EYEWITNESS IDENTIFICATION: Psychological Research and Legal Policy on Lineups

The risk of eyewitnesses making false identifications is influenced by the methods used to construct and conduct lineups. The legal system could impose 4 simple rules to reduce false identifications: (a) Eyewitnesses should be informed that the culprit might not be in the lineup, (b) the suspect sho...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Psychology, public policy, and law public policy, and law, 1995-12, Vol.1 (4), p.765-791
Main Authors: Wells, Gary L, Seelau, Eric P
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Forensic Psychology
Human
Judgment
Legal Processes
Recognition (Learning)
Witnesses
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Summary:The risk of eyewitnesses making false identifications is influenced by the methods used to construct and conduct lineups. The legal system could impose 4 simple rules to reduce false identifications: (a) Eyewitnesses should be informed that the culprit might not be in the lineup, (b) the suspect should not stand out in the lineup, (c) lineups should be administered by someone who does not know who the suspect is, and (d) witnesses should be asked how certain they are of their choice before other information contaminates their judgment. The U.S. Supreme Court has acknowledged the dangers of mistaken identification but has not used exclusionary rules to control unnecessary risk. Judicial rulings should focus on risky lineup methods and impose standards to eliminate potential justice system contributions to false identification.
ISSN:1076-8971
1939-1528
DOI:10.1037/1076-8971.1.4.765