Evaluating Eyewitness Accounts: Psychology's Contribution & Case Study

This essay examines the reliability of eyewitness identifications from a psychological perspective, arguing that psychology plays a crucial role in assessing the accuracy and validity of eyewitness accounts in legal settings. It uses a case study to illustrate the complexities involved in eyewitness testimony. The essay discusses factors such as memory distortion, confidence levels, and body language, emphasizing the importance of diagnostic tools and psychological expertise in evaluating the authenticity of information provided by eyewitnesses. It also explores legal implications, including the influence on jury decisions and the potential for wrongful convictions. Ultimately, the essay concludes that while eyewitness testimony can be a valuable source of information, it must be carefully scrutinized and corroborated with other evidence to ensure justice.

Running head: FORENSIC SCIENCE
FORENSIC SCIENCE
Name of the Student:
Name of the University:
Author Note:

1FORENSIC SCIENCE
Introduction:
The most critical aspect of a criminal case can be defined as the availability of evidence
at the spot of crime. Research studies have revealed that the presence of eye witnesses who can
testify the happenings at the crime spot and contribute in the development of the case
proceedings have been heavily relied upon by the police department (Brewer & Wilson, 2013).
Evidences in the form of a weapon or certain belonging at the crime spot serve as clues that help
in building up on the case, however research studies have revealed that the statement made by
the eye witnesses have contributed heavily in the unfolding of the case (Gurney et al., 2013).
Further, studies have also explained the prime importance of the eye witnesses to a crime
scene as the only aspect of witness dispensed by a living being and hence has considered it to be
extremely important (Cicourel, 2017). It should be noted that on an average it has been estimated
that without the proper testimony of an eye witness there is a possibility that less than 10% of the
police cases would be solved and the convicts be appropriately penalised (Houston et al., 2013).
This essay would throw light on the contribution of eye witnesses in the area of crime. It
would also talk about whether or not the testimony confessed by the key eye witnesses serve as a
reliable tool and effectively help in unraveling the crime scene and reaching to the main culprit.
This essay would make use of the available literature sources in favor of the topic and help in
establishing an argument and would further discuss the importance and the strength that the
testimony of an eye witness carries in unfolding a criminal case.
Discussion and argument:
In order to go ahead with the established statement that eye witnesses play a major role in
the unwinding of the criminal case and reaching to the culprit, a case study would be evaluated

2FORENSIC SCIENCE
and considered (Odinot et al., 2009). The case study that has been incorporated in the essay talks
about the effectiveness and the accuracy of the testimony provided by the key eye witnesses
about a particular crime incident and draws a contrast with the evidences accumulated by the
surveillance devices to cross check the authenticity of the gathered evidences (Odinut et al.,
2009).
The case study was based upon a structured interview that was conducted with 14 prime
eye witnesses of an armed robbery and the interview took place after a time period of 3 months.
The eye witnesses primarily relied upon their memory in order to narrate the details of the
happenings that took place on the day of the robbery. In order to evaluate the level of accuracy of
the human memory and the testimony built up upon the memory the verbal details of the
incidences were correlated along with the surveillance recordings (Odinot et al., 2009).
On closely analyzing both the data it was found that the data generated by the group of 14
eye witnesses comprised of an 84% accuracy which further suggests that the memory of the
witnesses could be heavily relied upon to perceive the details of the happenings. At the same
time, it should also be crucially noted that the incident had taken place almost three months
before and a considerable time frame had passed post the happening of the incident. The incident
had been featured on social media, print media as well as news channels on the television and
different dimensions of narrations have been involved while portraying the happenings of the
incident.
However despite all the above said factors that lead to the generation of a disrupted
image of the critical happenings of the day, the memory of the eye witnesses that were present on
the day the robbery incident took place did not fade away or was not affected or rather

3FORENSIC SCIENCE
manipulated in any manner (Lindsay et al., 2013). Hence, it can be admitted that the eye
witnesses present an overview about the detailed happenings of a crime incident based upon the
grasped memory (Jules & McQuiston, 2013). It should be vividly noted that the accurately
recalled information had a much higher confidence interval than information and figures that
were not recalled with accurate precision. It was also noted that the correlation coefficient of
accuracy to confidence was around the statistical confidence interval of 0.38 (Odinot et al.,
2009).
Therefore on the basis of the input furnished by the case discussed above it can be stated
that eye witnesses play an important role in determining the course of police investigations and
seeking criminal justice. The first clue about a criminal case is primarily dependent upon the
revelation made by the eye witness. However, in this context it should also be noted that the
testimony of the eye witness is dealt in different manners either inside the forensic laboratory or
at the crime spot (Loftus, 2013). While the manner in which the testimony of the witnesses are
dealt inside the laboratory premises are rather objective and relies upon the use of diagnostic
tools in order to access the accuracy of the information provided as an input to the criminal case,
the evidences that are obtained outside the laboratory premises heavily depend upon cross
checking the validity of the obtained information on the basis of the confidence evidently
portrayed by the witnesses. However, in most of the cases the evidences revealed by the eye
witnesses are primarily based upon the cross examination done with the use of diagnostic tools to
trace the percentage of truth present in the vivid narration of the memory as perceived during the
occurring course of rime events (Soraci et al., 2017).

4FORENSIC SCIENCE
Identifying the body language while cross-evaluation:
While recording the testimony of the eye witness it is pivotal to notice the confidence
level, the body language and the manner in which the eye witness frames testimonial sentences
and links it up to the happenings of the incident (Thomson, 2013). It is extremely important for
the investigator to closely pay attention to the body language, speech and the eye contact as well
as the movement of the eyes while narrating about the particulars of an incident or testifying
about a particular person who has been supposedly alleged as the culprit. While investigating
outside the laboratory premises extensive importance is paid to the confidence level of the eye
witness. The testimony furnished by the eye witnesses mentioned above revealed an affirmative
body language and high confidence level. It is important to speculate the manner in which the
witness is able to deliver the information with the maintenance of maximum eye contact and
clear speech without any traces of stammering or repetition helps in yielding accurate
information (Wixted et al., 2013).
Measuring the level of cognition:
A case study conducted by Roos af Hjelmsäter (2016), mentions an incident where 131
survivors were interviewed who survived the real life dangerous incident of the sinking ship of
Estonia. The researchers actively investigated all the witnesses and substantial information of
greater value could be obtained from the collective information responses of the people that
generated leads to solve the case. The witnesses generated confident responses with clear
memory. This proves that the contribution of witnesses in solving a case is of prime importance.

5FORENSIC SCIENCE
It is normally seen that witnesses avoiding eye-contact or stammering or repeating the
same piece of information time and over again often have been associated with dispensing
incorrect information and lies. However at the same time while the investigation process takes
place inside the lab processes it is much easier to confront the eye witness and spontaneously
detect at the same time whether or not the information supplied is authentic (Vredeveldt & Sauer,
2015),. This is done with a wide range of diagnostic tests such as narcotic tests or lie detection
tests where in psychological experts are able to easily predict and dissipate on the basis of the
heart beat and speech pattern of the eye witnesses that the information being conveyed can be
considered as reliable or false.
Details furnished about a criminal incident by the eye witnesses can be heavily relied
upon as the eye witnesses make use of the sensory perceptions such as the sense of sight, touch
and smell in order to perceive the happenings and at the same time memorize the proceedings.
Studies have revealed that on an average the photo line ups identified by the eye witnesses who
were involved in the scenario of a robbery or a snatching are more than 80% accurate (Wixted et
al., 2015). The traditional method of identification of a criminal dates back to the identification
by the prime witnesses out of a group of six or eight suspected criminals who could have
possibly committed the crime. However the system has evolved and presently the eye witnesses
are entrusted with the responsibility of identifying a criminal on the basis of photo line ups.
Therefore, it can be said that the traditional method of identification that heavily relied
upon using confidence of the witnesses as a tool to determine and verify the criminal has now
reformed to standard procedures that make use of diagnostic criteria and analytical psychometric
calculations. Hence, it can be said that a major proportion of verifying and cross examination of
the collected facts relies with the psychological experts who make use of delusional questions

6FORENSIC SCIENCE
and cross questions and situational analysis in order to perceive the authenticity of the
information that is being delivered (Soraci et al., 2017). It can be argued that a major proportion
of the details furnished by the eye witnesses are made up or are incorrect that have led to the
cause of delay in rendering justice or sentencing the deserving criminals (Thomson, 2013). This
solely accounts for the reason why the diagnosis criteria and the verification procedure have been
reformed and why so much of importance has been given on evaluating the body language and
psychological mind set of the witnesses delivering information.
Legal Implications:
The inclusion of eye-witnesses in a judicial case has the following legal implication. It
helps in influencing the decision of the jury and presents a relevant interpretation of the crime
scenario. It also helps in providing a reliable information that can be used as an evidence in the
court of law (Houston et al., 2013). However, the discrepancy in delivering the correct
testimony, conviction of the wrong culprit and false accusation based on poor memory have been
identified as the negative aspect of including eye witnesses in legal cases.

7FORENSIC SCIENCE
Conclusion:
Therefore to conclude it can be said that the eye witnesses form the first and the primary
source for the investigators from where the information can be collected and a brief idea about
the happenings of the crime can be formed. It is important to note here that the case is further
introspected and investigated on the basis of the guidelines set by the information gathered from
the testimony of the witnesses. A vital amount of importance is given to the testimony or the
information given out by the prime eye witnesses as the witnesses form a live scrutinizing tool
that primarily records the proceedings of the case and at the same time also helps in narrowing
the spectrum of the criminals or culprits involved in the crime.

8FORENSIC SCIENCE
References:
Brewer, N., & Wilson, C. (Eds.). (2013). Psychology and policing. Psychology Press,pp.90
Cicourel, A. (2017). The social organization of juvenile justice. Routledge.
Gurney, D. J., Pine, K. J., & Wiseman, R. (2013). The gestural misinformation effect: skewing
eyewitness testimony through gesture. The American journal of psychology, 126(3), 301-
314.
Houston, K. A., Hope, L., Memon, A., & Don Read, J. (2013). Expert testimony on eyewitness
evidence: In search of common sense. Behavioral Sciences & the Law, 31(5), 637-651.
Jules, S. J., & McQuiston, D. E. (2013). Speech style and occupational status affect assessments
of eyewitness testimony. Journal of Applied Social Psychology, 43(4), 741-748.
Lindsay, R. C., Ross, D. F., Read, J. D., & Toglia, M. P. (Eds.). (2013). The handbook of
eyewitness psychology: volume ii: memory for people (Vol. 2). Psychology Press.
Loftus, E. F. (2013). 25 Years of eyewitness science... Finally pays off.
Odinot, G., Wolters, G., & van Koppen, P. J. (2009). Eyewitness memory of a supermarket
robbery: A case study of accuracy and confidence after 3 months. Law and Human
Behavior, 33(6), 506.
Roos af Hjelmsäter, E., Öhman, L., & Granhag, P. A. (2016). The sinking of M/V Estonia: An
archival study of the survivors’ witness reports. Nordic Psychology, 68(4), 244-256.

9FORENSIC SCIENCE
Soraci, S. A., Carlin, M. T., Read, J. D., Pogoda, T. K., Wakeford, Y., Cavanagh, S., & Shin, L.
(2017). Psychological impairment, eyewitness testimony and false memories: Individual
differences. M Toglia, JD Read, DF Ross and RCL Lindsay, The Handbook of
Eyewitness Psychology, 1.
Thomson, D. M. (2013). Eyewitness testimony and identification tests. In Psychology and
policing (pp. 133-168). Psychology Press.
Vredeveldt, A., & Sauer, J. D. (2015). Effects of eye-closure on confidence-accuracy relations in
eyewitness testimony. Journal of Applied Research in Memory and Cognition, 4(1), 51-
58.
Wixted, J. T., Mickes, L., Clark, S. E., Gronlund, S. D., & Roediger III, H. L. (2015). Initial
eyewitness confidence reliably predicts eyewitness identification accuracy. American
Psychologist, 70(6), 515.