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Jeopardy in the Courtroom - A Scientific Analysis
of Children's Testimony by Stephen J. Ceci and Maggie Bruck,
American Psychological Association, 1995.
"The Little Rascals Day Care Center Case: The Ingredients of Two Successful Prosecutions" by Nancy Lamb, Associate Attorney General, North Carolina Department of Justice, Journal of Child Sexual Abuse, Vol. 3(2) 1994. Lamb was one of the three prosecutors in the Little Rascals case.
"New Era of Skepticism" by John B. Myers, Psychology, Public Policy and Law, June 1995 Myers counters those writers in the psychological literature (such as Ceci and Bruck) who, he says, portray children in an unnecessarily negative light. He also examines how the popular media is increasingly skeptical of child witnesses. Lastly, Meyers writes that the 1994 decision in State v. Michaels is likely to exaggerate doubts about children's memory and suggestibility.
"Child Witnesses In Court: A Growing Dilemma" The authors focus on two studies they conducted: 1) the effect of prolonged erroneous suggestion on young children's recollections and 2) the influence of interviewers' biases on children's reports. Although definitive conclusions on children's testimonial competence are still lacking, Ceci and Bruyn say one thing is clear: children are neither as suggestible and coachable as some pro-defense advocates have alleged, nor are they as resistant to suggestions about their own bodies as some pro-prosescution advocates have claimed.
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