Introduction
Each day, many different kinds of accidents happen around the world. These accidents come in different degrees, and some cause damage that is enough to pass as something eligible for trial in courts. One of such cases, are vehicular accidents. In the case s in the video, the two individuals involved in the car accident were Mrs. Payne and Mrs. Davis. Mrs. Payne claimed that her car has been hit severely by Mrs. Davis’ car. She claimed that not only was the back part of her damaged, but also that she experienced neck injuries and pains because of the accident. Meanwhile, Mrs. Davis of course had a different side of the story. She stated that while her car was on full stop at the intersection, the traffic light turned green. As an automatic response to the green light, she stepped on the gas pedal, but as her car started to move, Mrs. Payne’s car went on a very sudden stop which was why Mrs. Davis’ car hit hers. This paper will discuss and evaluate the statements that were given by each of the people involved in the case, and by an eyewitness who testified in the case.
Do you think eyewitness testimony is accurate enough? Why or Why not?
The side of the two parties were extremely opposite of each other, which is what made the short video clip extremely difficult to judge. However, one of the things that could have made the case easier to analyze, was the testimony of the eyewitness. Unfortunately, after having watched the testimony of the eyewitness, I must say that his statement was not accurate or precise in any way. While he was being asked basic questions by one of the lawyers, he extremely sounded like he was never sure of all the answers that he has given to the lawyer. It sounded like the answers that he provided were mainly assumptions, estimations, guesses, and predictions. Rather than providing an unbiased and critical perspective of the case, he provided statements that were biased on his perception and assumption of what might have actually happened in the accident.
Who do you think was guilty in the case of Payne and Davis? Why?
After watching the video clip of the trial, in my opinion, Mrs. Payne was the guilty one in the case of the vehicular accident. This is because, I observed that her answers were quite unrealistic. First of all, she got into a sever accident which damaged her car, assumed to have and caused her a physical injury. This is not something that someone should let slide easily. Accidents are serious issues. Assuming that Mrs. Davis has claimed full responsibility of compensating all the damage the accident has caused, it is very unrealistic for someone not to immediately call anyone for help or assistance in such cases. Though she wasn’t severely hurt, still, it was also unrealistic that she still drove straight to work. Moreover, she said that she was too shocked to do anything, then it is a bit problematic that she was able to think of the business of her workplace during her shift, and decide that she should report immediately.
Define “Misinformation Effect” according to the book.
Misinformation refers as to how someone incorporates inaccurate information and providing an interpretation of what should have just been a straight narration of something.
Do you think “misinformation effect” occurs in the case of Payne vs. Davis? Why or Why not?
Given the definition provided above, I do believe that there has been a misinformation effect in the case of Payne vs. Davis. This is all because based on the testimony of the eyewitness, he has just “supposed” or assumed the details of the accident based on what he has heard about the accident. This clearly shows that his narrative of what happened has already been influenced of the things that he has heard from other people.
Explain, Analyze, and Decide who the guilty is in a real-life example/experience similar to the one in the video “except for car accidents”.
An example could be the case of the murder of Trayvon Martin. One of the misinformation that happened in his case, was through a photo of the stereotypical gangster type black American teen ager, which caused uproar of Martin’s behavior which might have caused his death. Many people spread and believed the photo, but was later discovered that the individual on the photo was not really Martin. Unfortunately, up until this day, the person who shot Martin has not yet been found yet (Flock, 2012).
References
Flock, E. (2012, March 28). In Trayvon Martin case, plenty of misinformation. The Washington Post. Retrieved January 8, 2017, from https://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/blogpost/post/in-trayvon-martin-case-plenty-of-misinformation/2012/03/28/gIQAxaPhgS_blog.html?utm_term=.9f91ca2b9361
