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8 - Police Decisions Involved in Collecting Eyewitness Identification Evidence

from Part II - Pretrial Phase Decision-Making

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  22 February 2024

By
Jacqueline A. Katzman  and
Margaret Bull Kovera
Edited by
Monica K. Miller ,
Logan A. Yelderman ,
Matthew T. Huss  and
Jason A. Cantone
Monica K. Miller
Affiliation:
University of Nevada, Reno
Logan A. Yelderman
Affiliation:
Prairie View A & M University, Texas
Matthew T. Huss
Affiliation:
Creighton University, Omaha
Jason A. Cantone
Affiliation:
George Mason University, Virginia
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Summary

This chapter discusses decisions that police should make about how to collect eyewitness identification evidence to ensure that they elicit the most accurate identification decisions from eyewitnesses. Eyewitness decisions include whether to select someone out of a lineup and whom to pick, as well as confidence in the accuracy of that choice. Although witnessing conditions – including (among others) whether the perpetrator and witnesses belong to the same racial/ethnic groups, weapon presence, and poor viewing conditions – can influence the accuracy of identification decisions, the chapter will focus primarily on how decisions made by the police about which identification procedures to use affect the accuracy of identification decisions. The chapter discusses many of these decisions in the context of the best practices that are recommended based on the available literature. Of special interest is when there is an interaction between the witness conditioning the decisions made by law enforcement. The chapter concludes with recommendations for future research on these topics.

Keywords

best practicesconfidenceeyewitnessidentification accuracylineupspolicing
Type
Chapter
Information
The Cambridge Handbook of Psychology and Legal Decision-Making , pp. 117 - 128
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Print publication year: 2024

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