What Italian Defense Attorneys Know about Factors affecting Eyewitness Accuracy: A Comparison with U.S. and Norwegian Samples

We surveyed 100 Italian defense attorneys about their knowledge and beliefs about factors affecting eyewitness accuracy. The results of a series of similar surveys show that U.S. defense attorneys outperformed other legal professions, including U.S. prosecutors and U.S. and European judges. The pres...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Frontiers in Psychiatry
Main Authors: Svein eMagnussen, Martin A Safer, Giuseppe eSartori, Richard A Wise
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Frontiers Media S.A. 2013-05-01
Subjects:
Memory
professional
beliefs
eyewitness
attorneys
Online Access:http://journal.frontiersin.org/Journal/10.3389/fpsyt.2013.00028/full
Description
Summary:We surveyed 100 Italian defense attorneys about their knowledge and beliefs about factors affecting eyewitness accuracy. The results of a series of similar surveys show that U.S. defense attorneys outperformed other legal professions, including U.S. prosecutors and U.S. and European judges. The present results for the Italian defense attorneys indicate a similar trend. However, analyses of the results suggest that the defense attorney’s’ superior performance on the eyewitness statements was, in part, a product of their skepticism about the accuracy of eyewitness testimony rather than their greater knowledge.
ISSN:1664-0640

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