The Pitfalls of Witness Testimonials, Anecdotes at Work.
Greetings. Witness testimonials. Accurate? Not always. Eyewitness testimony, anecdotal information, is historically among the most convincing forms of evidence in criminal procedures. In a majority of situations, only a suspect’s signed confession can further convince a jury about that specific individual’s guilt. The moment when a testifying witness points directly to the defendant as the perpetrator of the alleged crime is iconic, and has been dramatized hundreds of times on television and in motion pictures. We tend to trust our own perceptions and experiences. “I’ll believe it when I see it” isn’t just a historical cliché, it is a statement of the most persuasive form of evidence we allow. Such is the human condition. Eyewitness testimony is more fallible than many people figure. The arrival of DNA analysis in the late 1980s revolutionized forensic science, providing an unprecedented level of accuracy about the identity of actual perpetrators versus innocent people...
