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Opinions of Attorneys and Law Enforcement Personnel on the Accuracy of Eyewitness Identifications

Opinions of Attorneys and Law Enforcement Personnel on the Accuracy of Eyewitness Identifications A survey was conducted to obtain the opinions of attorneys and law enforcement personnel regarding several important aspects of eyewitness evidence: (1) legal procedures concerning eyewitness evidence; (2) estimated frequency of mistaken eyewitness identification; (3) the effects of certain witness/ suspect characteristics on identification accuracy; (4) the amount of emphasis placed on eyewitness evidence by judges and juries; (5) the relationship between a witness’ identification accuracy and certainty; and (6) the effect of stress and arousal on identification accuracy. The questionnaire was sent to a sample of defense and prosecuting attorneys in each of Florida’s 20 Judicial Circuits, to each of the 67 county Sheriff’s Departments in Florida, and to 100 randomly sampled Police Departments in Florida. Prosecuting attorneys and law enforcement officers indicated that they regard eyewitness identification as relatively accurate and that judges and juries appropriately emphasize its importance. Defense attorneys, on the other hand, felt that eyewitness identifications are often inaccurate and are overemphasized by triers of fact. The implications of these findings for the criminal justice system and their possible applications within the legal system are discussed. http://www.deepdyve.com/assets/images/DeepDyve-Logo-lg.png Law and Human Behavior American Psychological Association

Opinions of Attorneys and Law Enforcement Personnel on the Accuracy of Eyewitness Identifications

Law and Human Behavior , Volume 7 (4): 13 – Dec 1, 1983

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References (24)

Publisher
American Psychological Association
Copyright
Copyright © 1983 American Psychological Association
ISSN
0147-7307
eISSN
1573-661X
DOI
10.1007/BF01044736
Publisher site
See Article on Publisher Site

Abstract

A survey was conducted to obtain the opinions of attorneys and law enforcement personnel regarding several important aspects of eyewitness evidence: (1) legal procedures concerning eyewitness evidence; (2) estimated frequency of mistaken eyewitness identification; (3) the effects of certain witness/ suspect characteristics on identification accuracy; (4) the amount of emphasis placed on eyewitness evidence by judges and juries; (5) the relationship between a witness’ identification accuracy and certainty; and (6) the effect of stress and arousal on identification accuracy. The questionnaire was sent to a sample of defense and prosecuting attorneys in each of Florida’s 20 Judicial Circuits, to each of the 67 county Sheriff’s Departments in Florida, and to 100 randomly sampled Police Departments in Florida. Prosecuting attorneys and law enforcement officers indicated that they regard eyewitness identification as relatively accurate and that judges and juries appropriately emphasize its importance. Defense attorneys, on the other hand, felt that eyewitness identifications are often inaccurate and are overemphasized by triers of fact. The implications of these findings for the criminal justice system and their possible applications within the legal system are discussed.

Journal

Law and Human BehaviorAmerican Psychological Association

Published: Dec 1, 1983

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