Oregon Law Review : Vol. 89, No. 1 (2010)

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Oregon Law Review : Vol. 89, No. 1, p. 263-304 : Eyewitness Errors and Wrongful Convictions: Let’s Give Science a Chance
(University of Oregon Law School, 2010) Sonenshein, David A.; Nilon, Robin
It is time to change the law governing lineup eyewitness identification procedures and the admission at trial of eyewitness identifications. Over the last forty years, forensic science has developed considerably while the law governing lineups has remained largely calcified. The advent of DNA typing has underscored the unreliability of lineup identifications. The authors of one study estimate that the convictions of seventy-five percent of those defendants exonerated through the use of DNA evidence were based on erroneous eyewitness testimony. The unreliability of eyewitness identifications is revealed most dramatically in sexual assault cases, which often include both victim identification testimony and physical evidence from which the assailant’s DNA can be determined. DNA evidence has also exonerated many defendants whose convictions for other crimes (some carrying a capital sentence) were based on flawed eyewitness identifications. Improved lineup identification procedures and more stringent admissibility standards can help reduce the number of individuals wrongly convicted through erroneous eyewitness identification.