Professor of Psychology
Montclair State University
Sexual Assault Kit Initiative Investigator
Ingham County Sheriff’s Office
Associate Professor
Montclair State University
Cold case investigations pose unique challenges for investigators who question victims and witnesses many years after a crime was committed. Challenges to eliciting victim-witness testimony include identifying and overcoming motivational barriers (e.g., reluctance), as well as factors related to the fallibility of human memory (e.g., source misattribution). Investigators have traditionally received little training in how to elicit cold case testimony. Drawing on examples from actual cases, this presentation will identify unique investigative challenges inherent to eliciting cold case testimony and review evidence-based strategies for enhancing victim-witness reports.
Objectives
As a result of this webinar, participants will be better able to:
- Identify and overcome motivational and memory related barriers to victim-witness testimony.
- Develop strategies to manage communication and conversational dynamics within the interview.
- Identify ways to overcome victim-witness stress, anxiety, and trauma related factors that may impede victim-witness memory.
- Examine principles of human memory and cognition to enhance memory for remote events.
With a paid registration or subscription, you are free to personally listen to this webinar, as many times as you wish. You may also excerpt or cite the material following accepted conventions. However, you may not allow other individuals to listen to this webinar without their own registration or subscription.
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