There are various ways used has identification methods in the criminal justice system. These methods include composite, police lineups, and DNA typing, Fingerprints, and eye witness identification. Composite identification involves using of graphical representation of a suspect's face, which is recorded by a composite artist. Police use the composite images in reconstructing suspect's faces with a view of identifying them for prosecution purposes ( Van & Mayes, 2015) . Apart from identification, composite identification is also used as additional evidence against suspects and used by the investigation department to check on leads that might be useful for the criminal justice process. The composite images are extensively in television to reconstruct the unsolved crime by allowing the public to share information about the suspect. Police lineups are also another method used in identification. The identification method helps in narrowing down suspects. Potential suspects are lined up, and a witness is asked to identify the perpetrator. The eye witness method is also used as an identification method. The policy asks eyewitness to either identify a suspect from the lineup or displayed photographs ( Wixted et al., 2015) . The use of eyewitness currently is quite advanced due to the development of a scientific eye witness method. It involves showing video events or staging live crimes to people. The suspect is picked from the lineup systematically by the use of a scorecard. Despite the crucial role of eye witness identification, it has several flaws, such as extreme witness stress. Such a challenge may lead the witness to lie or give accounts that might not be true. The presence of weapons at the crime scene might also lead inaccuracy in the eye witness identification process. Such emanates from intensive stress that might distract the witnesses. The use of disguised material such as masks might also confuse witnesses, thus providing inaccurate identification of perpetrators. There is a contrast between physical and circumstantial evidence. Circumstantial evidence is one based on facts, and thus, the court uses in concluding. For instance, if a crime happened in Fourth Street London at 12: the witness can prove that one saw the accused in Fourth Street London at that particular time. The evidence must be scrutinized with other evidence; that is, it requires inference. Physical evidence involves a witness giving a direct account of what one saw, and therefore, it supports assertions or truth directly. In one's opinion, the most liable type used before the jury is physical evidence. The reason is, it offers valid proof that one did a crime. DNA analysis is vital in a criminal case. However, it has both advantages and disadvantages. On a beneficial perspective, DNA evidence profiling is based on specificity. For instance, relatively minute quantities of DNA collected from crime scenes can yield enough material that can be used for analysis. DNA evidence also produces accurate results in comparing the crime scene's specimen and that of the suspect ( Hare, 2016) . Such happens typically, especially if the specimen is collected correctly, and profiling procedure is done correctly. Despite that, the evidence has its disadvantages. One of the major challenges is ethical quandaries. In some cases, the authorities may end up keeping DNA samples of people who have under no circumstances been accused of criminal activities. DNA evidence can also lead to controversies. Such normally happens when police collect samples a large number of people in a particular region while trying to find the culprit. DNA match is only probability, and thus, it does not mean the specimen shows that suspect is guilty.
References
Hare, R. D. (2016). Psychopathy, the PCL-R, and criminal justice: Some new findings and current issues. Canadian Psychology/psychologie canadienne , 57 (1), 21.
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Van Cleve, N. G., & Mayes, L. (2015). Criminal justice through “colorblind” lenses: A call to examine the mutual constitution of race and criminal justice. Law & Social Inquiry , 40 (2), 406-432.
Wixted, J. T., Mickes, L., Clark, S. E., Gronlund, S. D., & Roediger III, H. L. (2015). Initial eyewitness confidence reliably predicts eyewitness identification accuracy. American Psychologist , 70 (6), 515.
