A National Survey of Eyewitness Identification Processes in Law Enforcement Agencies

The current study consists of a 12-month research project to develop and conduct a nationally representative survey of police departments to obtain descriptive information on the current policies, practices and training protocols related to the eyewitness identification process. The project will be guided by the most up-to-date knowledge available in the literature and the extensive experience of a group of practitioner and academic experts who will ensure that the latest developments and national trends in eyewitness identification are incorporated into the survey and final report. The project has six objectives: (1) conduct a comprehensive literature review; (2) establish an advisory panel; (3) survey a nationally representative sample of 1,200 state and local law enforcement agencies; (4) select a subset of up to 50 agencies for in-depth telephone follow-up; and (5) produce a report of the survey. The outcome of the project will be an accurate determination of the state of the art in eyewitness identification practices across the country and a blueprint for future improvements that will continue to meet law enforcement's goal of protecting the innocent and identifying the guilty. ca/ncf