Writing a witness statement3/14/2024 Some forces are using tablet devices rather than paper to take statements. When I checked on YouTube to see if there was anything about witness statements on there, I found this short clip from Cheshire police and it shows me how much police are moving on. This is called an Achieving Best Evidence interview and more details can be found in a long document HERE. This is where they are taken into a soft furnishings type room and they talk about the incident to a trained officer who is asking specific questions to elicit as much information as they need and the room is being recorded. If you have a witness who is at risk of witness intimidation or is witness to gun or knife crime or is a family member of a murder victim then they can do a visually recorded interview rather than this written statement. The MG forms create the file that goes in to the CPS for a charging decision and eventually after charge for court. As a police officer, you point this out to them before they sign it. As you can see, they have to sign at the top of the first page of the statement to say that everything they say is correct and they know they are liable to prosecution if it’s not. For lengthy statements what usually happens is the officer takes lots of notes then writes it up. But, the police officer writes it up for them, then the witness reads it, makes sure it’s correct as they told it to the officer and signs it. It’s written as though it is the witness writing it, so “I was doing this.’ etc. Mostly, witness statements are written down on paper. So, what does taking a witness statement involve? Anyway, it is well known that witnesses will all see something different even if they are all watching the very same incident, as can be evidenced in this post HERE. All the information is collected, gathered and assessed. So, if someone was close enough to the scene of the crime but doesn’t corroborate what everyone else is saying, you don’t dismiss them because it doesn’t help your case, you take their statement. The thing is, it’s the police’s job to collect evidence, not to make decisions on guilt or innocence. Statements from people nearby who didn’t see or hear anything. You may even have to take negative statements. At the scene of a crime, you need to look for witnesses, for people who may have seen or heard something that will be relevant to your case.
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