Difference between revisions of "Eyewitness Misidentification"
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| − | Calvin Willis | + | |
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| + | * Calvin Willis | ||
In 1982, three girls were sleeping alone in a home in Shreveport, Louisiana when a man with cowboy boots came into the house and raped the oldest girl, who was 10 years old. When the police started the investigation, all three girls remembered the incident differently. Additionally, one police report stated that the victim did not see the police. Another report stated that the victim identified her attacker as Calvin Willis. The girl testified that she was shown a photo lineup and instructed to pick Willis, who was convicted and sentenced to life in prison. In 2003, DNA evidence proved Willis' innocence; he had spent nearly 22 years in prison for a crime he didn't commit. (Innocence Project Website) | In 1982, three girls were sleeping alone in a home in Shreveport, Louisiana when a man with cowboy boots came into the house and raped the oldest girl, who was 10 years old. When the police started the investigation, all three girls remembered the incident differently. Additionally, one police report stated that the victim did not see the police. Another report stated that the victim identified her attacker as Calvin Willis. The girl testified that she was shown a photo lineup and instructed to pick Willis, who was convicted and sentenced to life in prison. In 2003, DNA evidence proved Willis' innocence; he had spent nearly 22 years in prison for a crime he didn't commit. (Innocence Project Website) | ||
| − | Bobby Joe Leaster | + | * Bobby Joe Leaster |
In 1970, a man named Levi Whiteside was killed in a holdup of a neighborhood store. Bobby Joe, who was standing on a nearby street corner on his way to visit his family, was wearing clothes that matched eyewitness descriptions of the person who killed Levi. Bobby Joe was apprehended and brought in front of the victim's widow, who was held at gunpoint during the holdup and had looked at the assailant. The police presented only Bobby Joe, in handcuffs and asked "is this him?" She identified him and he ended up in prison for 15 years, until another eyewitness testimony freed him. (Mourer 2008, 1 - 2) | In 1970, a man named Levi Whiteside was killed in a holdup of a neighborhood store. Bobby Joe, who was standing on a nearby street corner on his way to visit his family, was wearing clothes that matched eyewitness descriptions of the person who killed Levi. Bobby Joe was apprehended and brought in front of the victim's widow, who was held at gunpoint during the holdup and had looked at the assailant. The police presented only Bobby Joe, in handcuffs and asked "is this him?" She identified him and he ended up in prison for 15 years, until another eyewitness testimony freed him. (Mourer 2008, 1 - 2) | ||
| + | == Sources == | ||
| + | === Academic Papers === | ||
| + | * Gross, Samuel R. "Convicting the Innocent", Annual Review of Law and Social Science, Vol. 4: 173-192 (Volume publication date December 2008) | ||
| + | * Samuel R. Gross , Kristen Jacoby , Daniel J. Matheson , Nicholas Montgomery and Sujita Patil, "Exonerations in the United States, 1989 through 2003", Journal of Criminal Law and Criminology, Vol. 95, No. 2, 2005 | ||
| + | * Ann Bradfield, Gary Wells and Elizabeth Olson, "The Damaging Effect of Confirming Feedback on the Relationship Between Eyewitness Certainty and Identification Accuracy" Journal of Applied Psychology Vol. 87, No. 1, 2002 | ||
| + | * Sandra Guerra Thompson, "Judicial Blindness to Eyewitness Misidentification", Marquette Law Review, Forthcoming, U of Houston Law Center No. 2009-A-35 | ||
| + | * Sarah Anne Mourer "Reforming Eyewitness Identification Procedures under the Fourth Amendment" Duke Journal of Constitutional Law and Public Policy, University of Miami Legal Studies Research Paper No. 2008-02,2008 | ||
| + | * Fisher, Stanley "Eyewitness Misidentification Reform in Massachusetts", Working Paper Series, Public Law & Legal Theory Working Paper No. 07, 2007 | ||
| + | * Medwed, David, "Anatomy of a Wrongful Conviction: Theoretical Implications and Practical Solutions" Villanova Law Review, Vol. 51, 2006, U of Utah Legal Studies Paper No. 05-37 | ||
| − | + | === Websites === | |
| − | + | * Innocence Project Website: [http://www.innocenceproject.org/understand/Eyewitness-Misidentification.php] | |
| − | + | * Center for Criminal Justice Advocacy Website [http://criminaldefense.homestead.com/eyewitnessmisidentification.html] | |
| − | + | * US Justice Department's National Institute of Justice Website: | |
| − | + | "Eyewitness Evidence: A Guide for Law Enforcement"[http://www.ncjrs.gov/pdffiles1/nij/178240.pdf] | |
| − | + | * Niemen Foundation for Journalism at Harvard University Website [http://niemanwatchdog.org/index.cfm?fuseaction=ask_this.view&askthisid=0028] | |
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