#eyewitness testimony

[odinsblog]

Six days before Christmas, Darien Harris’ family showed up to court hoping he would be granted bail. They got more than they expected. He will walk out of a Chicago courthouse as a 30-year-old exonerated man after being incarcerated for 12 years.

On Tuesday, prosecutors dropped all charges against Harris in the 2011 shooting of Rondell Moore. Harris’ conviction was largely based on the testimony of a witness who turned out to be legally blind. Earlier this month, a judge overturned his conviction, and Cook County prosecutors said they planned to retry him. But after reviewing the totality of the evidence, they decided against retrying Harris.

Harris’ mother, Nekesha Harris, can finally release the shame and fear she said she’s been carrying for years as she raised her younger children.

“I feel like I am dreaming. I guess when I feel him in my arms, it will be real,” she said outside the courtroom shortly after prosecutors decided not to go forward with a second trial.

This outcome may be an answered prayer, but experts say the Harris case underscores a series of cracks in the criminal justice system. Mistaken eyewitness identification is among the leading contributors in wrongful conviction cases across the country.

Of the more than 3,400 wrongful convictions since 1989, more than 900 — most of them Black — were the result of witnesses mistakenly identifying a person as the culprit, according to the National Registry of Exonerations’ database.

Black men are also overrepresented in the headcount of exonerees every year. Moreover, most exonorees were incarcerated for more than half of their lives. Harris was arrested weeks before his high school graduation in June 2011 and convicted in 2014.

(continue reading)

#politics #mass incarceration #eyewitness testimony #darien harris #structural racism #wrongful conviction #blacklivesmatter #two americas

[if-you-fan-a-fire]

"MOTHERS' THANKS EARNED BY BUCK WITNESS THINKS," Toronto Star. July 4, 1933. Page 1 & 2. ---- Many Should Be Grateful to Communist Leader for Acts in Riot, Court Told --- ADVISED CONVICTS ---- Accused Man Accepts Deputy Warden's Explanation of "Ruse" ---- Special to The Star Kingston, July 4. - Leg-shackled, in pairs, fourteen convicts came to the court house here this morning to bear witness in the defence of Tim Buck and Adrian Vandergayt, convicts accused of rioting last October at Kingston penitentiary. Buck, who is being tried by Judge G. E. Deroche, is defending himself. He called Anthony Becker as his second witness. Becker was employed at the blacksmith shop on the day of the riot. He said that on seeing a gang of men descend to the ground from the tailor shop, via a scaffold, he had pulled the switch controlling the power in the shop. "What made you pull the switch?" asked Buck. "I pulled it impulsively," explained Becker. Buck had come to the guards and told them in a respectful manner to go to the mail bag rooms, witness said. In the mail-bag room Becker said he had seen Garceau and Behan make speeches. Buck Didn't Speak "If I had made a speech you wouldh ave heard it?" "Yes." T. J. Rigney, K.C., for the crown asked Becker how far Buck had been from the switch when it was pulled. "About 30 feet," witness said. "What was the reason you pulled the switch?" "I saw men coming.from the tailor shop so I walked over and pulled the switch." "What has the men coming down the scaffold to do with the pulling of the switch?" "I had heard rumors." Mr. Rigney pressed for an answer as to the connection. Buck objected, saying that in his estimation the question had been answered.

Mr. Rigney wanted to know what witness would do if he saw a horse coming down the street. "Well," drawled the witness, "it all depends on the horse - " he broke off laughing. The court also laughed, and Mr. Rigney changed his line of questioning.

Becker said that Buck had come into the blacksmith shop and he had asked where he was going. Buck said he was going to tell the officers to go to the mail-bag room where they would be safer.

"Was there anyone else there when Buck spoke to you?" "No, just the two of us," replied Becker. Spoke to Officers Buck had then gone to the officers and communicated his wish for their safety. The officers had spoken regarding changing their clothes, and Buck had told them they could do as they liked, witness stated.

One of the officers had changed his clothes, and the three had left to go upstairs to the mail-bag room.

After the departure of the officers Buck and witness had walked slowly along the hallway and eventually they came to the mail-bag shop, he recalled.

Becker said that Buck did not make a speech in the mail-bag shop.

"You're positive of that?" "Buck did not make a speech in the mail-bag room," said Becker in a firm voice.

Buck complained to the court that he had been taken to the north gate at 7.30 this morning to see Mr. Nickle, who is assisting him with his defence.

"They told me Mr. Nickle had telephoned that he wanted to see me there. I was kept there without breakfast until I was brought here. Mr. Nickle now tells me that he did not telephone.

"I have had no chance to see my witnesses because of this ruse and I would like an adjournment for a few minutes in order to do so. And also to get some breakfast."

An adjournment for 15 minutes was ordered by the court and arrangements were made by Sheriff R. F. Vair to have some breakfast brought to Buck.

A Misunderstanding On the resumption of court, Judge Deroche told Buck that Deputy Warden George Sullivan had explained the circumstances of the ruse.

"It was clearly a misunderstanding." stated he.

"I think it was your honor," commented Buck.

One of the men who some years ago escaped with "Red" Ryan and others, Thomas "Shorty" Bryans, was the next witness called by Buck. Bryans hobbled to the stand with the aid of crutches. Buck asked that the witness be allowed to sit down and permission was given.

Bryans said that he had heard rumors of an impending demonstration and that when the motor stopped he thought it was a signal. He had gone to the dome where Buck, Garceau and others had talked.

Buck had stated that Deputy Warden Walsh had asked him to speak to the men. Garceau, he said, had spoken to the men, telling them that he understood the boys were out for reform and better conditions.

Sam Behan, who was acquitted on Saturday, had spoken about "unity and one for all, all for one," said witness.

"Who said that?" asked Buck. "Sam Behan did."

He recalled that Buck had stooda round during the demonstration but had not spoken until after the warden had made a speech. Buck then told the men that the soldiers would not harm them as long as they kept calm and did no violence.

"You then advised them to collect water because you said the place was a fire trap." asserted Bryans.

Unsolicited, Bryans sald: "There are women and children in Kingston, in fact, in Canada, who should he grateful for what Tim Buck did that day."

"What do you mean?" inquired Buck. "Well, what you did to keep the thing quiet and peaceful," eplained Bryans.

Can't Tell of Bloodshed Mr. Rigney asked witness what he meant by the statement regarding the gratitude of the mothers and children of Canada.

"Well, for the speeches they made - and the way they put things over."

Buck wanted Bryans to elaborate on this but when witness started to tell about prison riots he had been in and the amount of bloodshed there had been the court objected.

Three speeches had been made in the dome, said Wm. McKenzie, another convict, by Garceau, Behan and Warden Smith. After the warden's speech Buck had spoken but witness was unable to say what time had elapsed. Buck, in his speech, had told the men that the warden had telephoned for troops but that they should feel no alarm as long as they behaved themselves, said McKenzie.

Went for His Cake The next witness, Clifford Hines, stood in the box and answered the questions with contrasting flashes of white teeth against the dark background of his face.

Buck asked who had pulled the motor switch. "Is it necessary that I say who it was?" asked Hines. "The man in question is quite wiling that you should," advised Buck.

"It was Becker," answered witness.

Hines said he was positive it was Sam Behan who had made the statement "One for all. All for one."

Buck had warned the men not to act violently and therefore they would come to no harm. This speech had a quietening effect on the men, Hines claimed.

Hines said he had returned to the blacksmith shop to retrieve a piece of cake which he had left there, in case of a siege.

"Are you suggesting there are thieves in the penitentiary?" asked Buck. "Yes, I knew there were some." "Did you get your cake?" "Oh yes. It was there all right," answered witness, with a broad white smile. The court smiled with him.

#kingston ontario #kingston penitentiary #1933 prisoner trials #1932 kp riot #prison riot #riotous assembly #prison agitator #sam behan #albert garceau #tim buck #eyewitness testimony #great depression in canada #crime and punishment in canada #history of crime and punishment in canada

[this-is-the-ticket]

Shownotes

This is the Ticket 003 - our 12 Angry Men Fancast episode lol

Ope. Turns out we’ve been questioning eyewitness testimony since at least 1908. 

So there is a Police Psych Eval and here’s how you ace it. Apparently.

Marijuana Arrests by the Numbers according to ACLU

Report finds more is spent in Los Angeles on Traffic enforcement than the Money Generated by Tickets 

In an eerie, full circle moment, it turns out Alice Seblod wrongfully convicted the rapist from her 1999 memoir, Lucky. 

Ari produced a Variety Show and Casey was in it too!

A 2046 Christmas xoxo

Zhang Ziyi is Godzilla King of Monsters lolololol

The Apartment Opening Scene

Brief Encounter, Billy Wilder, and The Apartment

Tom Hanks offering unsolicited advice based on his love of The Godfather becomes he is an absolute ass hole in You’ve Got Mail.  Catch Me if You Can as autobiography

#2046 #zhang ziyi #tony leung #the apartment #billy wilder #jack lemmon #brief encounter #tom hanks #meg ryan #you've got mail #christmas #variety show #eyewitness testimony #podcast #podcasting #this is the ticket #branding #lol #kill me

[vizrecon]

#eyewitness testimony #eye witness

[lenbryant]

Jury duty questions

#neil degrasse tyson #eyewitness testimony #eyewitness

[rawk-chikk]

I'm sorry, what?

I'm sorry, WHAT?!

#this is a wind up right? this has to be a wind up. someone is pranking me right now with this shit #this is why courts don't trust eyewitness testimony anymore 😜 #how are people this obtuse? i despair. i really do 🤦‍♀️ #it's literally addressed *in the movie* ffs!!!!! #remember the bit where they nearly hit kevin with the van? and kevin clocks the gold tooth? #and harry clocks that kevin clocks the gold tooth? #jesus people. we got this shit when we were *kids* 🤦‍♀️ #rc's random ramblings #home alone

[sbnkalny]

Its time to believe in trash

#TEXT #DAY 12 #The day of resurrection their loved ones Will be degraded monsters. eyewitness testimony has lead police to believe in trash

[silverislander]

what was the fun fact!!!!

!! we were talking about hoarding disorder in class and apparently when it was added to the dsm-5 (very recently btw) it was super controversial in part bc there were concerns raised about overpathologizing collectors! so there are specific differences between collectors and hoarders

collectors are selective- they might only collect like. figurines or post cards idk- while hoarders just keep Everything, no matter what it is

collectors are more likely to organize their collections and hoards are as a rule v messy/consume a lot of space in a house. if you've seen the show hoarders you know what this looks like in comparison to someone's very neatly organized display shelves/cabinets

both groups have attachments to/difficulty discarding objects, but collectors can recognize value as well- if they have a cheap double or a broken item, they might give it away or throw it out, while a hoarder will keep an item no matter what condition it's in, how useless it is or whether it's actually needed

the main thing is hoarding is about keeping old things, not necessarily trying to acquire more things, and it's related to cognitive distortions that aren't seen in collectors!

idk i just found it neat hgfjkds. i didn't even know it was an official disorder

#sorry this is like. several layers of fun facts now gfhjdGFHDFJ #thank you for the opportunity to be a nerd about it tho! #levi.txt #my psych classes have been so interesting so far its wild the stuff you learn #like forensics? that was fascinating man #like profiling hasnt actually been proven to work! eyewitness testimony isnt perfect bc our memories are super unreliable under stress! #brains man!! theyre so weird!! #ANYWAY

[killingmoon]

okay the only things confusing me about the jfk thing is that 1.) the doctors at parkland were certain that at least one of his wounds came from his front and not from the book depository and 2.) witnesses of the assassination smelled gunpowder near the infamous ‘grassy knoll’ and many people heard more than three shots

#if i never hear the phrase grassy knoll again i will be happy! #but i’m doing this to myself so … i deserve it #also eyewitness testimony is not that reliable however i feel like Texans would know what gunpowder smells like #at least 1960s texans

[thethief1996]

I can't stop thinking about the news out of Palestine. Israel is sieging al Shifa hospital. Videos of people's limbs being severed off are haunting (graphic video tw). The hospital has ran out of fuel and 39 babies in incubators are fending for their lives by themselves, because Israel has stationed snipers around the hospital and is shooting all medical crew that walks into their sight.

First, the narrative was Israel would never bomb hospitals. Now, the hospitals are Hamas bases. Then, we respect journalists. Now, we have a fucking kill list of journalists because they are Hamas collaborators. First, we are not letting fuel in until the hostages are released. Now, we are not accepting the hostages back because that would stop our ground invasion and let Hamas win. And I could go on about every single lie they're making up. If you look up "Hamas rape" on google, the first link leads to Times of Israel saying Israel has found no forensic evidence of sexual violence, and only one eyewitness testimony out of 3.5k people attending the rave. If you Google "Hamas beheaded babies" the top links say they have no evidence for the claim besides word of mouth from extremist soldiers. Israeli extremists think about the ugliest goriest scene they can make out in their sick heads, tell that to a international journalist and they run away with it like it's gospel.

And children are being killed in the name of these lies. Thousands are being displaced in images that remind me of the pictures of Tantura 75 years ago, with their hands up so the tanks don't shoot them. Amputees are leaving the hospitals in wheelchairs hours after their surgeries because they are being shot at. Elders who survived the Nakba on 48 are having to walk towards Southern Gaza on foot (imagine walking from one end of your city to the other on foot), displaced again. People are cheering for the haunting images of white phosphorus bombs being dropped over Gaza. Gazan workers who were arrested in the West Bank are being thrust back into the bombings wearing numbered labels.

This is not normal. We are seeing the early stages of the settler colonial genocide of an indigenous population. Native leaders who have visited Gaza say its refugee camps look eerily like reservations. We can stop this. For the first time we are able to see wide scale accounts from the hands of the people suffering the genocide, and Israel is so scared of it they have cut all communications in Gaza.

This is our litmus test. I think we have never seen more clearly, with Palestine, Armenia, Congo and Sudan how colonialism has made our world a rotten place to live in.

The South African apartheid collapsed due to boycotts. We have to do everything in our power to stop Israel's hegemony. Even talking to a group of friends about Palestine changes the status quo. There's no world where we can live peacefully if Israel accomplishes their goals.

Keep yourself updated and share Palestinian voices. Muna El-Kurd said every tweet is like a treasure to them, because their voices are repressed on social media and even on this very app. Make it your action item to share something about the Palestinian plight everyday. Here are some resources:

Al Jazeera, Anadolu Agency, Mondoweiss

Boycott Divest Sanction Movement

Palestinian Youth Movement is organizing protests and direct action against weapons factories across the US

Mohammed El-Kurd (twitter / instagram)

Muhammad Shehada (twitter)

Motaz Azaiza (instagram) - reporting directly from Gaza.

Hind Khudary - reporting directly from Gaza. Her husband and daughter moved South to run from the tanks but she stayed behind to record the genocide. The least we can do is not let her calls fall on deaf ears.

You can participate in boycotts wherever you are in the world, through BDS guidelines. Don't be overwhelmed by gigantic boycott lists. BDS explicitly targets only a few brands which have bigger impact. You can stop consuming from as many brands as you want, though, and by all means feel free to give a 1 star review to McDonalds, Papa John, Pizza Hut, Burger King and Starbucks. Right now, they are focusing on boycotting the following:

Carrefour, HP, Puma, Sabra, Sodastream, Ahava cosmetics, Israeli fruits and vegetables

Push for a cultural boycott - pressure your favorite artist to speak out on Palestine and cancel any upcoming performances on occupied territory (Lorde cancelled her gig in Israel because of this. It works.)

If you can, participate in direct action or donate.

Palestine Action works to shut down Israeli weapons factories in the UK and USA, and have successfully shut down one of their firms in London.Some of the activists are going on trial and are calling for mobilizing on court.

Palestinian Youth Movement is organizing direct actions to stop the shipping of wars to Israel. Follow them.

Educate yourself. Read into Palestinian history and the occupation. You can't common sense people out of decades of propaganda. If your arguments crumble when a zionist brings up the "disengagement of Gaza", you have to learn more.

Read Decolonize Palestine. They have 15 minute reads that concisely explain the occupation (and its colonial roots) and debunk popular myths, including pinkwashing.

Read on Palestine. Here's an amazing masterpost.

Verso Book Club is giving out free books on Palestine (I personally downloaded Ten Myths about Israel by Ilan Pappe. If you still believe in the two states solution, this book by an Israeli professor debunks it).

Call your representatives. The Labour Party in the UK had an emergency meeting after several councilors threatened to resign if they didn't condemn Israeli war crimes. Calling to show your complaints works, even more if you live in a country that funds genocide.

FOR PEOPLE IN THE USA: USCPR has developed this toolkit for calls, here's a document that autosends emails to your representatives and here's a toolkit by Ceasefire in Gaza NOW!

FOR PEOPLE IN EUROPE: Here's a toolkit by Voices in Europe for Peace targeting the European Parliament and one specific for almost all countries in Europe, including Germany, Ireland, Poland, Denmark, Sweden, Netherlands, Greece, Norway, Italy, Portugal, Spain, Finland, Austria, Belgium Romania and Ukraine

FOR PEOPLE IN THE UK: Friends of Al-Aqsa UK and Palestine Solidarity UK have made toolkits for calls and emails

FOR PEOPLE IN AUSTRALIA: Here's a toolkit by Stand With Palestine

FOR PEOPLE IN CANADA: Here's a toolkit by Indepent Jewish Voices for Canada

Join a protest. Here's a constantly updating list of protests:

Global calendar

Another global calendar (go to the instragram of the organizers to confirm your protest)

USA calendar

Australia calendar

Feel free to add more.

#free palestine #free gaza #save gaza #gaza under attack

[secret-covet]

oh my god. i just saw an interview of a palestinian kids describing how both his parents were killed and the comment section was full of "source??? source?????"

#like you have an eyewitness fucking testimony and cameras on film and also both his parents are fucking dead they have the bodies #and everything. genuinely deranged behaviour. a child lost his family. #i wanna see the “source????” for the false rape accusations. literally ZERO evidence.

[bojackson54]

A Sentence That Wasn't A Sentence: Was Pilate Complimenting Jesus?

One of the most unusual testimonies about who Jesus was is expressed in a short sentence that wasn’t a legal sentence: “I find no fault in this man.” Consider the reactions of Pontius Pilate and his wife: “While he [Pilate] was sitting on the judgment seat, his wife sent him a message, saying, “Have nothing to do with that righteous Man; for last night I suffered greatly in a dream because of…

View On WordPress

#eyewitness #Jesus #John 18:36-37 #John 19:11 #Luke 23:3-4 #Matthew 27:19 #Pontius Pilate #sentence #testimony

[if-you-fan-a-fire]

"Two Of Five Alleged Bank Robbers Committed, Given Bail," Windsor Star. October 22, 1943. Page 5 & 6. --- Local Men To Be Tried In December ---- Gerald Gates Tells of Finding Money in Backyard of Brother's Home ---- Five Windsor men charged with armed robbery of the Royal Bank branch at Wheatley on September 10 will face trial in Supreme Court at Chatham early in December. Allan Baldwin, already waiting to start. four years prison term for receiving stolen tires: Franklin Smith, who was discharged from the Canadian Army after serving overseas in this war; Vernard Gates, Leo Dubroy and Peter Devlin were all committed by Magis-> trate Ivan B. Craig in police court at Chatham yesterday after a preliminary hearing.

More than $34,000 was stolen in the bank holdup.

Peter Devlin and Leo Dubrey have been granted bail and are freed. They appeared before County Judge H. E. Grosch at Chatham today, who permitted the same bail as they were allowed before. Each had posted $2,000 cash.

Only other one of the five who had been free before the preliminary hearing was Vernard Gates, but as his bondsmen were in Windsor the new bail must be arranged through that city. It is expected an application will be made here in a couple of days. His bail was for $16,000 cash.

SURPRISE ENDING A surprise ending was given the two-day hearing when Magistrate Craig sent up Devlin along with the rest. As Crown Attorney A. Douglas Bell, K.C., admitted after James H. Clark, K.C., counsel for Devlin, had protested it, no evidence had been produced at the preliminary hearing to connect Devlin with the robbery.

Mr. Clark asked the grounds for sending Devlin to trial along with the others, and Mr. Bell cited a case in the Supreme Court of British Columbia in which the learned justice had upheld the commitment of an accused man even though no evidence had been put in against him. It was maintained that when accused were charged jointly they should be kept together for the trial.

STANDS BY DECISION In spite of Mr. Clark's objection, the magistrate said he would stand by his decision and commit all five.

Afterward, Mr. Clark said he would enter a motion before a Supreme Court judge in chambers asking that the commitment be quashed before the trial begins.

STARTLING EVIDENCE Startling evidence was given by Gerald Gates, who is now facing s charge of receiving money stolen from the bank, before the hearing concluded. He told of digging in the backyard of his brother, Vernard, on Byng road, Windsor, with the intention of planting a peach tree when he found s boiler filled with tins of money. This, which later was found to total $4,584.67, of which $3,650 was in bills, he had quickly replaced under the soil and then at night, two days after the bank robbery in Wheatley, had dug it up again. Gates told the court he had then taken the boiler to a road in Tilbury East Township and thrown it into the ditch.

He explained that he knew his brother, Vern, was arrested in connection with the bank robbery and that if the money were found in his yard it might cause trouble.

After dumping the boiler in a ditch on a sideroad, he had returned with his brother, Harold, and a girl friend with the intention of getting the money and turning it over to police. He had left the girl and Harold in Tilbury while he continued on alone. But he changed his mind, deciding it would be difficult to explain to police, and left the money where it was.

Still later, he went with Constable Len Neil of the provincial police in Windsor and Detective Chris Paget of Windsor city police and directed them to the spot where they found the boiler full of money.

IDENTIFIED CAR John Nicholson, of Wheatley, said yesterday afternoon he had seen a Mercury on Lake street in his village and had seen men hurrying toward it. Later, in Windsor, he found a car in a lineup of other cars which he identified as the same one. He said the peculiar pattern of dust on it was one thing which led to his picking it out. Earlier, Mrs. Dorothy Julian said she had seen such a car in front of her home in Wheatley.

Sgt. Dave Duncan, of the Ontario Provincial Police, explained that the Mercury owned by Vernard Gates had been put in a lineup in Windsor and it had been picked out by Nicholson as the one he saw in Wheatley. Licence plates found on the car at this time were said by police to have been those belonging to Gates, although they were not the same plates Mrs. Julian had reported in Wheatley.

Another witness yesterday afternoon was Inspector George McKay, of the criminal investigation branch of the provincial police, who told about the investigation in Wheatley and of arresting Leo Dubroy and Peter Devlin n in a Windsor hotel. Later, with other police officers, he had gone to the home of Allen Baldwin and there saw Franklin Smith but not Baldwin.

They had accompanied Smith to this room in a downtown Windsor hotel, and found an army kit, with the name "Smith, F. F.," on the side of it. In the bag they found $6.456 wrapped in pages of a newspaper. Among it was $223 in United States currency and a bundle of new $2 and $1 bills. Smith was arrested and charged with the robbery.

Asked about the money, Smith had said: "It's my dough, but I've accumulated it." Asked how he got it, he replied: "You can see I've done some good betting on the horses."

REVOLVER FOUND Later Baldwin was taken into custody after a blue denim smock, of a type witnesses said one of the robbers wore had been found at his home. A search of Vernard Gates' premises on Byng road yielded a revolver and a sealer of pennies and Gates was arrested.

During a police lineup when Mrs. Kathleen McLean, of the Wheatley bank staff, had picked out Baldwin, he had said:

"Be careful, lady, this is 20 years." Constable Neil explained about finding money in Tilbury East and said Miss Jean Tait identified two $10 bills found with the amount.

#wheatley ontario #chatham #windsor #bank robbery #bank robbers #professional criminals #bank manager #armed robbery #armed robbers #eyewitness testimony #stolen cash #armed with a revolver #tilbury #canada during world war 2 #crime and punishment in canada #history of crime and punishment in canada

[ghostieeeee]

Even with all the drama I've witnessed in discord today, my sims still had more beef with each other than a Triple Bigmac meal and a 20 pack of ribs 🍾👀

No idea if that "Triple Bigmac meal" exists, but it does for the purpose of this comparison <3

#->ghostie speaks! #->ghostie had witnessed stuff! #->ghostie is an eyewitness! #->gotta do that eyewitnesses testimony!

[rainbowspinnywheelofdoom]

#fact check #antisemitism #anti palestinian racism #tw #im not saying EVERY video or eyewitness testimony is fake btw #its just that its good to stay critical

[pocket-mobster]

>"rb and say what color, soft drink, wes anderson film, flatworm species, etc the person u rb'd this from is"

buddy i can't describe my own family members beyond precise, objective statements. i don't even know if the runners of all 3,251 blogs i follow have skin let alone a palpable vibe.

#ipj speaks #ive stopped keeping count but i can safely say most of my family members have skin! #my approach to eyewitness testimony is groundbreaking to say the least