Witness protection

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Witness protection is protection of a threatened witness, before, during and after a trial, usually by police. While a witness may only require protection until the conclusion of a trial, some witnesses are provided with new identity and may live out the rest of their lives under government protection.

Witness protection is usually required in trials against organized crime, where law enforcement sees a risk for witnesses to be intimidated by colleagues of defendants. It is also used at war crime trials.

Contents 1 Witness protection by country 1.1 Canada 1.2 New Zealand 1.3 Republic of China (Taiwan) 1.4 Switzerland 1.5 United States 2 References

[edit] Witness protection by country

Not all countries have formal witness protection programs, instead, local police may implement informal protection as the need arises in specific cases.

[edit] Canada

Canada's Witness Protection Program Act was Assented into Law June 20, 1996^[1] by then Governor General Roméo LeBlanc. It was modelled after the United States Federal Witness Protection Program, and serves the same purpose^{[citation needed]}. It is administered by the Royal Canadian Mounted Police.

[edit] New Zealand

The New Zealand Police provide protection for witnesses against members of criminal gangs and serious criminals who feel threatened or intimidated. They run a Witness Protection Programme that monitors the welfare of witnesses and if necessary, helps create new identities^[2]. There is an agreement between the police and the Department of Corrections to ensure that protected witnesses receive appropriate protection from that department^[3].

In 2007 the program became the subject of public controversy when the previous conviction for drunk driving by a now protected witness was withheld from police and this resulted in him being able to continue driving and kill another motorist in a road accident while intoxicated ^[4]

[edit] Republic of China (Taiwan)

The Republic of China promulgated the Witness Protection Act on February 9, 2000^[5] in Taiwan Area.

[edit] Switzerland

Swiss law does not provide for a witness protection program. The cantonal police may provide ad hoc protection in exceptional cases.^[6]

[edit] United States

The United States established a formal program of witness protection as part of the Organized Crime Control Act of 1970. Prior to that program, witness protection was also instituted after the American Civil War as part of the Ku Klux Klan Act of 1871 to protect people testifying against members of the Ku Klux Klan. In the 20th century, the Federal Bureau of Investigation also crafted new identities to protect witnesses. ^[7]

Many states, including California, Illinois, Connecticut, and New York, as well as Washington, D.C., have their own witness protection programs for crimes not covered by the federal program. The state-run programs provide less extensive protections than the federal program.^[8][9][10]

[edit] References