Eyewitness Testimony Case Study

Eyewitness testimony, which relies on the accuracy of human memory, has an enormous impact on the outcome of a trial. Aside from smoking pistol, nothing carries as much weight with a jury as the testimony of an actual witness. The memory of witnesses is crucial not only in criminal cases but in civil cases as well--in automobile accident cases, for example, eyewitness testimony carries great weight in determining who is as fault. Implicit in the acceptance of this testimony as solid evidence is the assumption that the human mind is a precise recorder and stores these events.
Human beings hold fiercely to the belief that our memories are preserved intact, our thoughts are essentially imperishable, and our impressions are never really forgotten. …show more content…
When we want to remember something, we don't simply pluck a whole memory intact from a "memory store." The memory is actually constructed from stored and available bits of information; we unconsciously fill in any gaps in the information with inferences. When all the fragments are integrated into a whole that makes sense, they form what we call a memory.
Still other factors affect the accurate perception, and therefore recollection, or an event. Was there violence? How much? Was it light or dark? Did the eyewitness have any prior expectations or interests? A tragic real-life case illustrates the potential problems surrounding an initial perception of an event.
This dramatic case demonstrates what psychologists call "event factors"--those factors inherent within a specific event that can alter perception and distort memory. It was a dark night, and in darkness different colors can't be distinguished and details can't be resolved. The two hunters had strong expectations and motivations--they anticipated that they might see a bear, they wanted to see a bear, they were nervous, excited, and exhausted from a long day in the woods. When they saw something large, moving, and making noise, they automatically assumed that it was a bear, raised their rifles, and shot to

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