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Nephrology
03-26-2016, 03:56 PM
So, long story short, I ended up being a partial witness to a shooting last night (did not see the shooting but I did see two people who were probably the suspects fleeing the scene). At the time I didn't think that the loud noises that I heard were gunshots (sounded more like a "clang," almost like if you hit a telephone pole with a baseball bat) so I didn't call 911, even though they were pretty suspicious.

When I learned about the shooting, I called the local district headquarters and left a statement with a dispatcher. Apparently the detectives investigating the shooting will follow up with me on Monday. Currently I am typing up basically everything I can remember from last night, but it is not as easy as I thought. It was dark and I was watching from a 3rd story window.

Any advice on how to be a good witness? Both in my specific circumstances and in general moving forward?

Tiffany Johnson
03-26-2016, 04:05 PM
My advice would be talk to a lawyer. Keep in mind that this thread is potentially admissible in court.

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Tiffany Johnson
03-26-2016, 04:16 PM
Don't get me wrong. I'm not saying you have to have a lawyer to be a good witness. I'm just saying if think you might need or want advice on how best to proceed, this forum is likely fair game if you end up on the stand (knock on wood). In any ccase, kudos to you for wanting to do things the right way. Good luck!

Nephrology
03-26-2016, 04:27 PM
I do not know any of the victims personally nor was I involved in any way in the shooting itself, so I am not sure if going to a lawyer is something I am worried about right now. I also would not be able to pick them out of a lineup against other people of their rough general description as it was too dark to make out great facial detail, so I don't imagine I would actually go to court were this to go to trial. I may of course be wrong.

voodoo_man
03-26-2016, 05:12 PM
Don't get me wrong. I'm not saying you have to have a lawyer to be a good witness. I'm just saying if think you might need or want advice on how best to proceed, this forum is likely fair game if you end up on the stand (knock on wood). In any ccase, kudos to you for wanting to do things the right way. Good luck!

Only if someone can prove, without any issues, that you are who your handle is, which is not that easy.

GJM
03-26-2016, 05:20 PM
Only if someone can prove, without any issues, that you are who your handle is, which is not that easy.

So when opposing counsel asks if you have made any statements regarding the matter on a forum, Facebook or other social media, are you going to perjure yourself?

voodoo_man
03-26-2016, 05:22 PM
So when opposing counsel asks if you have made any statements regarding the matter on a forum, Facebook or other social media, are you going to perjure yourself?

Under oath, no of course not, but they'd have to know these things. They cannot just ask off the wall questions.

"have you ever posted on social media?"

"Yes."

"What social media?"

"I used myspace in 2004."

"You don't have a facebook account?"

"I do not have a personal facebook account."

etc, none of that is lying.

Nephrology
03-26-2016, 05:33 PM
Either way I am still not sure how this applies to my case - I am not going to be on trial and probably won't even testify. The shooting apparently happened in an apartment 2 floors down from mine during a big party with dozens of people. I am probably not even going to be terribly important to the investigation given how little I was able to see from my window 2 floors up.

voodoo_man
03-26-2016, 05:36 PM
Either way I am still not sure how this applies to my case - I am not going to be on trial and probably won't even testify. The shooting apparently happened in an apartment 2 floors down from mine during a big party with dozens of people. I am probably not even going to be terribly important to the investigation given how little I was able to see from my window 2 floors up.

Sorry for the derail of the thread, you did right by contacting the investigating authorities.

What I have personally seen, as to partial witnesses of a shooting are as follow - initial interview by the investigating officer/detective, possible followup interview prior to charging, case-prep interview with DA (might just be a phone call to refresh your memory) and testimony in a jury trial as to what you saw that evening, including cross-examination.

Dagga Boy
03-26-2016, 06:08 PM
My advice would be talk to a lawyer. Keep in mind that this thread is potentially admissible in court.

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Spoken like a lawyer....:p.

Personally, any victim or witness who thinks they need an attorney pegs the "more to this" meter in my cop brain. Advice wise.....tell the investigators everything you remember to the best of your ability, and stay off social media with it. The world does not need to know that you witnessed a crime.

Tiffany Johnson
03-26-2016, 06:10 PM
^^^ What Nyeti said ^^^

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Nephrology
03-26-2016, 06:47 PM
Spoken like a lawyer....:p.

Personally, any victim or witness who thinks they need an attorney pegs the "more to this" meter in my cop brain. Advice wise.....tell the investigators everything you remember to the best of your ability, and stay off social media with it. The world does not need to know that you witnessed a crime.

Yeah, some local news reporters knocked and asked to talk to me about it. I talked to them briefly, explained that I heard a series of loud bangs but didn't think that they were actual gunshots at the time. did not mention that I had potentially seen suspects or that I had seen anything really at all. Did not give my name and did not let them record my face. He spent most of the time trying to get me to say that it was scary to have a shooting 2 floors down in an otherwise very nice apartment complex which I thought was funny, given that what I heard is that it was a targeted attack on a young teen who was likely involved in gang activity. They are predictable I suppose at the very least.

K.O.A.M.
03-26-2016, 07:50 PM
1) Tell the truth
2) "I don't know" or "I didn't see that" is an acceptable answer if it's the truth.
3) Get copies of every statement you made. If they differ from what you now remember, be prepared to explain why.
4) Get a lawyer if you want to, but if you didn't see anything and can't identify any witnesses, you're probably not going to be in this very long.

BehindBlueI's
03-26-2016, 07:52 PM
If you can't identify them, then your utility is extremely limited. If my victim was cooperative, I'd get your statement and put it in the file as corroborating statement. I would advise you not to talk to the media. The last thing I need is suspects knowing witnesses cannot identify them.

If its a typical gang shooting where the victim don't know nothin' about nothin' I'd talk to you on the phone, put in case notes you can't identify, and then forget you exist.

Chance
03-26-2016, 07:59 PM
Yeah, some local news reporters knocked and asked to talk to me about it.

I'd be curious to read a "handling the media" thread. I saw 'Nightcrawler' a week or so ago, and it'd be my luck that guy would stick a camera in my face.

pablo
03-26-2016, 08:19 PM
Don't talk to other witnesses. When witnesses talk, inadvertently they will adapt other accounts that they hear or discuss into the events that they witnessed. Instead of the witness providing an account of what he saw, he'll start providing a big picture narrative about what occurred.

Please answer the phone when the detectives call, 90% of the time witnesses can be dealt with over the phone, it sucks having to waste time tracking down a witness only to find out that they have nothing useful to provide.

jondoe297
03-26-2016, 08:55 PM
Just tell them what you saw and heard. Nothing more, nothing less. No opinions, assumptions, beliefs, etc. Once you do that go about your life.

Nephrology
03-27-2016, 01:04 AM
If you can't identify them, then your utility is extremely limited. If my victim was cooperative, I'd get your statement and put it in the file as corroborating statement. I would advise you not to talk to the media. The last thing I need is suspects knowing witnesses cannot identify them.

If its a typical gang shooting where the victim don't know nothin' about nothin' I'd talk to you on the phone, put in case notes you can't identify, and then forget you exist.

Yeah, more or less what I suspected. I saw the news report - they did not air whatever they had filmed of me. Media hasn't said much descriptive overall.

From what you guys were telling me and what I sort of intuited from the moment it all went down, I probably will have a brief chat with some detectives on Monday but that will be the end of it. Happy to provide what little info I can. From what I have gathered from various sources, it seems like if I had gotten home from dinner about 30 minutes later, I would have been ~20 yards from the shooting and the suspects would have ran within yards of me as I parked my car. I would have probably been obliged to provide first aid to the victims as they were apparently laid out in the courtyard of my complex.

Honestly, though I do wish in theory that I could have been more help, I am glad that I don't have a bigger piece to play in this nonsense. Can't wait to finally buy a place this summer and get the hell out of here.