With Valerie VanBrocklin You've just made a big arrest. Investigators have gathered lots of additional evidence and you think the case is sealed...a conviction is in the bag. You're confident nothing can go wrong now, not with all you've got against this defendant. You and your partners have put considerable time into covering all the bases. No stone has gone unturned.
Now it's time to go to trial. You're going to be called to testify. Are your courtroom skills solid enough to help win this case, or does your lack of skill and preparation stand to endanger it? Have you mentally prepared yourself to testify effectively? "The consequences of failing to do so have been seen too often in recent times and are simply too dire," says former state and federal prosecutor Valerie VanBrocklin. VanBrocklin, whose high-profile successes have been featured in the national media, provides training to departments around the country on, among other things, successfully testifying in court and winning courtroom confrontations. "A lot of excellent cops get snagged on the stand by issues that have nothing to do with their credibility or level of professionalism," she told the Newsline. "They get caught up in little things that are preventable through training and practice. "Testifying in court may be the most difficult and important task an officer faces in his or her career," she says. "No other assignment subjects an officer and his/her department to more intense, microscopic scrutiny than the officer's credibility, competency and conduct in the courtroom. "When you're testifying in court, the jury, the judge, the prosecutor, the defense, the public--all eyes are on you! Your reputation and that of your department may be enhanced or destroyed by your courtroom presentation," says VanBrocklin.
In this issue I. Are you ready to testify? Part 2 of a special Newsline report II. Halloween 2007 by Dave Smith
Are you ready to testify? Part 2 of a series of tips on being an effective witness
Continuing from Part 1 with our special series on courtroom tips for Newsline members shared by former state and federal prosecutor Valerie VanBrocklin... F. Speak clearly and plainly. "Something happens to law enforcement officers when they take the stand," says VanBrocklin. "For some strange reason they begin talking like they never do in real life. Why this occurs is a mystery. Is it taught in secret sessions at the academy? Is it in the water they drink at the department?" Speaking in plain terms is very important to having your point understood. It also influences the way the jurors—and the judge—perceives you. Consider the following federal court judge's reaction to a case filled with "police speak": "The agents involved speak in an almost impenetrable jargon. They do not get in their cars; they enter official government vehicles. They do not get out of or leave their cars, they exit them. They do not go somewhere; they proceed. They do not watch or look; they surveille. No one tells them anything; they are advised. An agent does not hand money to an informer to make a buy; he advances previously recorded official government funds." Do not try to impress the jury with your superior intelligence and vocabulary. If it's necessary to use technical terms, explain their meaning. Avoid slang and answers such as, "yeah." Don't fill pauses with "um," "uh," "you know." It's O.K. to
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