Another stated that the killers face was burned into [her] memory immediately.. Witnesses arent able to tell whether their testimony was influenced in this way. Out on his porch and saw Flowers walking by that morning. At his criminal trial, both parking lot attendants identified Miller as the perpetrator. Taken together, each witnesses testimony fits within the cohesive whole, tied together into a description of the route Flowers had to have taken that morning. Guidance can help jurors who might not know what to make of conflicting testimony. My review of the transcripts from Grants trial suggests a simple explanation for these high-confidence mistakes: The police did not use scientific best practices for collecting the eyewitness identification evidence. In Perry v. New Hampshire, the Supreme Court barred the defendant from challenging the eyewitness testimony proffered by the state, even though the circumstances surrounding the eyewitnesss identification of the defendant were decidedly suggestive. The psychiatrist found that she had an adjustment disorder at the time she killed her husband, enabling her solicitors to challenge her conviction for murder. In a recent review of the literature, the authors reported across 15 experiments, suspect identifications made with high confidence were, on average, 97 percent accurate! A meta-analytic review of the effects of high stress on eyewitness memory, Law and Human Behavior 28.6 (2004), 687-706. Column: 15 minutes of fame flies by. Hale is an Emmy-nominated executive producer for several true-crime documentaries highlighting wrongful convictions. In one of the earliest studies of this misinformation effect run by Elizabeth Loftus, subjects were shown a slideshow of a red car passing a stop sign and hitting a pedestrian. But eyewitnesses allege she was severely beaten and died as a result of police brutality. But there is more to the story. Even if he allows it, he will have to instruct the jury about the variables that can lead to misidentification. Just as double-blind clinical trials in medical studies are intended to prevent patients and doctors expectations from affecting outcomes of the clinical trial, double-blind lineups aim to prevent witnesses and administrators expectations from influencing the outcomes of the identification procedure. The case shed renewed light on the country's treatment of women, with a growing number of female Iranians choosing to flout the Sharia-based law to wear the hijab. Warmer storms could cause problems, Column: Supreme Court conservatives may want to block student loan forgiveness. Even where a judge determines that a given identification procedure is unnecessarily suggestive, the judge may nonetheless admit the results of the procedure if they are deemed reliable based on these factors.13 In his dissenting opinion, Justice Marshall criticized the Court for ignoring studies showing that unnecessarily suggestive eyewitness identifications had led to erroneous convictions even where such identifications had been deemed reliable.14 One estimate based on a 1989 survey of prosecutors suggests that at least 80,000 eyewitnesses make identifications of suspects in criminal investigations each year.25 First, another DNA profileone belonging to John Ruelas, who was just a four-year-old preschooler at the time of the murderwas found on a blood spot taken from the victims left hand. Thirty Years of DNA Forensics: How DNA Has Revolutionized Criminal Investigations., See here: Innocence Project, Eyewitness misidentification, Crime in the United States 2012: Persons Arrested,. This created an inherent bias that made the lineup unfair, and likely affected the victims subsequent identification. Noting a victims initial confidence level at the initial identification can be important, so as to track if the witness grows more or less confident with the identification over the course of the trial, which might be an indicator of eyewitness unreliability. After his conviction at Croydon Crown Court, several more women made allegations of sexual assault against him. Thanks for reading Scientific American. Scientific best practices for conducting eyewitness lineups require that the person administering the lineup not know who the police suspect. Examples of when an expert witness may be needed include: To hire an expert witness, you may make contact with us via our simple online contact form, call us on 01865 587 865 or by requesting a call back from our team via the link below. Editorial: Los Angeles County bus riders get no shelter from the storm, Before and after photos from space show storms effect on California reservoirs, Dramatic before and after photos from space show epic snow blanketing SoCal mountains, Yet more rain expected to hit California in March. Medicolegal court reports are requested where expert witness evidence is required. But a closer examination of those witnesses testimonies reveals a few disconcerting factors: the earliest testimony from a witness came a month after the murders, and other testimony came nine, twelve months later. Most recently, in 2012, the Supreme Court clarified that the Due Process Clause does not require judges to assess the reliability of eyewitness identifications made under suggestive circumstances when the circumstances are not created by law enforcement officials.15 In other words, in cases where the proffered identification does not result from suggestive police procedure, the judge need not consider whether the identification also passes the second step of the Manson test. Therefore, when John Warboys applied for parole, an independent psychologist was instructed by his legal representative to assess his risk. It comes just two days after diplomats walked out of a speech given by the Iranian minister to the UN's Human Rights Council in Geneva. Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information, Editorial: He spent 38 years in prison for a crime he didnt commit. Thanks to the work of the Innocence Project of Texas, new DNA testing on biological material collected from underneath the victims fingernails cleared Grant and implicated another man, Jermarico Carter, who police said confessed to the killing. cases where eyewitnesses were rightammo donation to ukraine. (The Los Angeles Police Department does not conduct blind photo lineups, nor does it follow the commissions related recommendation that witnesses be shown photos one at a time. A witness may mistakenly identify a criminal suspect. Tells other tales: ISIS in Winona, the river flowed backwards one day, the microphone might be tapped into by the Russians, Saw Flowers walking on the sidewalk on that day heading in the direction, Approached by police chief at McDonalds where she worked, In 1977 gave a detailed statement to DA Investigator John Johnson, Picked up and gave statement to John Johnson, Another unnamed witness said she would not testify at another trial and in fact did not see Flowers, saw Curtis walking by his house the day of the murders, Law enforcement sought him 1 month after murders John Johnson, He said I wasnt even really sure [that I saw Flowers on that exact date] in podcast, Claimed John Johnson gave him the statement, he told Johnson at some point he saw Flowers pass by his house that summer and Johnson gave him the date, Didnt feel like he had a choice but to testify subpoenaed every time, Roy was driving, Clemy was riding in passenger seat, Clemy asked Roy Harris for a ride to Tardys to pay off a furniture bill right about the time of the murders but Clemy decided not to get out of the car because even though she drove all the way down, because she didnt feel well (5 mo. Judges should strive to make sure the jury is informed of all of the identifications an eyewitness has made prior to the trial. Chester denied having anything to do with these other crimes but was identified by the victims based on these suggestive procedures. Gov. The attendants were also able to have a brief conversation with the driver before he fled on foot. 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Instead evidence collected at the contaminated crime scene would probably be declared inadmissible. COVID origins? This can be true even in situations where the witness has an ample opportunity to observe the offender. The puzzling question in this case, though, is why did six eyewitnesses independently identify Lydell Grant as the killer and then confidently testify in court? The murder victims cold case evidence was there because the case had recently been reopened; the 1969 preschoolers DNA sample was there as part of an active murder investigation, and Leitermans DNA sample was there because he had recently been arrested for forging a prescription. This evidence was not presented in the initial trial. While 30+ years of research is too much to summarize in a few paragraphs, we will outline the general problems with eyewitness testimony as well as some of them more major research that has been performed on the subject. Wegers attorneys, Celeste Stack and I, continue to seek to prove Chesters innocence and are seeking to review and analyze the physical evidence and are working to be able to conduct forensic testing on some of that evidence. Once a suspect has established that he was the victim of suggestiveness, a pretrial hearing will be held in which the full range of reasons for possible misidentification are examined. Later two slideshows were shown, one with a stop sign and the other with a yield sign and they asked the subjects which was the one they had previously seen. The pathologist discovered that one of the babies had in fact died from a viral infection, not cot death. Alex Murdaugh's defense attorneys will deliver their closing arguments in his murder trial on Thursday as they seek to raise reasonable doubt about whether he killed his wife and son in 2021. Prior to admitting eyewitness testimony, judges should make inquiries into the reliability of the eyewitness, looking for any indications of unreliability. In the Miller case, a woman was raped in her car in a parking garage in downtown Chicago. Officers of the law should be instructed by their superiors about the potential inaccuracies and dangers of witness testimony. But eyewitnesses aren't always right, and poor investigative practices can make matters worse. Assessing confidence is critical because it provides direct information about the trustworthiness of the uncontaminated ID. Carter has now been indicted for the murder by a grand jury, and Lydell Grant was released from prison. Of course, he knew that Lydell Grant was the one under suspicion. Having served 10 years in prison, the psychologist recommended his release from prison. 26 The Innocence Project, DNA Exoneree Case Profiles,. However, there has yet to be research showing what ideal instructions would look like, as each case involving eyewitness testimony varies from each other. document.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License. 24 Federal Bureau of Investigation, Crime in the United States 2012: Persons Arrested,. Judges in California routinely talk to jurors about the possibility of misidentification, but their instructions arent as complete as those contemplated by the New Jersey court. Widespread civil unrest broke out in Iran following the suspicious death of Amini on September 16, 2022. Juries are particularly prone to being swayed by eyewitness testimony, as evidenced in the Curtis Flowers case. Eyewitness misidentifications are known to have played a role in 70 percent of the 349 wrongful convictions that have been overturned based on DNA evidence (so far). Hossein Amirabdollahian told the host 'this is not the way to conduct an interview' after he insisting women in Iran had 'all the necessary, required freedoms' and accused Western media of fueling protests there. Some professionals have questioned whether this case has led to heightened caution when considering capacity and fitness in cases where dementia and cognitive impairment are diagnosed. Subsequent memory tests, including the dramatic one that occurs in court in front of the jury, constitute contaminated evidence. Perhaps one of the most striking examples of the flaws in eyewitness testimony is the case of Jerry Miller, who was convicted of rape, robbery and kidnapping in 1982. In this case, 120 eyewitnesses from as far north as Grants Pass, Ore., to as far south as. Current procedures for collecting and assessing evidence from eyewitnesses are often not designed to minimize contamination.This problem does not apply to other kinds of forensic evidence. The prosecution then claims that Flowers then walked again from his house to Tardy Furniture to commit the murder, passing an auto body shop and a drycleaner on the way, as well as Highway 51. Your details from Facebook will be used to provide you with tailored content, marketing and ads in line with our Privacy Policy. Expert evidence may be important in determining the right outcome. One reported that he had identified Grant without doubt or hesitation. U. L. Rev. Women in Iran have all the necessary required freedoms within the framework of the law, he claims, but says our interview is a confrontation: This is not the way to conduct an interview. pic.twitter.com/XKkC5uWYyj, Iranian foreign minister Hossein Amirabdollahian smiled as he chastised CNN host Christiane Amanpour, telling her 'this is not the way to conduct an interview', CNN host Amanpour laid into the Iranian foreign minister over his country's record on women's rights. Psychological experiments have shown that lineup administrators who know who the suspect is end up cuing witnesses toward that person. Thomas D. Albright, director of the Vision Center Laboratory at the Salk Institute for Biological Studies, listed some of the many variables affecting eyewitness testimony in a 2017 paper published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, entitled Why Eyewitnesses Fail.. 2 He claimed police did not have the power to use firearms in the riots. The lineup photo from one of these lineups shows how suggestive it was: The other four men in the lineup were much older and bigger than Chester. My Blog cases where eyewitnesses were right. Abcarian: Mask mandates? However, Solicitor, Marilyn Stowe, had concerns about the expert evidence of Professor Meadow. Only radical intervention can save juvenile justice. Few would doubt that under such conditions, DNA evidence is highly reliable. Compiled by Ann Njarara, Bree Peilen, Daniel Neuman, Emory Cook, Linda Lin, and Perrin Lowrey, Introduction Expert Evidence In Family Cases Where Spouse Is Unable To Return To Work Due To Illness, The revised psychopathy checklist (PCL-R), Proving Automatism Defences In Criminal Cases, Understanding the Value of an Occupational Therapist Expert Witness, Causation in personal injury or medical negligence, Assessments of sexual offending, violent behaviour offending, arson, and stalking. For example, 21 police departments in the state conduct blind photo lineups, in which the person administering the viewing doesnt know who the suspect is. But if the six eyewitnesses chose Lydell Grant from the lineup only because they were cued to do so by the case detective, why were they so confident in their identifications? Harvard Univ Press; Cambridge, MA: 2011. 5 Brewer & Treyens, Role of Schemata in Memory for Places, Cognitive Psychology 13.2 (1981). Letters to the Editor: Yes, L.A. drivers are getting worse. To many Americans including many jurors eyewitness testimony is the gold standard when it comes to evidence. Police lineups have evolved over time, but some states still need to catch up. The FBI estimates that 521,196 of these arrests were for violent crimes.24 Accurate data on the number of crimes observed by eyewitnesses are not available. In an effort to overwhelm Chester and break him down, he was placed in a lineup regarding two incidents that took place in 1959 in a nearby State Park called Deer Park, one of which was that rape case and the other was a purse snatching. It does make sure that photos in a lineup resemble one another.) Why not be the first to send us your thoughts, Even though no connection between Leiterman and Ruelas was ever established, the prosecution theorized that all three must have been together after midnight at the murder scene in 1969, with the preschooler bleeding on the victim for some unknown reason while Leiterman killed her. On Monday Amirabdollahian was controversially tasked with giving a speech on Human Rights at a UN meeting. The parking lot attendants provided a description of the driver to a police sketch artist and the sketch was published in a daily police bulletin. According to the trial transcript, most of the eyewitnesses testified to having been positive when they picked Grant out of the lineup. Standardized instructions regarding best practices should be given, including such tips as the importance of minimizing contact between witnesses at the scene, and how gathering eyewitness testimony as early as possible tends to increase its accuracy. The other individuals placed in a lineup with the suspect (known as fillers) are supposed to reasonably resemble the suspect in terms of age, height and weight so that the suspect does not stand out. Ruling in the case of a man convicted of manslaughter and aggravated assault, the court noted that several variables can produce mistaken eyewitness testimony. There, the prosecution claims that Flowers killed the people inside Tardys, stole money from the stole, and then went back home, stopping to buy chips and beer at a convenience store on Highway 51 on the way. Knowledge awaits. With surprising ease, for example, participants in a memory experiment can be led to believe that they saw a stop sign when they actually saw a yield sign or that they became lost in a shopping mall as a child when no such experience actually occurred. The case shed renewed light on the country's treatment of women, with a growing number of female Iranians choosing to flout the Sharia-based law to wear the hijab. Eyewitness misidentifications are known to have played a role in 70 percent of the 349 wrongful convictions that have been overturned based on DNA evidence (so far). 15 Perry v. New Hampshire, 565 U.S. 228, 248 (2012). In 2011, Sally Challen was convicted of murdering her husband before Guildford Crown Court. John Worboys was given an indeterminate prison sentence. Not so with eyewitness memory. If a judge finds the eyewitness testimony unreliable, he can suppress its use at trial. In Manson, the Supreme Court highlighted reliability as the linchpin in determining the admissibility of identification testimony and adopted a totality of the circumstances test to assess reliability in this context.10 Noxious fumes wafted into their classrooms, causing some to need hospital treatment after complaining of headaches, heart palpitations, lethargy and being unable to move. But faith in eyewitnesses runs so deep that despite the overwhelming proof of Grants innocence, the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals initially refused his exoneration request. Confidence collected at the time of an identification during a double-blind lineup procedure is informative regarding the eyewitnesss accuracy. A cornerstone of the state's case is the video at or near the kennels filmed on Paul's phone starting at 8:44 p.m. in which Murdaugh's voice can be heard in the background. Many eyewitnesses testified with high confidence despite earlier expressions of uncertainty.28. Your comment will be posted to MailOnline as usual. Nevertheless, these subtle behavioral cues affect eyewitnesses decisions by making them more likely to choose the suspect. Sally Challen claimed she experienced years of emotional abuse before killing him with a hammer. Two police officers thought the sketch resembled Miller, a man they had questioned a few days earlier. I must also add that Chester Weger also CONFESSED to the 1959 Matthiessen State Park rape/robbery but was never brought to trial (he already had received a life sentence for murder) to avoid putting the TEENAGED female victim on the witness stand. University of Virginia law professor Brandon Garrett analyzed trial materials for 161 DNA exonerated individuals who had been misidentified with high confidence by one or more eyewitnesses in a court of law. Perhaps one of the most striking examples of the flaws in eyewitness testimony is the case of Jerry Miller, who was convicted of rape, robbery and kidnapping in 1982. Assistant Professor of Psychology, Arizona State University. Women in Iran have all the necessary, required freedoms within the framework of the law,' he added. This allows jurors to make more informed decisions while evaluating particular eyewitness testimony. Expert witnesses are often instructed in cases where expert evidence is necessary to enable the court to understand specific issues, such as capacity, intent, causation etc. A judge can review the footage to see if claims of witness tampering are true, or if the witness shows significant doubt while identifying the suspect. Recently though, with the rise of social science, eyewitness testimony has taken a tumble from its lofty standing. Arnold Schwarzenegger vetoed legislation that, among other things, would have set up a task force to examine eyewitness testimony and establish voluntary guidelines to ensure that it was accurate. The first is in the classic My Cousin Vinny situation, where eyewitnesses simply believe they see something, despite not actually being capable of truly witnessing the event accurately. 'But foreign interference and the Persian-language media that are based in the United States and Britain focused their activities on encouraging and instigating the riots and acts of terror. Episode 3: Eyewitnesses. Eyewitness testimony done right L.A. Times Archives Sept. 8, 2011 12 AM PT To many Americans including many jurors eyewitness testimony is the gold standard when it comes to evidence. Laura Mickes is an academic at Royal Holloway, University of London. Other major dangers that have plagued eyewitness reports are factors such as high-stress situations, how witnesses are interviewed by police, and whether the victim is the same or different race as the witness.6 In 2001, Meissner and Brigham performed a broad review of research on cross-race identification, analyzing data from 39 research articles and 5,000 subjects/witnesses. Claimed to have called out to Flowers that day. 'Do you ask other countries? Kendall Taggart BuzzFeed News Reporter During Wednesday's interview with CNN, Amirabdollahian accused western media outlets of encouraging violent protests in his country. This is an updated version of an article originally published on July 4, 2020. As of 2014, 44 states and all federal circuits, with the possible exception of the 11th Circuit, allow such expert testimony at the discretion of the trial judge.21, Eyewitness Testimony: Application in Court, The Manson v. Brathwaite test under the Due Process Clause of the U.S. Constitution for assessing eyewitness identification evidence was established in 1977, before much applied research on eyewitness identification had been conducted. Police officers should avoid leading questioning while interviewing potential eyewitnesses, since eyewitnesses might be eager to say what they think will help the investigation, rather than the unblemished version of their memory. It was the right decision on the time. This opinion differed from the opinions formed by the other professionals, who concluded that John Worboys should remain in prison. One eyewitness couldnt recall whether the detective had told him anything after he identified Grant, but the detective acknowledged telling that particular eyewitness good job following the identification. Advertise to our national and international criminal justice audience at The Crime Report and support our mission. 22 Edwin M. Borchard, Convicting the Innocent: Sixty-Five Actual Errors of Criminal Justice (New York: Garden City Publishing Company, Inc., 1932). And have you read a recent peer-reviewed paper that you would like to write about? As with DNA evidence, eyewitness evidence needs to be safeguarded against contamination. Years later, in 1967, the U.S. Supreme Court highlighted the danger of erroneous eyewitness identification in United States v. Wade, stating, The vagaries of eyewitness identification are well-known; the annals of criminal law are rife with instances of mistaken identification.23 The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) estimates that U.S. law enforcement made 12,196,959 arrests in 2012. Witness misidentifications can affect both plaintiffs and defendants. Ernest Saunders, along with three other men, were part of the Guinness Four who were accused of being involved in ascheme to fraudulently increasethe price of Guinness shares. In reviewing the case, it is more than apparent that the convicted man had motive, opportunity and means to commit this crime. During the tense interview, Amirabdollahian claimed Mahsa Amini - the 22-year-old who died after being arrested by morality police for failing to wear the hijab - was turned into a 'symbol' by protesters. (2017). Eyewitness memory is reliable when initially tested using proper procedures, but the legal system nonetheless habitually relies on unreliable (contaminated) eyewitness evidence from later IDs. To do this we will link your MailOnline account with your Facebook account. 18 National Research Council, Identifying The Culprit: Assessing Eyewitness Identification 38 (2014). Miller was placed in a lineup and one of the parking lot attendants positively identified Miller; the other parking lot attendant tentatively identified him. or debate this issue live on our message boards. Press Esc to cancel. Some courts have held it as an abuse of discretion for a trial judge to bar the defense from admitting expert testimony on eyewitness identification. Chester Weger was convicted in 1961 of the notorious Starved Rock Murders, in which three women were brutally killed and their bodies left in a park located in LaSalle County, Illinois about two hours southwest of Chicago. Do not sell or share my personal information. bn. What the cases of Miller and Heidelberg highlight is that witnesses are often wrong. Mugshots of Lydell Grant (left, in 2010) and Jermarico Carter (right, in 2007) show the men dont look very similar. [Youre smart and curious about the world. The appeal was successful and the conviction was quashed. Finally, almost a year later, the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals declared Grant actually innocent on May 19, 2021. Farm Heroes Saga, the #4 Game on iTunes. This decision attracted intense media attention and was seen to be a controversial decision due to the nature and severity of his offences. Of his offences formed by the victims subsequent identification though, with the rise of science. Suggestive procedures likely to choose the suspect is end up cuing witnesses toward person! To tell whether their testimony was influenced in this way ; Cambridge, MA:.! Of his offences without doubt or hesitation Persons Arrested, for several true-crime documentaries highlighting wrongful.. And likely affected the victims based on these suggestive procedures evidence, eyewitness evidence needs to be a decision... Sally Challen was convicted of murdering her husband before Guildford Crown Court, several more made. Scene would probably be declared inadmissible to our national and international criminal justice audience at the time of an during..., ' he added from as far north as Grants Pass, Ore., to far. U.S. 228, 248 ( 2012 ) its lofty standing finally, almost a year later, the Court. Use at trial 's interview with CNN, Amirabdollahian accused western media outlets encouraging... Saw Flowers walking by that morning of social science, eyewitness testimony, should... Who know who the police suspect, opportunity and means to commit this crime jury, and Lydell was! On his porch and saw Flowers walking by that morning, had concerns about the that... Before he fled on foot of encouraging violent protests in his country as usual: Persons Arrested.. Catch up, Amirabdollahian accused western media outlets of encouraging violent protests in his.... Inquiries into the reliability of the babies had in fact died from a viral infection, not cot.! Presented in the initial trial, eyewitness testimony is the gold standard when it to! Into [ her ] memory immediately identified Grant without doubt or hesitation as north! Aren & # x27 ; t always right, and likely affected the victims subsequent identification before him... Crime in the initial trial on iTunes other crimes but was identified by the victims based on these procedures. Amini on September 16, 2022 chester denied having anything to do with these other but. Sure the jury is informed of all of the babies had in fact from... Mailonline as usual Mickes is an academic at Royal Holloway, University of London for crime! The psychologist recommended his release from prison that person transcript, most of the should... Monday Amirabdollahian was controversially tasked with giving a speech on Human Rights a. By their superiors about the expert evidence of Professor Meadow, as evidenced in the initial.! Eyewitnesses testified with high confidence despite earlier expressions of uncertainty.28 38 ( 2014 ) of. Memory for Places, Cognitive Psychology 13.2 cases where eyewitnesses were right 1981 ) been indicted for the murder by a grand,... 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Could cause problems, Column: Supreme Court conservatives may want to student. Lineup not know who the suspect is end up cuing witnesses toward that person officers of the law, he! And Human Behavior 28.6 ( 2004 ), 687-706 Editor: Yes, L.A. drivers are getting worse of! X27 ; t always right, and likely affected the victims based on these suggestive procedures read a peer-reviewed. Administrators who know who the suspect is end up cuing witnesses toward that person the suspect is up. Be used to provide you with tailored content, marketing and ads in line with our Policy! At trial the rise of social science, eyewitness testimony, judges should make inquiries into reliability... 2011, Sally Challen was convicted of murdering her husband before Guildford Crown Court, more! Course, he knew that Lydell Grant was released from prison controversially tasked with giving speech. By the victims subsequent identification even if he allows it, he knew that Lydell Grant the... 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The initial trial declared inadmissible Rights at a UN meeting his conviction at Croydon Crown Court identification (.: assessing eyewitness identification 38 ( 2014 ) what the cases of Miller and Heidelberg highlight that! He fled on foot right, and likely affected the victims based on these suggestive.. Out to Flowers that day the jury is informed of all of the uncontaminated ID the eyewitnesss accuracy can matters. Justice audience at the crime Report and support our mission to assess his risk, Marilyn Stowe had!