Witness Location And Preparation Flashcards
is someone who has first hand knowledge about a crime or significant event through his or her senses (e.g. seeing, hearing, smelling, touching) and can help certify important considerations about the crime or event.
WITNESS/S –
_______ provide the chief means by which evidence is offered in a trial. Through witnesses, a party will attempt to establish the facts that make up the elements of his case.
A witness may testify on virtually any matter if the matter is relevant to the issues in the trial and the witness observed or has knowledge of the events to which he is testifying. Witnesses are also used to provide the foundation for documents and other physical evidence.
Witnesses
TYPES OF WITNESSES
EYEWITNESS EXPERT WITNESS INDIFFERENT WITNESS INTERESTED WITNESS HOSTILE WITNESS CHILD WITNESS
- Anyone with any direct knowledge of the incident or who has seen the event first hand is known as an eyewitness.
EYEWITNESS
- A witness who specializes in an area of study relevant to a crime. These may pertain to police personnel who may have responded to the scene and conducted the investigation. Medical Personnel who responded to the scene and anyone who subsequently rendered medical care to the victim/s and the suspect/s. Crime Laboratory Technicians such as chemists, medico-legal doctors, DNA analysts, psychiatrists etc.
EXPERT WITNESS
- is the best kind of witness for a case because the witness does not have any interest in success or failure of the case. He will always prefer to tell whatever he knows about the case without lying
INDIFFERENT WITNESS
- may be a friend, a relative or a potential beneficiary in the case and may exaggerate the fact
INTERESTED WITNESS
- he may have close relation or friendship with the suspect and do want to lie to protect the suspect. You may need to interrogate him rather than interview him.
HOSTILE WITNESS
- is a volatile witness who does not lie but is prone to the suggestions.
CHILD WITNESS
- It is worth to have an eyewitness to support a case but you should also know that his education, technical knowledge, physical condition, profession and emotion influence his observation.
- Don’t expect him to tell everything of what happened when the incident took place. He does not observe as what a police officer needs to observe.
- His information is valuable if it ______ to the physical or circumstantial evidence collected. Reconstruction of a case is important to verify the truthfulness of the information of an eyewitness.
corroborates
QUALIFICATION OF A WITNESS
“All persons who can perceive, and perceiving, can make their known perception to others, may be witnesses“
•Religious or political belief, interest in the outcome of the case, or conviction of a crime unless otherwise provided by law, shall not be ground for disqualification. (18a)
Section 20 of the Revised Rules on Criminal Procedure
DISQUALIFICATION OF WITNESS
Sec. 21.Disqualification by reason of mental incapacity or immaturity.
Sec. 22.Disqualification by reason of marriage.
Sec. 23.Disqualification by reason of death or insanity of adverse party.
Sec. 24.Disqualification by reason of privileged communication.
Sec. 24.Disqualification by reason of privileged communication.
- The husband or the wife
- An attorney
- A person authorized to practice medicine, surgery or obstetrics
- A minister or priest
- A public officer
The three major aspects of criminal investigation are
- to identify the PERPETRATOR
- to locate and apprehend the PERPETRATOR
- and to prove his guilt in the court.
During the course of investigation an investigator depends on three major tools available to him which are:
Instrumentation
Information
Interview and Interrogation
