AUTHOR=Magnussen Svein , Safer Martin A., Sartori Giuseppe , Wise Richard A.

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

JOURNAL=Frontiers in Psychiatry

VOLUME=Volume 4 - 2013

YEAR=2013

URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/psychiatry/articles/10.3389/fpsyt.2013.00028

DOI=10.3389/fpsyt.2013.00028

ISSN=1664-0640

ABSTRACT=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.