Das Eigenständige Vernehmungsprotokoll für Augenzeugen: Ein neues Verfahren, mit dem Zeugen sich selbst vernehmen können

In order to obtain a comprehensive and accurate eyewitness statement eyewitnesses should be interviewed as soon as possible after the crime. When an interview is conducted with a considerable delay, the quality of the witnesses' statements is likely to have suffered due to the forgetting of information or the influence of misinformation. This can be hindering for the police investigation. In order to counteract these problems, the self-administered interview (SAI) was developed. It is based upon the Cognitive Interview and is distributed to the witnesses by the police directly after the crime. Witnesses can independently complete the interview. It is the aim of the present article to present this recall tool as well as first research results. The latter indicate that the SAI elicits a comprehensive recall and, more importantly, is able to preserve memory for a subsequent interview. Additionally, the SAI provides a number of practical advantages for police work which are also discussed