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The Novel New Jersey Eyewitness Instruction Induces Skepticism But Not Sensitivity, Athan Papailiou, David Yokum, Christopher Robertson
The Novel New Jersey Eyewitness Instruction Induces Skepticism But Not Sensitivity, Athan Papailiou, David Yokum, Christopher Robertson
Faculty Scholarship
In recent decades, social scientists have shown that the reliability of eyewitness identifications is much worse than laypersons tend to believe. Although courts have only recently begun to react to this evidence, the New Jersey judiciary has reformed its jury instructions to notify jurors about the frailties of human memory, the potential for lineup administrators to nudge witnesses towards suspects that they police have already identified, and the advantages of alternative lineup procedures, including blinding of the administrator. This experiment tested the efficacy of New Jersey’s jury instruction. In a 2×2 between-subjects design, mock jurors (N = 335) watched a …
Wrongful Convictions And Upstream Reform In The Criminal Justice System, Kate Kruse
Wrongful Convictions And Upstream Reform In The Criminal Justice System, Kate Kruse
Faculty Scholarship
This Article explores the viability of upstream criminal justice reforms within the context of an adversary and procedural system of criminal justice, focusing on reforms in eyewitness identification procedures. Mistaken eyewitness identification evidence is often cited as the leading cause of wrongful convictions in the United States. Eyewitness identification reforms have also been the most developed upstream efforts to grow out of the innocence movement. The success and limitation of upstream reform in eyewitness identification shed light on the efficacy of upstream criminal justice system reform more generally, as well as in areas that are less developed, such as the …