There are many factors involving a criminal case that can affect the outcome. One of them is the imperfection of the human memory. Keep reading to learn more about the four dynamics that can cause forgetfulness, and how a cloudy court testimony could affect your criminal case. You can request a free legal consultation by contacting Chambers Law Firm at 714-760-4088.
- Retrieval Failure
- Interference
- Failure to Store
- Motivated Forgetting
If you have ever had a general memory but been unable to pull a detail from that memory, then you have experienced retrieval failure. There are many reasons this can happen but the most common is simple: Memories tend to fade over time. Even when the basics stick around, the specifics of a memory can be lost.
If a person has several similar memories, the brain may have a hard time keeping them separate. For example, a person who has been to the same coffee shop every morning for a year may not be able to remember what happened on a specific morning. This is because their brain has essentially begun “filing” coffee shop memories altogether.
There are two main types of memory: Short term and long term. Short term memories, as the name implies, are those that have happened recently. The brain then stores them in long-term memory as appropriate. However, the brain does not always do so perfectly. For example, someone with a sleep disorder or a brain injury may not properly store long-term memories.
When you hear about a person blocking out a memory because it was too difficult, you are hearing about motivated forgetting. It is most commonly associated with a traumatic event that the victim’s brain chose not to retain.
Memory Can Work for and Against You in Your Case
You may wonder: How will my criminal defense attorney use this information to help my case? There are a few ways. For alleged crime happened many months – or even years ago – then the eyewitnesses likely do not have crystal clear memories of the event. They could be misremembering. They could be unable to recall the details of the event. This can help us show that their credibility is not strong enough to convict someone.
On the other hand, this can work against you in the same way – if you have an alibi or another witness who has pertinent information that can show your innocence, their memory may not be strong enough to hold up under questioning.
You cannot choose how well a person retains memories but you can choose a criminal defense attorney who understands the way memory works so they can explain discrepancies to the jury. Contact Chambers Law Firm at 714-760-4088 now if you have been accused of a crime. The sooner you contact us, the sooner we can get to work – and the fresher witnesses’ memories will be.
