National Legal Aid & Defender Association
 
Forensics Library

 
Eyewitnesses

Over 75,000 people a year are charged with crimes on the basis of eyewitness identifications, but too rarely is this evidence challenged (or suppressed). The last 30 years have created a broad, sophisticated, and well-researched consensus among social scientists that human memory is subject to specific, non-intuitive influences. More than lighting conditions and elapsed time, subjects like lineup procedures, witness confidence inflation, weapon focus, and the difficulty of cross-racial identifications headline research. Defenders now have an obligation to use this science in the courtroom to challenge jurors’ and judges’ misconceptions and, where necessary, fight bad outdated precedents.

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  • Forensics Library
    • Eyewitness Identification Eyewitness Identification
      • Eyewitness ID Wrongful Convictions Eyewitness ID Wrongful Convictions
        Document Sub-Catagories of Eyewitness Identifications in Wrongful Convictions Appendix b to "How Mistaken and Perjured Eyewitness Testimony Put 46 Innocent..." listed above. E.g. breaks out cases by whether the ID was by a stranger, an accomplice, etc.
        [ Submitter: DC PDS  |  more info ]
        Document Causes of wrongful convictions in death penalty cases Appendix B to "How Mistaken and Perjured Eyewitness Testimony Put 46 Innocent..." listed above. Cites factors at play in wrongful death-penalty convictions from 1972-2001
        [ Submitter: DC PDS  |  more info ]
        Document Summaries of 46 mistaken eyewitness death penalty cases Appendix A to "How Mistaken and Perjured Eyewitness Testimony Put 46 Innocent..." listed above.
        [ Submitter: DC PDS  |  more info ]
        Document How Mistaken and Perjured Eyewitness Testimony Put 46 Innocent... Report listing key facts about known eyewitness identification errors in death penalty cases from 1972-2001. SEE ALSO APPENDICES on this site and via link.
        [ Submitter: DC PDS  |  more info ]