University of Baltimore School of Law Conducts Experiment on Eyewitness Identification

Most criminal cases boil down to the “whodunit?” This means that, in most criminal cases, there is no question that the crime was committed. The only question for the jury is whether the Defendant committed it. The prosecutor’s job is to persuade the jury – beyond a reasonable doubt – that the Defendant is the culprit. Studies show that juries look for certain things. Most jurors’ experience with the criminal justice system comes from watching television and movies. In any event, juries in criminal cases look for things such as DNA and fingerprint evidence, confessions, eyewitness identifications. (more…)