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Full-Text Articles in Law

6. Child Witnesses And The Oath., Thomas D. Lyon Aug 2002

6. Child Witnesses And The Oath., Thomas D. Lyon

Thomas D. Lyon

Despite the liberalization of competency requirements for child witnesses in many countries (Spencer & Flin, 1993; Youth Justice and Criminal Evidence Act, 1999, s. 53 [Engl.]), a substantial number of courts in the United States and other countries require that every witness take the oath or make some sort of affirmation that s/he will tell the truth (Federal Rules of Evidence 602,2001;Shrimpton, Oates, & Hayes, 1996).In order to guarantee that an oath or affirmation is understood by child witnesses, courts routinely inquire into children's understanding of the difference between the truth and lies and their obligation to tell the truth …


Speaking Truth To Power: Challenging The Power Of Parents To Control The Education Of Their Own, Barbara Bennett Woodhouse Jul 2002

Speaking Truth To Power: Challenging The Power Of Parents To Control The Education Of Their Own, Barbara Bennett Woodhouse

Cornell Journal of Law and Public Policy

No abstract provided.


The Georgia Tort Claims Act: A License For Negligence In Child Deprivation Cases?, Mauricia Allen Mar 2002

The Georgia Tort Claims Act: A License For Negligence In Child Deprivation Cases?, Mauricia Allen

Georgia State University Law Review

No abstract provided.


4. Interviewing Children In And Out Of Court: Current Research And Practice Implications., Karen J. Saywitz, Gail S. Goodman, Thomas D. Lyon Jan 2002

4. Interviewing Children In And Out Of Court: Current Research And Practice Implications., Karen J. Saywitz, Gail S. Goodman, Thomas D. Lyon

Thomas D. Lyon

What do we know about children's abilities to provide eyewitness testimony? Until recently, scientific data wee surprisingly sparse.  However, beginning in the mid-1980s, the study of child victims/witnesses grew at an astounding rate; now it is a worldwide endeavor. When Melton (1981) published one of the first modern reviews of psychological research on children's testimony, only one contemporary empirical study directly dressing children's eyewitness memory was cited. Today, entire books and journal issues are devoted to research on this topic (e.g., Ceci & Bruck, 1995; Dent & Flin, 1992; Goodman, 1984; Goodman & Bottoms, 1993; Perry & Wrightsman, 1991; Poole …


Hearsay Exceptions: Adjusting The Ratio Of Intuition To Psychological Science, John E. B. Myers, Ingrid Cordon, Simona Ghetti, Gail S. Goodman Jan 2002

Hearsay Exceptions: Adjusting The Ratio Of Intuition To Psychological Science, John E. B. Myers, Ingrid Cordon, Simona Ghetti, Gail S. Goodman

Law and Contemporary Problems

Myers explores hearsay exeptions by examining three exceptions: excited utterances, statements for purposes of diagnosis or treatment, and the residual hearsay exception. The focus is child declarants, and these exceptions play key roles in child abuse litigation.


Applying Suggestibility Research To The Real World: The Case Of Repeated Questions, Thomas D. Lyon Jan 2002

Applying Suggestibility Research To The Real World: The Case Of Repeated Questions, Thomas D. Lyon

Law and Contemporary Problems

One can discern two parallel trends in the law and the psychology of child witnesses. In the law, appellate courts are beginning to stem the once powerful movement to increase the acceptance of children's testimony and the admissibility of children's out-of-court statements. Lyon analyzes particular strands of each trend.


The Conundrum Of Children, Confrontation, And Hearsay, Richard D. Friedman Jan 2002

The Conundrum Of Children, Confrontation, And Hearsay, Richard D. Friedman

Law and Contemporary Problems

The adjudication of child abuse claims poses an excruciatingly difficult conundrum. In many cases, a large part of the problem is that the prosecution's case depends critically on the statement or testimony of a young child.


Child Witness Policy: Law Interfacing With Social Science, Dorothy F. Marsil, Jean Montoya, David Ross, Louise Graham Jan 2002

Child Witness Policy: Law Interfacing With Social Science, Dorothy F. Marsil, Jean Montoya, David Ross, Louise Graham

Law and Contemporary Problems

The number of children testifying in court has posed serious practical and legal problems for the judicial system. One problem confronting the courts is how to protect children from experiencing the psychological trauma resulting from face-to-face confrontation with a defendant who may have physically harmed the child or threatened future harm to the child.


Good Enough For Government Work: The Constitutional Duty To Preserve Forensic Interviews Of Child Victims, Lucy S. Mcgough Jan 2002

Good Enough For Government Work: The Constitutional Duty To Preserve Forensic Interviews Of Child Victims, Lucy S. Mcgough

Law and Contemporary Problems

McGough proceeds with the confidence on the premise that a forensic interview of a child by a member of the prosecutorial team offers many opportunities for compromising the reliability of the child's remembered account. A vast volume of research data now exists that documents the conclusion that the forensic interviewing of children is a very delicate, sophisticated, and high-risk enterprise.


Why Children’S Suggestibility Remains A Serious Concern, Amye R. Warren, Dorothy F. Marsil Jan 2002

Why Children’S Suggestibility Remains A Serious Concern, Amye R. Warren, Dorothy F. Marsil

Law and Contemporary Problems

Warren and Marsil focus on six areas representing some of the most intractable problems that will require further attention from scientists and practitioners alike. Research on child witnesses is highlighted, concentrating primarily on studies published or presented in the past ten years.


The Conundrum Of Children, Confrontation, And Hearsay, Richard D. Friedman Jan 2002

The Conundrum Of Children, Confrontation, And Hearsay, Richard D. Friedman

Articles

The adjudication of child abuse claims poses an excruciatingly difficult conundrum. The crime is a terrible one, but false convictions are abhorrent. Often the evidence does not support a finding of guilt or innocence with sufficient clarity to allow a decision free of gnawing doubt. In many cases, a large part of the problem is that the prosecution's case depends critically on the statement or testimony of a young child. Even with respect to adult witnesses, the law of hearsay and confrontation is very perplexing, as anyone who has studied American evidentiary law and read Supreme Court opinions on the …


3. Coming To Grips With Children’S Suggestibility., Karen J. Saywitz, Thomas D. Lyon Dec 2001

3. Coming To Grips With Children’S Suggestibility., Karen J. Saywitz, Thomas D. Lyon

Thomas D. Lyon

When children are asked to describe what they have seen, heard, or experienced,they bring their limitations along with their capabilities to the task. Adults who rely on children's answers must come to grips with theimperfections and inadequacies, as well as the merits and utility, of children'sreports. Some research findings appear to condemn children's re...ports, others champion their competencies. One way to understand thisinconsistency is to align the studies along a continuum.


5. Support Persons And The Child Witness., Thomas D. Lyon Dec 2001

5. Support Persons And The Child Witness., Thomas D. Lyon

Thomas D. Lyon

American trial courts often rule on motions that children testify in court accompanied by a support· person. Unfortunately, the potential impact of providing a child witness with a support person has not been thoroughly researched.