Eyewitness testimonies are often used in criminal cases. Someone who is unrelated to the event will have witnessed it happen, and they will give their testimony regarding what they saw, who was there, how the event played out and much more.
This account can be very convincing. A jury will understand that the witness has no reason to make up the events or lie about it. The person never expected to witness a crime in the first place. Therefore, a jury is rather likely to believe that an eyewitness is being truthful.
Mistakes can still happen.
The other witness may believe that they’re being truthful, but it’s important to note that mistakes and errors still occur. In the vast majority of cases that have been overturned by DNA evidence, for instance, an eyewitness account was part of the reason for the initial conviction. The DNA proves that the eyewitness was wrong in some way.
This can happen in a variety of different ways. For instance, maybe the eyewitness simply didn’t have a good enough view. Maybe they’re making assumptions. Maybe they’re not quite sure exactly what they saw because everything happened so fast. There are also many cases where an eyewitness simply identifies the wrong person as the suspect. They may believe that they remember seeing that person, but they’re actually confusing them with someone else.
What steps can you take?
It’s important to keep this in mind in mind if you’re facing criminal charges. The odds of a conviction may be stacked against you thanks to an inaccurate eyewitness. Be sure you know about all the legal options you have.