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Jim Dwyer 2005

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Jim Dwyer, a columnist and author, wrote an article which discusses the possible steps that can be taken to battle false confessions and witness identifications. As he argues in the article these aspects are closely connected and one leads to another. Dwyer (2005) proposes that testimonies and memories of suspects and witnesses should be treated just like any other physical evidence that is discovered in the crime scene. Also, investigators and police officers should keep in mind that testimonies are also subjected to contamination (Dwyer, 2015, para. 4). One proposal that regards eye witnesses is to present the potential evidence by an investigator who is not on the case, thus eliminating leading questions and hints on specific details …show more content…

6). Based on the research Dwyer (2005) concludes that in order to increase legitimacy and consistency of police departments, video cameras should be turned on from the beginning of questioning (Dwyer, 2015, para. 9). The Erie County district attorney identified misidentification and unreliable statements as causes of wrongful convictions (Dwyer, 2015, para. 10). The article also reviews the effects of DNA testing and the unexpected flaws and errors that had led to false convictions. All over the United States 329 people have been exonerated from their sentences. Mostly because of an error that led to another discovery and that same initial error resurfaced later on. States started to present ideas to battle such flaws (Dwyer, 2015, para. 11, and 12). Lobbyists for new rules urge opposing forces to look back on how the DNA testing improved the accuracy of investigations. Therefore, having video cameras on from the beginning of questioning is one of the next improvements that aid investigators and the justice system in general (Dwyer, 2015, para. 14). As discussed in class police exercises great array of power when it comes to interrogations and questioning methods. Nowadays the law enforcement officers are more limited in their imagination on how to extract the necessary information as

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