: speed of car
Confirmation bias: immigrants and expectations
Context dependent: vandalism and reinstated context
Retroactive interference: questions at recall
Misinformation effect: barn vs stop sign
False memory development
- Plausible info
- Schema, suggestibility and experience
- Retroactive interference
Improving identity parades
- Make sure no one stands out
- Simultaneous presentation: 54% wrong and 54% correct
- Sequential presentation: 32% wrong and 44% correct
- Inform witness culprit may not be present
basic cognitive interview
- Reinstate the context
- Report every detail
- Reverse order
- Different perspective
Enhanced cognitive interview
- Rapport
- Spontaneous recall
- Open-ended questions
- Avoid interrupting
- Request detail
- Encourage imagery
- Reinstate context
- Reduce anxiety
- Follow-up questions
- Avoid judgment
