Criminal psychology studies a criminal’s actions, intentions, and thoughts to investigate and develop a pattern that helps police hold criminals responsible for their deeds and make court investigations easier (Tshababa, 2020). The function of the criminal justice system (CJS) is to manage the criminals who have been convicted in a court of law. With the uncertainties in today’s policing environment, the system needs to develop advanced technologies and equip the available law agencies to ensure the achievement of a robust criminal investigation system. Criminal psychology has been used to investigate individual behavior and thoughts to provide effective justice delivery. Many cases could be wrongly investigated if the proper evaluation procedures are not used (Tshababa, 2020). Most criminal justice procedures such as; criminal profiling, expert witnesses, interviewing witnesses, interviewing suspects, and identification parades have utilized psychology research.
Criminal profiling, also known as psychological profiling, is one of the significant areas in a criminal investigation that has adopted psychology research. It refers to the development of a criminal investigation from the information relating to the offense that can be obtained at the crime scene (Tshababa, 2020). A psychosomatic representation of the known elements of the crime is compiled through the received data. Offender profiling does not identify a specific offender; however, the technique can determine the probability of a person committing the crime based on individual characteristics. Criminal profiling is primarily utilized when a severe crime such as murder and rape has been committed, and the offender’s identity is unknown (Tshababa, 2020). Through the technique, profilers can investigate crime series, which are several offenses that are believed to have been committed by one offender. In addition, criminals are believed to have behavioral consistency when executing crimes; this allows criminal psychologists to use behavioral traits to identify offenders.
Interviewing witnesses is another area in the CJS where psychology research has been utilized. In criminal justice, the outcome of any criminal investigation is highly dependent on the testimony offered by the witness; hence accuracy of the information is essential (Tshababa, 2020). During the investigation, investigators use critical approaches such as the Cognitive Interview (CI) technique that help the witnesses in their ability to recall events. CI is also referred to Innovative interview technique because it improves memory performance. It also utilizes two procedures to extract evidence from the witness; The Temporary Change Order (TCO), where the witness is required to retrieve information backward to help access the memories that were not accessible before. CI also utilizes the Mental Reinstatement Concept (MRC), which requires the interviewer to reconstruct the episodes of the crime from the witness. Interviewing witnesses is crucial because some crime memories could need psychological and emotional support to get through the exercise.
The police use identification parades to identify the crime suspect by putting them among a group of individuals who are not involved with the crime. Psychology research is utilized in the procedure because the witness is required to identify the victim during the lineup set-up (Steblay, & Wells, 2020). To assign credence to the witness decision, ‘fillers’ and other members in the parade need to be of the same complexion, height, and posture as the offender. If the witness identifies the ‘filler’ by mistake, there will be no problem because the police already know they are innocent. The offender lineups must be carried out fairly because it is a critical stage of the criminal identification process (Tshababa, 2020). Additionally, eye witnessing requires a memory function for an individual to identify the suspect accurately; mistakes in identification can be caused by; limited time to view the suspect or poor viewing capabilities. Police lineups require experts and high vigilance to obtain positive results.
Interviewing suspects during the criminal investigation utilizes psychological techniques. A successful investigation of a crime depends on the proper procedure for interviewing suspects. Police and psychologists employ various tactics to ensure that the information obtained regarding the crime is credible and objective. The credibility of the information depends on the question structure and the interviewing techniques utilized by the interviewer. Interviewing suspects is tedious because they rarely disclose information for fear of convictions; they prefer to lie to avoid being arrested. The use of psychological techniques during the interview process assists in identifying truth from deceptions. For example, the expert may identify elements such as frequent pausing, reduced blinking, and hand movements which indicate high cognitive load when the suspect is lying. This is because deception requires robust mental involvement; hence an individual has so much more to think about to maintain consistency than telling the truth.
Expert witness during courtroom sessions is another area where psychology has contributed to the CJS. During court hearings, forensic psychologists are invited to provide a psychological evaluation to the plaintiff to determine whether they are ready to stand for the trial. Psychology help in identifying cognitive and emotional competence and ensures the suspect is given an accurate defense. The main objective of the psychologist is to connect the mental evidence of the accused with the courtroom procedures. In some cases, a psychologist may be required to analyze whether the suspect was present at the crime scene, determining whether the suspect should be held liable for the crimes committed.
Several research studies relating to criminal justice have been carried out in the recent past—one of the research studies in forensic science in the criminal justice process. Forensic science aims to establish how forensic science is applicable in determining the suspect; data was collected by utilizing the existing forensic evidence in various jurisdictions and stages of the criminal process (Anderson et al., 2021). An experimental examination of prosecutors and defense attorneys was conducted to determine the influence of the plea process. It was found out that the use of forensic science is affected by the availability of the resources leading to an extended processing time of less severe crimes. Therefore, the police are forced to rely on other forms of evidence when identifying the suspect during criminal justice (Anderson et al., 2021). Moreover, when police rely on forensic evidence, they apply them at a later stage of the criminal investigation, which may leave many crimes unsolved or solved late.
Re-evaluating the credibility of the eyewitness is another study that relates to the Criminal Justice System. In this study, the researcher aims to identify whether the court jurors can give undeserving credence to the testimony offered by the eyewitness (Puddifoot, 2020). In this study, it was found that human memory is prone to the misinformation effect. Therefore, jurors could give much credence to the eyewitness testimony because it is convincing and compelling, resulting from predisposed information (Puddifoot, 2020). In addition, the study finds that jurors who identify a false testimony from the witness will lower the testimony credence inappropriately rather than pointing out the evidence of errors arising from misinformation.
The study to assess possible bias in police lineups impacts the Criminal Justice System. In identifying the bias, a number of previous analyses were investigated. A sample mean of 190 lineups was used to carry out four different studies, which were used to find out the correlation between the lineup design and the decisions made by the eyewitness. Two lineup structures were used; the sequentially and simultaneously structured lineups. The study found that identification of the suspect in the simultaneously structured lineup was associated with bias twice as much as the sequential structure. Additionally, it was found that reality challenges require consideration in adopting the mock witness and an integrated approach to the lineup arrangement.
The study of forensic science has been of great impact on the global Criminal Justice System. The CJS often relies on credible and effective ways of investigating criminal and judicial cases; the forensic science technique satisfies this need. It involves integrating natural and physical science to investigate various crimes (Albright & Garrett 2021). Forensic procedures during investigations have become a vital aspect of the criminal investigation process because it produces solutions that can be verified using practical ways. Forensic evidence investigates crimes in legitimate ways with minimal errors; hence, it is less likely that an innocent victim will be punished. Forensic studies have also been adopted by various countries such as Canada, the United States, and Canada. Major governing bodies, such as the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) have also adopted forensic techniques by integrating advanced technologies to identify crime suspects (Anderson et al., 2021). Furthermore, experts carry out forensic procedures; therefore, the obtained results are highly acceptable by the courts of law; hence, the evidence obtained is essential in the CJS.
Research in re-evaluating eyewitness credibility is also necessary for the criminal justice system. Eyewitness testimony is essential in the justice system (Albright & Garrett 2021). Materials and facts from the previous episodes are crucial during the identification of an offender; eyewitnesses, therefore, come in to bridge this gap. The reasons for re-evaluating eyewitness credibility stem from the assumption that human memory can be manipulated through suggestive questioning, creating high confidence levels even when the testimony is inaccurate. Therefore, evaluating the accuracy of the eyewitness should be carefully identified by creating unsuspecting events and finally analyzing them to obtain a viable conclusion. Eyewitness testimony has a considerable impact on the legal system processes because it can lead to mistaken identifications of the offenders and hence wrong convictions. Previous eyewitness research estimates that eyewitness errors are the leading factor for incorrect outcomes in the legal system (Tshababa, 2020). This affects the public faith and trust in the criminal justice system.
Research on police lineups has a significant impact on the CJS. Lineups are frequent police procedures used to identify suspects; they are carried out to help eyewitnesses identify whether the suspect is an offender or not (Steblay & Wells, 2020). During the offender lineups, the witness views the photo of a police suspect among the group of various individuals who are not related to the crime; the suspect may be either ‘target-absent’ when innocent or’ target present’ when quilt. A fair police lineup is crucial because it protects an innocent suspect. A lineup is suitable when the suspect’s physical characteristics are closely similar to those of the fillers; alternatively, the fillers should fit the suspect description identified by the eyewitness (Steblay, & Wells, 2020). The police lineup is not just a police routine process; it creates a significant contribution to criminal justice; if the process is biased, it could lead to convictions of innocent victims. It can also fail to identify the right suspects, leading to bad outcomes in the criminal system.
The Criminal Justice System utilizes psychology research in various aspects. With the uncertainties surrounding policing today, advanced technologies and systems need to be put in place to ensure a criminal investigation is effective. Some CJS procedures such as; criminal profiling, expert witnesses, interviewing witnesses, interviewing suspects, and identification parades have utilized psychology research. Criminal profiling refers to the development of a criminal investigation using the available data in the crime scene. Interviewing both the suspect and the witness is essential in criminal justice because it can protect a quilt suspect or conviction of an innocent suspect. Various studies relating to the criminal justice system, such as; Research on police lineups, re-evaluation of eyewitness credibility, and forensic science, have been developed in the recent past. These studies have significantly impacted the procedures and outcomes of criminal justice; forensic science has been adopted globally by various governing bodies to investigate crimes. Eyewitness and police lineups have developed over time to ensure efficiency in victim identification, helping in the CJS processes. Overall, Psychological processes are used closely within the judicial and criminal justice to assist in crime investigation.
References
Albright, T., & Garrett, B. L. (2021). The Law and Science of Eyewitness Evidence.Boston University Law Review, Forthcoming, 2020-62. Web.
Anderson, J. M., Matthies, C., Greathouse, S., & Chari, A. (2021). The Unrealized Promise of Forensic Science-A Study of Its Production and Use. Berkeley J. Crim. L., 26, 121. Web.
Puddifoot, K. (2020). re-evaluating the credibility of eyewitness testimony: the misinformation effect and the overcritical juror.Episteme, 17(2), 255-279. Web.
Steblay, N. K., & Wells, G. L. (2020). Assessment of bias in police lineups.Psychology, Public Policy, and law, 26(4), 393. Web.
Tshababa, T. (2020). Role of Psychology in Crime Investigation and in Expediting Justice. Web.