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Collecting Eyewitness Evidence: Reducing Wrongful Convictions

        This book is written for you, the police officer, detective, and investigator entrusted with uncovering the truth. It is written for you, the manager of your department, or for you, the supervisor over investigators in your department, as you ensure your investigators collect the best eyewitness evidence. 

Teaches investigators standardized research-supported identification protocols to reduce misidentification. 

• Procedures for assembling and presenting a photospread. Both sequentially or simultaneously.

• Procedures for conducting a live lineup. Both sequentially or simultaneously.

• Blind and Blinded methods of presentation. 

• Guidance on strategies to prevent contamination of witness memory.

• Reduce investigator bias.

• Reduce the influence of conscious or unconscious cues on a witness's decision. 

• Encourages the finding of corroborating evidence to support identifications.

• Reduce legal challenges by following proper protocol and documentation. 

• Create an awareness of other behaviors that influence the outcome of a case.

• Example collection documentation forms - the Admonishment Form - Waiver of an Attorney

     Drawing on nearly 50 years of frontline policing experience, the author provides a practical, experience-driven guide to collecting pristine eyewitness evidence and emphasizes the critical importance of finding corroborating evidence to support your identification. This manual is not an exercise in academic theory. It is grounded in the realities of actual investigations, real‑world outcomes, and their consequence to the people, both victims and offenders, affected by every decision you make as a member of the criminal justice system.

     You are guided step by step through best practices for conducting photospreads, live lineups, and showups, with clear explanations of how each procedure should be designed, administered, and documented to preserve evidentiary integrity. The book walks you through the thought processes behind creating a fair photospread, properly admonishing a witness, and presenting photospreads, or live lineup identification evidence in a way that minimizes suggestion and contamination. 

     Throughout the book, you are also presented with common investigative actions and everyday behaviors, often overlooked or never given a second thought, that can quietly influence and significantly impact the outcome of a case. These can include your biases, supervisor pressure, tunnel vision, competition, and egos.

In addition, the book addresses eyewitness memory, perception, and error, examining why well-meaning witnesses can be mistaken and how investigative practices can either reduce or amplify that risk. Relevant cases and research on eyewitness evidence are discussed, not to undermine investigators, but to strengthen them by highlighting lessons learned from past failures and successes.

     The central mission of this book is simple and uncompromising: to reduce the risk of convicting an innocent person. You are presented with “best practices” for collecting eyewitness evidence. When a witness says, “That’s him,” the job is not over. This book challenges investigators to understand that there are circumstances in which a confident witness can still be wrong, and provides the tools to help recognize, evaluate, and safeguard against that possibility. If your goal is to build stronger cases, protect the integrity of your investigations, and ensure justice is based on reliable evidence. This book is for you.

An 8-hour course on Eyewitness Evidence Collection has been prepared and is available. Reach out to stephenmorrisonphd@gmail.com for more information and costs. TCOLE ready.