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2.5-1 Credibility of
Witnesses
Revised to January 1, 2008
The credibility of witnesses and the
weight to be given to their testimony are matters for you as jurors to
determine. However, there are some principles that you should keep in mind. No
fact is, of course, to be determined merely by the number of witnesses who
testify for or against it; it is the quality and not the quantity of testimony
that controls. In weighing the testimony of each witness you should consider
the witness's appearance on the stand and whether the witness has an interest of
whatever sort in the outcome of the trial. You should consider a witness's
opportunity and ability to observe facts correctly and to remember them truly
and accurately, and you should test the evidence each witness gives you by your
own knowledge of human nature and the motives that influence and control human
actions. You may consider the reasonableness of what the witness says and the
consistency or inconsistency of (his/her) testimony. You may consider (his/her)
testimony in relation to facts that you find to have been otherwise proven. You
may believe all of what a witness tells you, some of what a witness tells you,
or none of what a particular witness tells you. You need not believe any
particular number of witnesses and you may reject uncontradicted testimony if
you find it reasonable to do so. In short, you are to apply the same
considerations and use the same sound judgment and common sense that you use for
questions of truth and veracity in your daily life.
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