Throughout the years, several studies have shown how easy it is to convince well-meaning people that they remember a detail that didn’t actually happen.
The very real problem, though, is that memory can be a tricky thing to rely on, especially when deciding whether or not someone should spend a potentially significant amount of their life in prison.
Not to mention the fact that a number of factors (including the light present at the time of the crime, how much stress the witness was under, whether or not a weapon was present and the duration of the crime) can effect how people remember and later recall what actually happened.
Anyone who’s watched a detective or legal show in the past, oh, ever, will know how important eyewitness testimony is not only when arresting suspects for crimes, but when later determining, in court, whether or not those individuals are actually guilty of the crimes that they’ve been accused of.