FINAL INSTRUCTION NO. 8 Witness Credibility In deciding this case you will need to decide how believable each witness was. Use your judgment and common sense. Let me suggest a few things to think about as you weigh each witness’s testimony: How good was the witness’s opportunity to see, hear, or otherwise observe what the witness testified about? Does the witness have something to gain or lose from this case? Does the witness have any connection to the people involved in this case? Does the witness have any reason to lie or slant the testimony? Was the witness’s testimony consistent over time? If not, is there a good reason for the inconsistency? If the witness was inconsistent, was it about something important or unimportant? How believable was the witness’s testimony in light of other evidence presented at trial? How believable was the witness’s testimony in light of human experience? Was there anything about the way the witness testified that made the testimony more or less believable? In deciding whether or not to believe a witness, you may also consider anything else you think is important. You do not have to believe everything that a witness said. You may believe part and disbelieve the rest. On the other hand, if you are convinced that a witness lied, you may disbelieve anything the witness said. In other words, you may believe all, part, or none of a witness’s testimony. Also, the weight of the evidence is not necessarily determined by the number of witnesses testifying as to the existence or non-existence of any fact. You may find that the testimony of a
FINAL INSTRUCTION NO. 8 Witness Credibility In deciding this case you will need to decide how believable each witness was. Use your judgment and common sense. Let me suggest a few things to think about as you weigh each witness’s testimony: How good was the witness’s opportunity to see, hear, or otherwise observe what the witness testified about? Does the witness have something to gain or lose from this case? Does the witness have any connection to the people involved in this case? Does the witness have any reason to lie or slant the testimony? Was the witness’s testimony consistent over time? If not, is there a good reason for the inconsistency? If the witness was inconsistent, was it about something important or unimportant? How believable was the witness’s testimony in light of other evidence presented at trial? How believable was the witness’s testimony in light of human experience? Was there anything about the way the witness testified that made the testimony more or less believable? In deciding whether or not to believe a witness, you may also consider anything else you think is important. You do not have to believe everything that a witness said. You may believe part and disbelieve the rest. On the other hand, if you are convinced that a witness lied, you may disbelieve anything the witness said. In other words, you may believe all, part, or none of a witness’s testimony. Also, the weight of the evidence is not necessarily determined by the number of witnesses testifying as to the existence or non-existence of any fact. You may find that the testimony of a
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