International Trends in the Facilitation of Witness Co-operation in Organized Crime Cases

Nicholas Fyfe, James Sheptycki

    Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

    26 Citations (Scopus)

    Abstract

    This article surveys the existing literature on the facilitation of witness cooperation in the USA and a variety of European countries. It highlights trends in the evolution of the legal landscape concerning the use of criminal informants and witnesses as the central approach to the investigation and prosecution of organized crime. It also looks at the use of plea-bargaining, witness immunity, and criminal informant and undercover police testimony. It provides comparisons in the development of these techniques and it does so by reference to the narrative histories of practice and legal debate about the efficacy of these measures in various countries. The article concludes that, although significant moral hazards are associated with these developments, and although the efficacy of these techniques has not been fully demonstrated by solid empirical research, they are likely to remain in force for the foreseeable future.
    Original languageEnglish
    Pages (from-to)319-355
    Number of pages37
    JournalEuropean Journal of Criminology
    Volume3
    Issue number3
    DOIs
    Publication statusPublished - Jul 2006

    Keywords

    • comparative criminal justice systems
    • moral hazard
    • organized crime
    • plea-bargaining
    • witness immunity
    • Witness statements

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