Articlegreen2014

Evidence Summarized in Attorneys’ Closing Arguments Predicts Acquittals in Criminal Trials of Child Sexual Abuse

Stacia N. Stolzenberg · Thomas Daniel Lyon

34 citations0/0 files storedChild Maltreatment

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Jury Decision Making Processes Legal processes and jurisprudence Deception detection and forensic psychology

Abstract

Evidence summarized in attorney's closing arguments of criminal child sexual abuse cases (N = 189) was coded to predict acquittal rates. Ten variables were significant bivariate predictors; five variables significant at p < .01 were entered into a multivariate model. Cases were likely to result in an acquittal when the defendant was not charged with force, the child maintained contact with the defendant after the abuse occurred, or the defense presented a hearsay witness regarding the victim's statements, a witness regarding the victim's character, or a witness regarding another witnesses' character (usually the mother). The findings suggest that jurors might believe that child molestation is akin to a stereotype of violent rape and that they may be swayed by defense challenges to the victim's credibility and the credibility of those close to the victim.

Citations in this library

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References

1983The child sexual abuse accomodation syndrome 1999The ecological validity of jury simulations: Is the jury still out?2001Jury decision making: 45 years of empirical research on deliberating groups.1996Inside the Interrogation Room 2001Reactions of Nonoffending Parents to the Sexual Abuse of their Child: A Review of the Literature 2003Prosecution of Child Abuse 1993Unequal Justice: The Prosecution of Child Sexual Abuse 1999Jurors' perceptions of hearsay in child sexual abuse cases.

Cited by

2014Maternal Childhood Maltreatment and Offspring Emotional and Behavioral Problems 2021Blaming Children: How Rape Myths Manifest in Defense Attorneys’ Questions to Children Testifying About Child Sexual Abuse 2020The Relevance of Certain Case Characteristics in the Successful Prosecution of Child Sexual Abuse Cases in Indonesia 2020Alibi believability: Corroborative evidence and contextual factors

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