Paper Example on Criminal Justice: Witness Interference

Introduction

Witness interference is detrimental to a criminal justice system since it prevents fair trial and conviction (Billingsley, Nemitz, & Bean, 2013). It is, therefore, a menace that needs to be averted at all cost. Many forms or types of witness interference exist in the contemporary world. They include bribery of witnesses, death threats to witnesses, the killing of witnesses, kidnapping witnesses and their family members and so on (Brouwer, 2015). All these types of witness interference can be alleviated if strategic measures are taken into account. However, to instigate these strategies, it is imperative to collect information from various fields or people to determine the best tactics worth being implemented.

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Update on Field Study

The plan for establishing the best practices to be adopted to ensure flawless witness protection entailed a field study in which relevant data were collected through online surveys, filling in questionnaires, and interviews. It is prudent to mention that the field study entails designing timeline or work schedule, visiting places, talking to people across various professions, and recording the data obtained (Neuman & Robson, 2014).

Any Designs Made

Designs were made regarding the expected timeline for the project. A two-column table was drawn in which the first column listed all the activities to be performed to ensure efficient collection and analysis of data for the best strategic measures to guarantee maximum witness protection. The second column listed the duration the duration that each activity will take. It is worthy to mention that the tabulation of all the activities helped to ensure efficiency in policy formulation and implementation.

Places Visited

This project entailed visiting both virtual and real places. For virtual places, I used the internet to conduct an online survey on the best witness protection program for different scenarios of witness interference. I also visited online databases to establish the meaning of witness interferences, types of interferences, and possible solutions to the problem. Other than that, I visited actual places in my bid to establish the best practices to eradicate witness interference menace. The first place I visited was the judiciary premises where I distributed questionnaires to jurors to help me collect their views on the best witness protection practice. The second place I visited was a police station to interview law enforcers regarding witness interference and protection practices. It is also important to note that I visited public gatherings such as marketplaces and interviewed common citizens on their views regarding the subject matter. Finally, I visited various prisons and sought opinions of convicts regarding witness interference and their feelings about various ways available to protect witnesses and victims.

People Visited

In the judiciary premises, I visited jurors and prosecutors to seek their views on witness interference. On the other hand, while at the police station, I interacted with police officers who helped me a lot in my project. It is also vital that I visited common citizens in public gatherings. It is worthy to pinpoint that public gatherings had people from diverse professional and cultural settings. Lastly, I had the opportunity to visit the incarcerated individuals in correctional facilities within the country to seek their perspective on the matter.

The Data Collected

Since the data collected was qualitative, online surveys, filled questionnaires, and the interview were utilized (De Vaus, 2013). The data I collected involved statements on witness interference, various methods or forms of witness interference, and various methods of enhancing witness protection. I also collected data on the best practice that each respondent felt would eradicate witness interference menace.

The Next Plan for Project Development

The next plan regarding the development of the project will encompass conclusive data analysis to determine prevalent types of witness interference and the available solutions for this problem. I will use qualitative analysis criteria to ensure that assess all the available data without any possibility of error of commission or omission. After that, I will re-evaluate my initial project to ascertain if its content needs improvement or editing. I will seek the help of my tutor to help me perfect the project. Furthermore, I will revise on the current writing style rules to enable me to deliver a flawless project that will help me garner good marks and therefore good grade.

I will not stop pursuing this project after attaining my grades. Nevertheless, I will write proposals to the central government on the best methods to protect witnesses based on the outcomes of the project that I will obtain. In my proposal, I will request the government to conduct a pilot study on few witnesses on in a mock lawsuit to determine the efficiency of the method proposed. It is paramount to highlight that using mock lawsuits will help to avoid unforeseen problems should there be a hinge in the protection practice proposed. I will also request the government to task me with the responsibility of ensuring that the proposal is implemented effectively based on my expansive knowledge on the subject matter as a result of extensive research.

References

Billingsley, R., Nemitz, T., & Bean, P. (Eds.). (2013). Informers: Policing, policy, practice. Routledge.

Brouwer, A. M. (2015). The Problem of Witness Interference before International Criminal Tribunals. International criminal law review, 15(4), 700-732.

De Vaus, D. (2013). Surveys in social research. Routledge.

Neuman, W. L., & Robson, K. (2014). Basics of social research. Pearson Canada.