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“She Said I Did What!”: An Argument Against The Admissibility Of Eyewitness Expert Testimony, Russell J. Cortazzo

Russell J. Cortazzo Jr.

Recent DNA exonerations of those wrongly convicted through inaccurate eyewitness identifications highlight the growing public understanding that eyewitness misidentification is not always perfect. In response, several states have enacted, with many others considering, eyewitness identification reform measures, such as allowing qualified psychological experts called “eyewitness experts” to freely testify on the factors affecting memory and the inaccuracy of eyewitness testimony. This article will first explain the effects of the eyewitness expert on the jury and the discrete factors the experts believe affect witness reliability. This article will then describe the problems in allowing the eyewitness expert to testify on witness …