T\Direct Windham\p 56       Latoya 16Q Did you ever see him cock the gun that he had, the silver gun? 18A No.  19Q You don’t remember that? 20A I don’t remember that.

T\Cross by Easterling \p54  Latoya 20Q Did you ever see that first man do anything with the gun, the silver gun? 22A (shakes head) 23 Q You didn’t? 24A No.

T\Direct by Windham         Latoya: 16Q Do you remember testifying in a previous hearing about what happened at your house that night? 19A yes. 20Q Do you remember testifying that you saw the first guy cock the silver gun and then give it back to the second guy? You remember that? 24A Yes, I remember that.

T\Cross by Easterling \p173     Latoya: 22Q Have you testified before that you saw him doing something with it--like, to take off the safety or do something with the p174 slide? Do you remember telling someone that before? 4A I think I said that when --after he--after it wouldn’t shoot he walked back out the door and then he came back in.

T\Cross by Easterling \p173     Latoya: And then you heard him -- or you saw him -- which one? -- do something with the top slide. 20 Do you remember that? 21A I don’t remember that

T\Redirect by Windham\p214   Latoya: 19Q And I believe you said at some point in time the first guy had cocked the gun for the second guy, right? Do you remember that? I hope I’m not -- 5A. I don’t remember. 6Q All right. That’s okay.

T\Direct Windham\p47     Latoya 17 What did they do next? 18A I think they left out the room and went into the hallway right outside the door.

T\Direct Windham\p48     Latoya 11Q Could you hear what they were saying? 12A No. 13Q Could you see them? 14 A No. But I could see one of them was pointing a gun back inside of the room--18A-- the first one. 19Q Did you see them do anything with the two guns that they had? 21A They switched them. 22Q Now, were you able to see that? 23A No, I didn’t see them switching. When they came back into the room, they had--both had--both of them each one of them had a different one.

T\Direct Windham\p49     Latoya 6Q You said one of them was pointing a gun back into the room. Which one was that? 9A The first one. 12Q And was he pointing it in the area towards you and your mother and your sisters? 14A I don’t remember which way he was pointing it, but he was pointing it back into the room.

T\Direct Windham\p78     Latoya: 16 Q Did they ever exchange the guns or anything? 17A Yes. 18Q Did you see that? 19A I didn’t see them-- I don’t think I seen them exchange the guns. 21 But I seen when they came back into the room, they had different guns.

T\Cross by Easterling\p175    Latoya: 3 And then the first one came back in, 5Q and he stayed in there? 6A Yeah.

T\Direct Windham\p 50      Latoya: 1A I think both of them came back in there--or the first one came back in there. 3 The first one came back in? 4A I think.

Note the following: If she does not know these critical pieces of information then how can he have been guilty of assisting to aid. She does not know if they switched back, don't remember him cocking the silver gun, and says she never saw and exchange at all. If she never saw the exchange then she never saw him cock it--since this should have happened concurrently. However, it still happend at the insignificant moment.

T\Direct Windham\p 79     Latoya: 3Q Did you ever see that person do anything-- did he ever give the silver gun back to the second man? Did you ever see that? 7A I think they--they switched back and gave it back. 11Q Did you see them do anything-- the first man, who had now gotten the silver gun--did you see him do anything with that gun before he gave it back to the second guy? 15 I don’t remember.

T\Cross by Easterling \p54      Latoya: 18Q Did you see them exchange guns at all? 19A No.

T\Recross by Easterling\p239      Latoya: 18Q What color was the gun that he used near the end of this, when you heard the pop, pop? 20A It was either silver or black. 21Q One of the two?

Note the following: Also in those final moments this is her trial testimony regarding Shaun's actions.

T\Direct Windham\p93      Latoya: 17Q What was the first man doing as the second man is coming around here, saying that? 19A Just standing right there. He wasn’t doing anything.  Latoya: 95 9Q What’s the first guy doing, now? 13A He’s just standing there. He wasn’t doing anything.

T\Cross by Easterling \p193      Latoya: 2Q And there was at least another five or ten seconds before you heard the gunshots, right? 5A Yes. 6Q And that’s when Shaun Sanders went out of the room, isn’t it, Miss Hill? 8A I don’t know. 9QThat’s because you weren’t looking that way.  11A I wasn’t looking that way then. 12Q We’ve got that established, then, right? 14AYes. 15Q You saw Shaun Sanders at the foot of the bed prior to Windeon coming close, right? 18A Yes. 19Q Were you listening to what Shaun was saying when he went out the door, or were you paying attention to Windeon? 22A I didn’t hear anything. I couldn’t hear anything that was being said. I didn’t hear him say anything.

T\Cross by Easterling \p194      Latoya: 3Q You were focusing on the man with the gun that was getting closer to your mother, though--weren’t you? 7Q--or hearing it, anyway. 8A I was hearing -- I couldn’t hear anything that was going on because I can hear all the screaming, I can hear him talking; and I didn’t hear anything else that was being said.

T\Cross by Easterling \p202      Latoya: 15Q Now, prior to hearing the two pop pops, did the first person --who you thought was KiKi --not Windeon --did the first person ever do anything to encourage Windeon to shoot the gun? 20A No.

T\Cross by Easterling \p203      Latoya: 3Q In fact, for all you know, he could have been in the hallway, leaving--because you couldn’t see him; isn’t that correct? 7A Yes, he could have been.

T\Cross by Easterling \p204      Latoya: 4Q And the first man didn’t do anything in that shooting, did he? 6A No.

T\Redirect by Windham\p2178      Latoya: Q Do you know what the "slide" is? 9A Yes. 10Q And you don’t know whether he was messing around with the safety or the slide at that time when he went out just for a short time, do you? 14A No.

T\Redirect by Windham\p227      Latoya: 22 Do you know whether or not the second man already had the gun cocked? 24A He had to have the gun cocked -- p228 1A --because if the gun wasn’t cocked then it wouldn’t have went off.

T\Redirect by Windham\p228      Latoya: 4 Do you know whether or not -- when he came from over here and walked back out here just for a short time and went back in -- do you know whether he cocked it when he walked over there, before coming back in (indicating)? 10A He must have. 11Q I’m asking you: Do you know? 12A I don’t know.

T\Redirect by Windham\p228      Latoya: Once he got over there near your mother, by the chest of drawers, do you know whether he had to cock the gun at that point in order to fire the gun? Do you know? 19A No.

T\Direct by Windham\p90      Latoya 4A He came back in there... 7A and he walked around on the side of the bed where the phone is at...13A he was looking around over there. He was pointing the gun at my mom, and he said--before he walked around there, he said he was going to shoot her. And he walked around there, and he was--like, he was trying to pull the trigger; and it wouldn’t go. So, he walks back around and walks out of the room. P912Q Then he walks back out of the room? 3A Yes.

T\Cross by Easterling \p173      Latoya: 2A When he got around there, then he was pulling the trigger. 4Q So, it wasn’t at the same time, was it? 11A I don’t know. I don’t know. 13A I don’t know.

T\Cross by Easterling \p173      Latoya: Did you hear any noise when he was pulling it, pulling the trigger? 16A I don’t remember.

T\Cross by Easterling \p171      Latoya: 4A He was trying to pull it, and it wouldn’t pull. He was just pulling the trigger, and it wouldn’t move. 7Q What was he pulling with? 8A His hand, his finger. 9QWhere was he standing when he did that? 11A On the side of the bed over there by the phone-- 16Q And where were you? 17A I think I was at -- kind of exactly where that number 2 is (indicating)? 19Q Were you laying in the same place like you demonstrated for Mr. Windham this morning on the table--laying up by your mama? 22A I think I -- I think we was --I think that’s before -- I think we were sitting up or we was laying down. I know-- I think we was laying p171 down-- 3A --or sitting up.

T\Cross by Easterling \p170      Latoya: 8 Did he have a glove on in his left hand? 10A I don’t know which hand he was holding the gun in.

Tape of LaToya Hill

July 13, 1997 3:25 a.m.

Kitchen of house; Detective M.F. Waters  

Other man has the chrome gun; he is trying to get it off safety.

T\Windham P57       Latoya: 3Q Now,when y'all got huddled together and this man (Windeon) said "I'm going to shoot that bitch," what happened after that? 7A Then he tried to pull the trigger but I think it was on safety because it wouldn't pull.

If allegedly he cocked the gun before looking under the bed; then he would of done so according to this testimony at a time when:

A.  1.  the "the other man" was not in the room, so

2. not in the manner the prosecutor stated--where he cocked it and handed it back to him, thereby

3. not at a point when he would have known murder was imminent and assisted in the process.

B. She states here that "the other man" is trying to get the chrome (silver) gun off safety. If Shaun had cocked the gun then the gun would not have been on safety. *Note that here she says the "the other man told the children to lay down on the bed--not Shaun.

C. Her statement lacks details about what Shaun did in those final critical moments. This is her trial statement.

What Latoya tells Windham

T\Windham p 44      Latoya: 3Q Were you able to see their guns while they were at the hallway door there? A.Yes. Q. Were you able to see both of their guns? A. No. Q Which one's gun did you see at that time? A.The skinny one Q. The first one that came in? A.Uh-huh. Q. He was pointing inside the room when they were standing outside. Q So he's standing there in the hallway having conversation pointing the gun back in the room. Was he pointing it at y'all? A. Yes. Did he say anything to y'all while pointing the gun at y'all? A.He told us not to do nothing, don't try to do nothing. Q. All right were you able to see what they were doing there in the hallway aside from conversing and him pointing the gun at you?

T\Windham p 45      Latoya: 1A (Nods head.) No. Q. Did you ever see them do anything with the guns? A. They switched the guns. Q. Was that while they were standing there in the hallway? A. I think they did it when--I'm not sure. Q. Okay. But do you remember at some point in time seeing these two guys switch the guns? A.Yes. Q. So the first man that had the black gun, did he give his black gun to the second man and the second man give the silver gun to the first man? A.Yes. Q. When the second man gave the silver gun to the first man did you see tht man do anything witht he silver gun? A.The first one cocked it. Q. After he cocked it did you see him, what he did with that gun? A. I think he--they switched back. Q. So after the first man cocked the second man's gun, the silver gun, he gave it back to the second man?

T\Windham p 46, 1-8      Latoya: A.Yes. Q. What happened after that, after they had their conversation in the hallway? A And then the first--I mean the second one left back out, went back there and messing with stuff. Q And what did the first man do? A. He stayed in there. 24Q. Now, at this time when the first man is back in the room with y'all I take it from what you've P47 1Q. said that he had the black gun with him again, is that correct? 3A. Yes.

T\Windham P57      Latoya: 3Q Now,when y'all got huddled together and this man (Windeon) said "I'm going to shoot that bitch," what happened after that? 7A Then he tried to pull the trigger but I think it was of safety because it wouldn't pull.

T\Cunningham P101      Latoya: 5Q But while they're in the room there's a switch of the guns? A.Yes. 12Q What Kiki does when he gets the chrome gun he does something with the slide, pulls it back? A. Yes 18Q The big guy leaves the room, right? A.Yes. P102 2Q Big guy leaves, Kiki still in the bedroom with y'all. A. Yes. 8Q And your mom continuing to say basically it's not here, right? A. Yes. 11Q Now there comes a time when both Kiki and the fat guy go out to the hallway, right? A. Yes.

Latoya is agreeing to whatever the attorneys ask her, which creates more inconsistent testimony. At this point there are three different testimonies but the bottom line through out each remains that: Here she is testifying that she sees the switch and the cocking; but it is occurring outside the room where she could not see anything that was happening.

But she tells Cunningham during the same trial that it happens in the room. The second guy walks in-- there is the switch, the cock, the exchange again. Then, he leaves the room. Comes back and that is when they meet in the hallway. All of this, still at a point of insignificance.

1. There are significant misstatements of if he cocked the gun, when he cocked the gun, where he cocked the gun and absolutely none of why he would have cocked the gun.

2. If the cocking occurred it happened at a point where Shaun had no reason to believe murder was imminent.

3. The safety was on the silver gun; when Windeon was making threats and it was not ready to be fired due to the difficulty and efforts he had to make (alone) in order to make it happen.

4. Latoya stated Shaun was just standing there, not doing anything. That he did not encourage that shooting. And that "he could have been leaving" minutes before.

Shaun was out of the room and in the process of leaving.

Remove the murder and what is left are the inconsistencies of what Latoya and the officers allege. Next charge aggravated robbery. There is no consistency about what he does. There is no denial that he did not robbed them of anything, possibility the black gun is not functional.

T\Cunningham P96\first trial      Latoya: 23Q He (Shaun) still has the black gun, correct" A. Yes Q You don't know whether --it looks real, but you don't know whether it's a real gun or works or not, right? A. no

T\Direct Windham\p44      Latoya 45 10 Q Did both of them have on a glove--one glove or two gloves or-- 12A I think both of them had on two gloves.

T\Cross by Easterling \p167      Latoya: 2Q Now, when you said the second person, Windeon Sanders, the big fellow that came in here -- that at some point during this he had on the big, bulky garden gloves, you called them, right? 7A Yes.

T\Cross by Easterling \p168      Latoya: 1 Now, Windeon, the big fellow-- he had on these big, bulky gloves, didn’t he? 4A I don’t remember what kind-- I remember it-- it looked like garden gloves, but I don’t remember if both of them had it on or one of them or did they have one. I don’t remember that. 9Q You know now they were found at your gate in the back yard, right? 13A Yes --because you just said it.

T\Cross by Easterling \p170      Latoya: 13 You don’t know whether he had on a glove on his left hand or his right hand or no gloves at all? 16A I know that they had some gloves. I don’t know if both of them had on it or if one of them had it on or if they had it one each one of their hands. I don’t know.

T\Windham p38\first trial      Latoya:3Q Did either of these men have anything on their hands? 5A They had some gloves on. 6QOkay. Let me ask you about the first man. Did he have gloves on? 8A Yes. 9Q Did he have gloves on both hands? 10A. Yes.

T\Cross by Easterling \p159      Latoya: 16Q what color was your purse--your mom’s purse that night? 18A I don’t remember. 19Q Was it in the bedroom somewhere? 20A Yes. She had it with her. P160 1Q Do you remember what color it was? 2A No. 3Q Did the billfold come out of the purse? 4A Yes. It was inside the purse. 6Q Do you remember if anybody looked in the billfold to see if it had any money? 8A I don’t remember.

T\Direct by Windham\p82      Latoya: 22Q Now, did your mother have a purse with her that night? 24A Yes. 25Q and where was her l purse, if you recall? P83 1A It was -- I think it was on the bed. Was there anything ever done with your mother’s purse? 4A Yes. 6A The first guy got her purse and emptied it out on the floor.

T\Cross by Easterling \p159      Latoya: 23Q And you remember it getting dumped out somewhere? 25A Yes. P1603Q Did the billfold come out of the purse? 4A Yes. It was inside the purse.

T\Direct by Klien\p94      Hanley: 6QNow, how come --for example, these other pictures that are showing the complainant laying on the bed --how come you can’t see that purse? 10A I believe it was underneath one of the pillows on the bed. 12Q Was it also partially underneath the complainant? 14A Yes.

T\Direct by Windham\p84      Latoya: 5A He was mad because there wasn’t anything in the there. I think there was thirty something dollars in there. 12A I think that he threw--he just threw the purse down that he’d emptied. He just threw it down. 15Q Did he say anything to your mother as he threw it down? 17A I don’t remember.

T\Direct by Windham\p84    Latoya: 10Q And how did --did he say or do anything to express that anger? 12A I think he threw -- he just threw the purse down that he’d emptied. He just threw it down. 15Q And did he say anything to your mother as he threw it down? 17A I don’t remember.

T\Redirect by Windham \p222      Latoya: 25Q Even the first man told your mother p223 1 he wasn’t happy about not finding anything, not getting anything out of this, didn’t he? 9A Yes.

T\Cross\p161 by Easterling      Latoya: 18Q Is that your mom’s or is that yours or somebody else’s ? 20 Do you know? 21A I think it’s hers. It’s not the one that she had.

T\Windham p.47\first trial      Latoya: 13Q And where was her purse? A. I think it was on the floor or on the bed. Q. Did she put it on the bed do you remember when y'all came home? 17A No.

What did Shaun do regarding the briefcase? Was there any time when Shaun left the room other than the (initial) meeting outside the door? What did Shaun do regarding the knife?

T\Direct by Windham\p85      Latoya: 15 Q. Was that briefcase sitting there open, with 16 stuff strewn all around like that, when 17 you-all first came back home that night? 18 A. No. 19 Q. How did it get that way? 20 A. He brought it to my mother and told her to 21 open it. 22 And she told him that she couldn't 23 open it because she didn't know the 24 combination to it. 25And he gave her a knife to open it p86 8Q At what point in time did all that happen?10A I don’t remember exactly when it happened.

T\Direct Windham\p87      Latoya: 13 I understood you to say, when you first -- 14 when that first guy first came in your room, 15 he was in there the whole time until he 16 stepped out here, by the hallway 17 (indicating} 18 A . 19 Q. --with the second guy. 20A. Yes. 21 Q. Then he came back in. P86 22Q Was there any time when this first guy ever left the room, you know, other than the time he went out here to have the conversation by your doorway with the second guy (indicating)? Do you remember? 3A No, I don’t remember.

T\Direct Windham\p87      Latoya 4Q Where did he get the brief case from, if you remember? 6A He had to leave out to go get it--because he brought it back into the room. 21 Q So, did you ever see him he leave-- the first guy leave the room and then come back with this briefcase? 24A I think so. 25Q Do you remember at what point in time that p88 1 happened, Latoya? 2A. No, I don’t remember.

T\Direct Windham\p88      Latoya: 3 Q. That briefcase wasn't in your room? 4A. No, it wasn’t in there. 5 They had to bring it in. He had to 6 bring it in there. 7Q. But you don't remember seeing him do that? 8A. No. 9Q. Okay. You notice this knife laying on the 10 floor here in State's Exhibit No.15, the 11 knife laying near the briefcase 12 (indicating)? ~ 13 Was that knife in your room? 14A. No. 15 He brought the knife in there so 16 she can open the briefcase with it. 17Q. Again, when you say "he," you're talking 18 about -- 19 A. The first guy. 20Q. --the first guy? 21 Did you see him do that? 22A. I seen him give the knife to her and the 23 briefcase to her. 24Q. Did you see where he got the knife from? 25A. No.

T\Cross by Easterling \p183      Latoya: 4 I said that -- I said the other dude, the second dude -- he was already out there. And then the first one had to go out there to get the briefcase and to bring it back in. That’s what I said. 12A And then I said that I don’t think he left out of here after that until the end.

T\Direct Windham\p89      Latoya: 89 9A She opened it. And he got it, and he--I think he dumped it on the floor or something. 12Q Did he search through what was in the briefcase? 14A yes. 15QWhat was he saying or doing at that time? A. I don’t remember what he was saying, but I know he was going through it. And he didn’t find anything in there.

T\Windham p 48 & 49\first trial      Latoya: 48. 4A He (Shaun) got a briefcase that I think he got out of the other room and he gave it to her... P49 3Q How did that knife get there? 6Q Did one of these men bring it into your room? 7A Yes. 8Q Do you know which one? 9A I think the first one. 10Q So at some point in time he left your room and went to other parts of the house? 12A Yes. 13Q Other than just out in the hallway by your doorway? 15A. Yes. 16Q Do you remember seeing that man or the other man bringing that briefcase into your room? 19A I remember them giving it to my mom and telling her and she said she couldn't open it.

T\Direct Windham\p52      Latoya: 13Q What was he-- did he still have the gun in his hand looking under the bed? 16A Yes. He was holding it on top while he was looking up under the bed, he was holding the gun--21A on the top of the bed.

T\Direct Windham\p53      Latoya: 3 Does he have the gun up, like, towards you-all? 5A I don’t remember. I know it was--either he was-he was holding the gun, holding his hand up on the bed.

T\Direct Windham\p53      Latoya: 9Q Did he say anything to you-all while he was looking under the bed? 11A Yes. 12Q What did he say? 13A He told us not to move. 14Q Did he say anything about shooting?

T\Direct Windham\p54      Latoya 3Q What did he say to you? 4A He said that if we move he’ll shoot.

T\Redirect by Windham\p206      Latoya: 7Q Did he threaten to shoot her? 8A He said that if she moved that he’ll pull the trigger.

T\Windham P51\first trial      Latoya: 13A He (Shaun) was looking under the bed and he had the gun sitting on top of the bed and he was looking under the bed and he told her not to move. 24Q Is he pointing the gun at y'all as he's looking under the bed? P52 A. Yes Q. Is he saying anything to y'all? A. He said, "Don't move because all I got to do is pull the trigger." 5Q He's holding the black gun at that time, is that correct? A. Yes. 8Q You said that at some point in time the second man who had gone back in was moving things round in the house, at some point in time he came back in to the room . Was that after the first man had looked under the bed, if you remember? A. I don't remember.

T\Cross by Easterling \p165      Latoya: 4Q Did he say, "Lay down face down on the bed" or just "Lay on the bed"? 6AI don’t remember if he said, "Lay down" or, "Lay face down." P166 6Q And I believe you said -- is this correct? --"You need to lay down and stay there until your daddy comes back." 9A Yes.

T\Redirect by Windham\p210      Latoya: 12 How were you told to lay down? 20A I think he said, "Lay down." He told us to lay down. I don’t know if he told us to lay on our stomachs.

T\Direct Windham\p94      Latoya: p93 24Q At this point in time, is the light on in the room? 1A No. They had cut the light off, but the closet light was on. 4Q So, at some point in time, one of them turned the light off? 6A The first guy cut the light off -- because he kept asking where my daddy was. And my mom told him he was gone out of town. He told us to lie down because we was going to stay there until he came back.

T\Cross by Easterling\p166      Latoya: 6Q And I believe you said -- is this correct? -- "You need to lay down and stay there until your daddy comes back." 9A Yes

T\Windham P61\first trial      Latoya: 14Q Why did you --Why were you laying on your stomach? 16A. Because the first person told us to do it. 23Q And how long was it after y'all laid down was it that you heard the shot? A. About five minutes.

T\Direct Windham\p36           Latoya: 13 Q. Okay. Did he say anything about dope or 14 drugs? 15 A.No, I don't think so. 16Q. You don’t recall that? 17A. No.

T\Cross by Easterling \p158 see130      Latoya: 2Q Isn’t it true you testified in the previous trial--Page 95: "Okay. They started demanding; and they’re asking, Where’s the dope? Right" And you said, "I’m not sure." And, then, today you’re saying "No." So, which one is it? 10A I don’t remember them asking for it. 11 Q You’re not sure? 12 No. I don’t remember. 21Q So, it is possible they did ask for dope and money and you just don’t remember it? 23A yes.

T\Cross by Easterling\p43      Waters: P44 but you remember what the demands were, that were told you, by the two boys that were in the house, what they were demanding. You remember that--don’t you? --what Miss Hill was telling you. 11A. Specific to what she was saying? 12Q Yes 13A Yes. 14QAnd one of those demands that she was telling you was dope. 16A Correct. 17QAnd, so this is when it’s fresh. 20 Miss Hill was telling you one of the demands was for dope; correct? 22 Correct.

"Numerous psychological studies have shown that human beings are not very good at identifying people they saw only once for a relatively short period of time. The studies reveal error rates of as high as fifty percent — a frightening statistic given that many convictions may be based largely or solely on such testimony. These studies show further that the ability to identify a stranger is diminished by stress (and what crime situation is not intensely stressful?), that cross-racial identifications are especially unreliable, and that contrary to what one might think, those witnesses who claim to be "certain" of their identifications are no better at it than everyone else, just more confident." (HOW RELIABLE IS EYEWITNESS TESTIMONY?: A Decision By New York State's Highest Court Reveals Unsettling Truths About Juries By MICHAEL C. DORF)http://writ.news.findlaw.com/dorf/20010516.html

Ever wonder why so many innocent people were behind bars in the first place? Experts say it’s often mistaken eyewitness testimony that puts innocent people in prison.

"Eyewitness testimony is the worst evidence you could possibly have, but at trial it’s the strongest evidence you could possibly present,” says David Odom, who represents a man who spent 15 years behind bars because of mistaken eyewitness testimony. “It’s extremely powerful testimony.”

And it’s a problem that has defense attorneys and prosecutors concerned. Everyone in both law enforcement and, of course on the defense side, is becoming much more interested in first of all, how can you avoid using eyewitness testimony in the first place, and secondly, how you can avoid using mistaken identity.

The issues surrounding eyewitness testimony generally fall into two areas:

police procedures and the way memory works.

Complicating police procedures have effects on memory.  “The passage of time, I think, is one of the most important factors in determining the accuracy of an eyewitness,” says Kathy Pezdek, a psychology professor at the Claremont Graduate School in California, referring to the amount of time that elapses between when the event occurs and when the witness makes an identification.

Other factors include the extreme level of stress in the situation, the presence of a weapon, the length of time that the person sees the perpetrator, whether it was dark out, the way witnesses might talk to one another after the event, possible influence by media reports and the race of the witness and perpetrator. 

But even with all the potential margins for error, eyewitness testimony can still make or break a case.

Confidence in the police station can translate on the stand, and a witness who honestly believes he or she has identified the right person can lead to conviction because juries tend to believe confidence equals accuracy.  “A confident witness — particularly one who’s got details and expresses that detail in a confident manner — can be very persuasive,” says Elizabeth Loftus, a psychology professor at the University of Washington who has spent 20 years studying eyewitness testimony and memory.

Wrongfully Imprisoned
At the age of 39, James Newsome walked out of a maximum-security prison in Illinois after 15 years of wrongful incarceration.  Newsome was convicted and sentenced to life in prison after three witnesses identified him as the man who shot and killed a 72-year-old grocery store owner on the South Side of Chicago, even though his fingerprints didn’t match those at the scene.    But in 1994, fingerprint technology proved the real perpetrator was a man on death row.    Newsome was given a settlement of $140,000 by the state, but he didn’t think that was enough of an apology. Now he’s suing the police officers and the Chicago Police Department for millions for gross misconduct.

The whole point of doing an investigation is to determine what the truth is and to find out what the facts are. When this is not done, you get a miscarriage of justice case.

Everyday, we send people to prison or worse, to their deaths, based on eyewitness testimony. This is despite the fact that eyewitness testimony is as unreliable my brother-in-law. Of the first 40 death row inmates exonerated through DNA testing, 36 of them had been sent to death row based on eyewitness testimony. Nevertheless, jurors often treat eyewitness testimony as the single most reliable piece of evidence; even more reliable than DNA, ballistics and home pregnancy tests.

Of course, I really shouldn't be surprised. After all, the symbol we use to represent our legal system is a statue of a blindfolded woman.

For years, I wondered why this was the case but now I know. She was the first eyewitness. In fact, I think she testified in the trial of Socrates. For the record, Socrates was convicted and executed, although he too was later exonerated. Seriously, eyewitness testimony has its place in our system but jurors should be warned about its limitations. After all, although justice should be blind, it shouldn't be deaf and extremely dumb as well. (Source: Sean Carter http://www.lawpsided.com/)

http://www.crf-usa.org/bria/bria133.html#how

http://www.forensic-evidence.com/site/Behv_Evid/expert_Lester.html

http://www.ncjrs.org/pdffiles1/nij/178240.pdf

http://www.sado.org/19cdn12.htm#19cdn12a

http://eyewitnessconsortium.utep.edu/Documents/Miller,D.W.2000.pdf

http://www.hup.harvard.edu/reviews/LOFEYE_R.html

http://psy.ucsd.edu/~hflowe/current.html