In Doubt: The Psychology of the Criminal Justice Process

by Dan Simon

The criminal justice process is unavoidably human. Police detectives, witnesses, suspects, and victims shape the course of investigations, while prosecutors, defense attorneys, jurors, and judges affect the outcome of adjudication. In this sweeping review of psychological research, Dan Simon shows how flawed investigations can produce erroneous evidence and why well-meaning juries send innocent people to prison and set the guilty free.

The investigator’s task is genuinely difficult and prone to bias. This often leads investigators to draw faulty conclusions, assess suspects’ truthfulness incorrectly, and conduct coercive interrogations that can lead to false confessions. Eyewitnesses’ identification of perpetrators and detailed recollections of criminal events rely on cognitive processes that are often mistaken and can easily be skewed by the investigative procedures used. In the courtroom, jurors and judges are ill-equipped to assess the accuracy of testimony, especially in the face of the heavy-handed rhetoric and strong emotions that crimes arouse.

Simon offers an array of feasible ways to improve the accuracy of criminal investigations and trials. While the limitations of human cognition will always be an obstacle, these reforms can enhance the criminal justice system’s ability to decide correctly whom to release and whom to punish.

Genres: Law, Psychology, Nonfiction

416 pages, Hardcover

First published June 20, 2012

Reviews

[Mark Petersen · Rating 3 out of 5]

After having been out of law school for a few years I’d forgotten how cumbersome academic writing can be. This book reminded me. However getting passed the prose….

This book provides some authority for what many of us already suspect i.e. the fallibility of investigations to bring reliable evidence to trial and the fallibility of juries and the court system to distinguish between strong and weak evidence. Couple this with a system that is loath to admit when it is wrong and we have a situation where innocent people can be convicted.

The author makes many recommendations on how to change this, some of which I intend to use in my next trial. These recommendations appear to be unsupported by data however so we can’t say how effective they might be aside from the authors opinion.

[Julie · Rating 3 out of 5]

It’s more a textbook, educational-type read. Very technical. I find details about, for example, witness misidentification really interesting, but I don’t need to know all the psychological terms for every tiny detail. So, not poorly written or anything, I wouldn’t say. Just depends what you’re needing from this book. Too boring for me.

[Mysia · Rating 3 out of 5]

Eye-opening, hard-hitting, and deeply unsettling... Worth the challenge of reading.

[Mills College Library]

364.019 S5945 2012