The NIJ Journal is published by the National Institute of Justice to announce the Institute’s policy-relevant research results and initiatives. The Attorney General has determined that publication of this periodical is necessary in transacting the public business of the U.S. Department of Justice as required by law.

The NIJ Journal, published several times a year, features articles to help criminal justice policymakers and practitioners stay informed about new developments. The NIJ Journal presents research-based information that can help inform policy decisions and improve understanding of the criminal justice system.

Contents:

    * Police Lineups: Making Eyewitness Identification More Reliable
      by Beth Schuster
    * Sexual Assault: Virtual Training Takes Responders From Exam Room to Courtroom
      by Kristina Rose
    * Taking the Initiative: Practitioners Who Perform Frontline Research
      by Lois A. Tully, Ph.D.
    * Through-the-Wall Surveillance: A New Technology for Saving Lives
      by Christopher A. Miles
    * Detecting Concealed Weapons: Directions for the Future
      by Chris Tillery
    * Major Study Examines Prisoners and Their Reentry Needs
      by Christy A. Visher, Ph.D., and Pamela K. Lattimore, Ph.D.
    * Forensic Databases: Paint, Shoe Prints, and Beyond
      by Robin Bowen and Jessica Schneider

Download National Institute of Justice Journal, Issue No. 258, October 2007

PDF format, 1.5MB, 44Pages.

Director’s Message:

As the head of a Federal agency, I make decisions nearly every day on how to spend taxpayers’ dollars. My job at NIJ is to ensure that our R&D dollars build the best knowledge possible—the most crucial, the most timely, the highest quality—for the criminal justice community.

Our cover story explores this process of knowledge building in one of the most vital components of our justice system: eyewitness evidence and how lineups are conducted. “Police Lineups: Making Eyewitness Identification More Reliable” discusses the state of knowledge and practice on this controversial subject. We also discuss a very important study that we have recently begun—a field test of simultaneous versus sequential lineups using blind and nonblind administrators.

Another area in which NIJ is working to build knowledge is forensics. I am extremely proud to tell you that Dr. John Morgan, the head of NIJ’s science and technology office, and his team of researchers, lawyers, and analysts received the 2007 Service to America Medal in Justice and Law Enforcement. John received the “Sammie” for the knowledge his team has generated as part of the President’s DNA Initiative. Their work has helped solve thousands of cold cases and has dramatically expanded the capacity of local law enforcement to use DNA evidence. To John and his team, I offer my praise and recognition for (if I may borrow the words of the Service to America committee) your commitment to and innovation in making our Nation stronger and safer.

Finally, I am excited to report that NIJ and Harvard University have teamed up to repeat history—in the best sense of that concept. A generation ago, NIJ and Harvard’s Kennedy School of Government sponsored the Executive Session on Policing. The participants of that landmark project became the police leaders of the following two decades. Now, post-9/11, we are experiencing an unprecedented investment in new data systems, training, and technology for law enforcement. To help guide the Nation in this monumental effort, NIJ and Harvard are now reexamining ways to help elected officials and senior executives use these investments wisely and effectively. Through our executive session on Policing in the New Century, we will identify the principles and priorities that will make effective policing not just possible but likely in the next two decades.

As NIJ continues to build the best criminal justice practices and technologies, we remain committed to spreading this knowledge to all corners of the country through publications like this issue of the NIJ Journal. I hope you find it interesting and useful.

David W. Hagy
Acting Principal Deputy Director, National Institute of Justice

Police Lineups: Making Eyewitness Identification More Reliable
by Beth Schuster

In 1981, 22-year-old Jerry Miller was arrested and charged with robbing, kidnapping, and raping a woman. Two witnesses identified Miller, in a police lineup, as the perpetrator. The victim provided a more tentative identification at trial. Miller was convicted, served 24 years in prison, and was released on parole as a registered sex offender, requiring him to wear an electronic monitoring device at all times.

Recent DNA tests, however, tell a different story: Semen taken from the victim’s clothing—which could have come only from the perpetrator—did not come from Miller. In fact, when a DNA profile was created from the semen and entered into the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s convicted offender database, another man was implicated in the crime.

On April 23, 2007, Miller became the 200th person in the United States to be exonerated through DNA evidence.

Eyewitnesses play a vital role in the administration of justice in this country. Their testimony can provide the key to identifying, charging, and convicting a suspect in a criminal case. Indeed, in some cases, eyewitness evidence may be the only evidence available.

Yet cases like Miller’s show that eyewitness evidence is not perfect. Even the most well-intentioned witnesses can identify the wrong person or fail to identify the perpetrator of a crime. According to the American Judicature Society, misidentification by eyewitnesses was the leading cause of wrongful conviction in more than 75 percent of the first 183 DNA exonerations in the United States.

These cases have caused criminal justice professionals to take a closer look at eyewitness evidence, specifically at the effectiveness of identifiying suspects from photographic and live lineups. And recent studies on lineup structure and implementation have led to even more questions and disagreement in the field, highlighting the need for more research and dialogue about what works. The National Institute of Justice (NIJ) has initiated a multisite field experiment of eyewitness evidence to examine the effectiveness and accuracy of this crucial and powerful component of the Nation’s criminal justice system as it is used in police departments and courtrooms across the country. ...

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The NIJ Journal Editorial Board

The NIJ Journal Editorial Board is comprised of the directors of NIJ’s offices and other staff representing NIJ’s divisions. A primary goal of the Editorial Board is to ensure that NIJ Journal content reflects the breadth of NIJ’s activities in criminal justice research, development, and evaluation. The Editorial Board recommends article ideas, reviews draft articles for content and clarity, and helps shape NIJ Journal policies.

NIJ’s Mission

The National Institute of Justice is the research, development, and evaluation agency of the U.S. Department of Justice. NIJ’s mission is to advance scientific research, development, and evaluation to enhance the administration of justice and public safety.

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