It's practically a broken record among this and all similar forums to say that eyewitnesses are notoriously unreliable and I couldn't agree more. There are too many cases to mention where they were flat out wrong and in some cases led directly to wrongful convictions. However, there are also occasions where eyewitnesses were bang on and helped solved the case.

What are some examples of cases where you believe the eyewitnesses got it right? The first that comes to mind is the disappearance of Trisha Autry, where I believe the Welcome Mart clerk was 100% correct.

Jeez I don't even think the Trisha Autry witness was right. UM is awash with eyewitnesses that were wrong - i'm not even sure i can remember one off the top of my head that was right when they said they saw a missing person.

Jeez I don't even think the Trisha Autry witness was right. UM is awash with eyewitnesses that were wrong - i'm not even sure i can remember one off the top of my head that was right when they said they saw a missing person.

I think this is the sort of thing eyewitnesses tend not to be right about - when they talk themselves into the idea that they see someone they don't actually know at all, based solely on a photo from, say, a missing persons poster. When someone says they saw someone they know, or is asked if they saw someone who the police can already establish was in a particular area and so it is not just a random association, eyewitnesses are much more likely to provide valuable information.

The little girl who saw Roger Dean's killer, who investigators dismissed her identification of a black man because of shadows from neighborhood trees.

Shirley from the Dana Satterfield case, my all-time favorite UM eyewitness, was right on the money in her description of the suspect.

Shirley from the Dana Satterfield case, my all-time favorite UM eyewitness, was right on the money in her description of the suspect.

Forgot about that one: the composite based on Shirley's description vs the mugshot of Vick are VERY similar despite her not knowing who it was.

It also sounds like Jeremy Rolfs was pretty darn close too and would have almost certainly fingered Tom Steeples as his girlfriend's killer if the cops didn't screw up so badly. Makes sense when you think about it as he spent a lot of time with Steeples both in the motel room and in a previous, mundane interaction.

There's also the witness in the Eric Rudolph case (the Atlanta Olympics bomber) who saw him take off his wig after bombing an abortion clinic. He knew that was suspicious so he followed him and got his license plate, which was how Rudolph was idenitified.

Shirley from the Dana Satterfield case, my all-time favorite UM eyewitness, was right on the money in her description of the suspect.
Agreed she nailed this as a witness, the only reason it took so long is no one besides his buddy could put his name to his face

IMO eyewitness testimony is only really reliable when the person isn't under duress and they are able to get a clear look at the person.

I was once held up at gun-point while working in a record store in the mid-90s. Aside from a vague description of race, sex and height... I was pretty useless. Having a gun pointed at you kind of shuts your brain down.

the tim good case, where the caller called into the show and correctly ID'd Freeman and even basically called him a jerk for ripping him off at a auto shop or something. I point this one out because it doesn't appear that the witness knew Freeman prior to the incident like some of the other callers that became acquainted with wanted fugitives who were living under a new identity.

Brought this up in the other topic, but.. MAYBE the Craig Williamson case, the people on the train who saw him were right

We don't really know for sure. Craig SAYS he was in that area.. And the woman who supposedly saw him on the train was certainly believable.. Doesn't mean she was right.

But.. There's equal chances that Craig just integrated that from the UM episode into his story.. We know he saw the episode. And the guy doesn't really strike me as the most honest. Especially as it seems he left his wallet and rental car in or near Mexico and went to the Florida keys.. Like he was trying to throw people off where he was going to be.. So.. Maybe.