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Evidence Keyed to Sklansky
United States v. Owens
Citation:
484 U.S. 554 (1988)Facts
A correctional counselor at a prison was attacked and brutally beaten with a metal pipe. The victim’s memory was severely impaired. When the FBI first attempted to interview the victim he could not remember his attacker’s name. Later on, the victim’s memory improved and he was able to name the defendant as his attacker and identified the defendant in a photo array. The defendant was prosecuted for assault. At trial, the victim couldn’t identify the attacker at that moment but testified on the stand about the attack and claimed that he clearly remembered that the defendant was his attacker during his second interview with the FBI and that he identified the defendant during this interview. On cross-examination, the victim admitted that he could not remember seeing his assailant. The victim also admitted to having memory issues after the attack. The defendant was convicted.
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