Criminal courts frequently rely on accomplice witnesses (witnesses who

Question

Criminal courts frequently rely on accomplice witnesses (witnesses who testify regarding the role of an alleged co-conspirator in a crime) and jailhouse informants (witnesses who provide testimony based on information obtained while incarcerated) for prosecutorial information. Typically the testimony provided by such cooperating witnesses includes information garnered through the witnesses' conversations with the accused, which can include a purported confession to the crime.

Information from a cooperating witness is often provided in exchange for a reduced sentence or some other incentive. This kind of inducement creates a situation that is highly conducive to evidence fabrication on the part of the cooperating witness. In fact, one recent study concluded that lying informants are rarely prosecuted and therefore have much to gain and little to lose by testifying falsely.

While courts have recognized the unreliable nature of evidence obtained through bartered testimony, they have held that safeguards are in place to adequately protect the accused against a conviction based on false testimony. These safeguards allow effective cross-examination of a cooperating witness and enable the jury to consider a witness's motivations. However, these safeguards do not always provide protection. There are cases in which prosecutors merely imply to cooperating witnesses that they will receive an incentive in exchange for testimony. In such cases, the exchange between prosecution and witness does not have to be disclosed to the jury.

In addition, psychological research on confession testimony—confessions obtained by investigators directly from the accused—reveal further problems with bartered testimony. This research indicates that jurors give undue weight to confession evidence when rendering guilt decisions. This effect is especially notable in cases where jurors are aware that a defendant has been offered an incentive in exchange for a confession. This is particularly relevant here because if people have difficulty realizing the effect that an incentive can have on a defendant's behavior, they may also fail to realize the effect that an incentive may have on a cooperating witness's behavior.

A common psychological phenomenon may account for jurors' superficial examination of confession evidence. Studies show that people tend to explain the behavior of others in terms of internal dispositions or attitudes as opposed to external, situational factors. In one study, regardless of whether confession evidence was obtained via negative pressure (threats of worse treatment and/or harsher punishment) or positive pressure (promises of better treatment and/or leniency), mock jurors viewed a confession as evidence that the defendant committed the crime because "only a guilty person would confess to such a crime." The same logic can be applied to the testimony of cooperating witnesses: jurors may presuppose that accomplice witnesses and jailhouse informants offer their testimony as atonement rather than deducing that external factors made it expedient to give the testimony.    1 
 1. Which one of the following most accurately expresses the main point of the passage?

(A) Evidence obtained through coercion, whether that coercion results from positive pressure or negative pressure, can never be regarded as reliable.
(B) Numerous considerations suggest that the courts' reliance on the testimony of accomplice witnesses and jailhouse informants may result in convictions based on false testimony.
(C) Studies show that jurors give undue weight to confession testimony, a fact that may be explained by people's general tendency to ignore situational factors in explaining the behavior of others.
(D) Traditional legal arguments offered in support of permitting the testimony of accomplice witnesses and jailhouse informants are based on a set of assumptions that numerous studies cast doubt on.
(E) There is substantial evidence to indicate that the testimony of accomplice witnesses and jailhouse informants is heavily influenced by incentives offered by the prosecution.

2 
 2. Which one of the following questions is explicitly addressed in the passage?

(A) Do jurors give the same weight to confession evidence provided by a cooperating witness as they do to confession evidence provided directly by the defendant?
(B) To what extent are prosecutors and investigators limited in their ability to offer incentives to accomplice witnesses and jailhouse informants in exchange for testimony?
(C) Is the bartered testimony of an accomplice witness any more or less reliable than the bartered testimony of a jailhouse informant? 
(D) How common is the prosecution of cooperating witnesses who knowingly provide false testimony?
(E) To what extent do jurors vary in their ability to discern when a witness is lying?

3 
 3. The author would be most likely to agree with which one of the following statements about the courts' reliance on the testimony of cooperating witnesses?

(A) It encourages unacceptably harsh treatment of prisoners by investigators and prison officials.
(B) It fails to recognize that cooperating witnesses may fear retaliation from defendants they testify against.
(C) It frequently places an unfair burden on jurors.
(D) It is justified only in cases in which the prosecution has little other evidence against a defendant.
(E) It likely leads to some convicted criminals' receiving sentence reductions that are unwarranted.

4 
 4. According to the third paragraph, current safeguards may be inadequate to protect a defendant from a cooperating witness's fabricated testimony because

(A) current safeguards are designed to protect the rights of witnesses rather than the rights of defendants
(B) current safeguards fail to recognize the unreliable nature of testimony that is obtained via coercion
(C) juries may not be made aware that a cooperating witness expects to receive an incentive from the prosecution in exchange for testimony
(D) jurors tend to view the testimony of cooperating witnesses as more reliable than the testimony of defendants
(E) prosecutors are typically not penalized for offering incentives to cooperating witnesses in exchange for testimony

5 
 5. In using the phrase "jurors' superficial examination of confession evidence" (first sentence of the final paragraph), the author most likely means to refer to jurors'

(A) failure to properly take into account the factors that may lead an individual to give confession evidence
(B) failure to distinguish between confession evidence offered by a defendant and confession evidence offered by a cooperating witness
(C) lack of the expertise necessary to accurately evaluate confession evidence
(D) unwillingness to assess the veracity of a witness who offers confession evidence
(E) tendency to disregard confession evidence when it conflicts with other evidence presented at trial

6 
 6. The author mentions the research on confession testimony (fourth paragraph) primarily in order to

(A) reveal a potential problem for the author's analysis
(B) make an unfavorable comparison to a study cited earlier in the passage
(C) justify a conclusion regarding jurors' treatment of evidence provided by cooperating witnesses
(D) question the relevance of jury decision-making processes to the issue of the courts' reliance on the testimony of cooperating witnesses
(E) contrast the way in which jurors evaluate evidence provided by a defendant with the way jurors evaluate evidence provided by a cooperating witness

7 
 7. Which one of the following most accurately describes how the final paragraph functions in the passage?

(A) It attempts to explain a phenomenon discussed in the previous paragraph.
(B) It attempts to call into question a claim made in the previous paragraph.
(C) It summarizes the problems discussed in the previous two paragraphs.
(D) It outlines potential solutions to the problems discussed in the previous four paragraphs.
(E) It expands upon a proposal made in the first paragraph.

Sajjad1994 · Answer

Explanation

2. Which one of the following questions is explicitly addressed in the passage?

Explanation

The passage states that  "one recent study concluded that lying informants are rarely prosecuted and therefore have much to gain and little to lose by testifying falsely."  This means that there is a problem with false testimony provided by cooperating witnesses, and that there is little consequence for providing such testimony. This suggests that the prosecution of cooperating witnesses who knowingly provide false testimony is uncommon.

The other answer choices are incorrect because:

(A) Do jurors give the same weight to confession evidence provided by a cooperating witness as they do to confession evidence provided directly by the defendant? 
This question is addressed in the passage, but it is not the one that is explicitly addressed.

(B) To what extent are prosecutors and investigators limited in their ability to offer incentives to accomplice witnesses and jailhouse informants in exchange for testimony? 
The passage mentions that information from cooperating witnesses is often provided in exchange for a reduced sentence or some other incentive, but it does not discuss the extent to which prosecutors and investigators are limited in their ability to offer incentives.

(C) Is the bartered testimony of an accomplice witness any more or less reliable than the bartered testimony of a jailhouse informant? 
The passage discusses both accomplice witnesses and jailhouse informants, but it does not compare the reliability of their testimony.

(E) To what extent do jurors vary in their ability to discern when a witness is lying? 
The passage does not address the variability of jurors in their ability to discern when a witness is lying.

Answer: D

Sajjad1994 · Answer

Explanation

3. The author would be most likely to agree with which one of the following statements about the courts' reliance on the testimony of cooperating witnesses?

Explanation

The author would be most likely to agree with statement  (E) "It likely leads to some convicted criminals' receiving sentence reductions that are unwarranted."

Throughout the passage, the author discusses the use of cooperating witnesses and jailhouse informants in criminal courts and highlights the potential issues and risks associated with their testimony. The author points out that these witnesses often provide information in exchange for a reduced sentence or other incentives. This creates a situation where the cooperating witness may be motivated to fabricate evidence or testify falsely to gain benefits.

The passage states that lying informants are rarely prosecuted and have little to lose by testifying falsely. The author presents the argument that these inducements create an environment conducive to evidence fabrication. Therefore, it can be inferred that the author agrees that the reliance on cooperating witnesses may lead to some convicted criminals receiving sentence reductions that are unwarranted.

The passage does not address the other statements. It does not discuss unacceptably harsh treatment of prisoners by investigators and prison officials (A), the fear of retaliation from defendants (B), the burden on jurors (C), or the justification based on lack of other evidence (D). Therefore, the most supported statement is (E) that the courts' reliance on cooperating witnesses likely leads to some convicted criminals receiving unwarranted sentence reductions.

Answer: E

Sajjad1994 · Answer

Explanation

4. According to the third paragraph, current safeguards may be inadequate to protect a defendant from a cooperating witness's fabricated testimony because

Explanation

According to the third paragraph, the current safeguards may be inadequate to protect a defendant from a cooperating witness's fabricated testimony because (C) juries may not be made aware that a cooperating witness expects to receive an incentive from the prosecution in exchange for testimony.

The passage explains that while courts have recognized the unreliable nature of evidence obtained through bartered testimony, they have maintained that safeguards are in place to protect against false testimony. These safeguards include allowing effective cross-examination of cooperating witnesses and enabling the jury to consider the witness's motivations. However, there are cases in which prosecutors only imply to cooperating witnesses that they will receive an incentive in exchange for their testimony. In such cases, this exchange between the prosecution and witness does not have to be disclosed to the jury.

This lack of disclosure means that the jury may not be aware that the cooperating witness has an expectation of receiving an incentive for their testimony. This is significant because the passage also explains that jurors tend to give undue weight to confession evidence and may view a confession as evidence of guilt, assuming that "only a guilty person would confess to such a crime." Similarly, jurors may presuppose that cooperating witnesses testify as atonement, rather than realizing that external factors, such as incentives, may have influenced their testimony.

Therefore, it can be inferred that current safeguards may be inadequate because juries may not be made aware of the cooperating witness's expectation of receiving an incentive, which could lead to an unfair assessment of the witness's motivations and reliability of their testimony. Thus, answer choice (C) best captures the inadequacy highlighted in the passage.

Answer: C

Sajjad1994 · Answer

Explanation

6. The author mentions the research on confession testimony (fourth paragraph) primarily in order to

Explanation

In the fourth paragraph, the author introduces psychological research on confession testimony to support a conclusion regarding jurors' treatment of evidence provided by cooperating witnesses. The research indicates that jurors give undue weight to confession evidence when rendering guilt decisions, especially when they are aware that a defendant has been offered an incentive in exchange for a confession. This information is relevant because it suggests that jurors may have difficulty recognizing the influence of incentives on a defendant's behavior, and by extension, on a cooperating witness's behavior.

By presenting this research, the author is highlighting a specific problem in jurors' evaluation of evidence provided by cooperating witnesses. The author argues that jurors may presuppose that accomplice witnesses and jailhouse informants offer their testimony as atonement rather than considering the external factors that made it expedient for them to give the testimony. This highlights a bias in jurors' treatment of evidence from cooperating witnesses, potentially affecting the reliability and fairness of their assessments.

Therefore, the primary purpose of mentioning the research on confession testimony is to justify a conclusion regarding jurors' treatment of evidence provided by cooperating witnesses, as stated in answer choice (C). The research provides support for the claim that there are problems with how jurors evaluate such evidence, strengthening the overall argument made in the passage.

Answer: C

Criminal courts frequently rely on accomplice witnesses (witnesses who

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Criminal courts frequently rely on accomplice witnesses (witnesses who

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