Forensic Transcription: How Confident False Beliefs about Language and Speech Threaten the Right to a Fair Trial in Australia
Everyday knowledge about language and speech, or ‘folk linguistics’, incorporates a number of false beliefs that have a negative effect in a range of areas, nowhere more so than in the criminal justice system. One lesser known area where false beliefs have a major impact is forensic transcription (interpretation of indistinct covert recordings used as evidence in criminal trials). Without consultation of the linguistic sciences, the law has developed processes that allow police transcripts to ‘assist’ the courts in making out unintelligible covert recordings. The present article uses a case study of a real murder trial to bring the actual and potential injustice this creates to the attention of linguistic science, and examine the issues from a linguistics perspective. Having laid out the problem, it goes on to consider potential solutions, arguing that creating a better process requires deep collaboration between linguistics, law and law enforcement. From linguists, it requires improved theoretical understanding of the nature and structure of the false beliefs that underlie the existing legal processes, as well as development of a more general theoretical account of the process of transcription and the nature of transcripts.
Real forensic experts should pay more attention to the dangers posed by ‘ad hoc experts’
Recent years have seen a great deal of attention given to the reliability of expert evidence admitted in criminal trials. However, almost no attention has been given to the reliability of evidence provided by so-called ‘ad hoc experts’. Indeed, many forensic scientists seem unaware that such a category of witness even exists, much less of the substantial threats they pose to the fairness of our criminal justice system. ‘Ad hoc experts’ are used for a number of evidence types. Here, we concentrate on one type that appears in Australian courts on a weekly basis: interpretation of indistinct covert recordings. The aim is to draw the attention of AJFS readers to serious problems in the handling of this much-used form of evidence, in the hope that the AAFS might develop a position on the issues and support calls for reform of practice.
Phonological Concepts and Concept Formation: Metatheory, Theory and Application
This paper presents an overview of Phenomenological Phonology (PP),including its metatheory, theory and application, for comparison with Cognitive Phonology (CP). While PP and CP are in close agreement at the theory level, there are some significant differences at the level of metatheory. PP considers phonological terms (such as 'phoneme' and 'word' to be words like any others, and gives detailed consideration to the concepts behind such terms. It also considers pronunciation to be a form of behaviour, driven by concepts created through general concept-formation processes. This has important consequences for practical application in the areas of pronunciation and literacy teaching.
The role of linguists and native speakers in language analysis for the determination of speaker origin: A response to Tina Cambier-Langeveld
Cambier-Langeveld (2010a) examines eight LADO case reports, attributing problems she finds in them to lack of native speaker competence on the part of the analysts, and uses the results to argue the legitimacy of a role for native speakers in LADO that is not currently allowed by the Guidelines (2004). The present article clarifies what the Guidelines say about analysts, and shows that the authors of the eight reports do not meet their requirements. It then argues that framing the important issues raised by Cambier-Langeveld in terms of a debate opposing 'native speakers' versus 'linguists' may not be the most helpful way forward, suggesting instead exploration of the question 'Under what conditions can LADO judgements be produced which are reliable enough for the human rights and national security issues at stake?'. It ends with a call for the Guidelines to be updated in light of recent work by Cambier-Langeveld and others, then administered effectively, preferably by an independent international body.
Phonetics and phonology
Phonetics and phonology are among the branches of linguistics with least impact on applied linguistics. This is unfortunate, as they have a great deal to offer research and teaching in the many applications that investigate the production, understanding or representation of speech, especially second language teaching, which will be the focus of this chapter. One reason for their lack of impact might be they are often perceived as highly complicated topics, dominated by theoretical issues of limited relevance to practical applications. It is useful in this regard to invoke a distinction between 'complicated' and 'complex'. A simple system has few parts, related by a small enough number of rules as to be easily understood by the average person. A complicated system is quantitatively different, with many more parts, related by more numerous, more inter-related rules. A complex system is qualitatively different, with larger, less clearly-defined parts, connected by a smaller number of general, context-dependent principles (Ellis this vol). Working effectively with either kind of system requires recognition of which kind it is. However, since their products can seem superficially similar, it is possible to confuse them, with unfortunate results (Westley et al. 2006). The argument of this chapter is that speech is a complex system, but most current theories of phonetics and phonology model it as a complicated system. While this is appropriate for some applications, for others, a theoretical framework which recognises the complex nature of speech is needed. One problem is that understanding speech as a complex system means revising basic ideas in ways that challenge not just existing academic theories, but apparently obvious facts about speech. The intention here, however, is not to contradict existing ideas, but to place them in a wider context, with the aim of encouraging cross fertilisation between branches of theoretical and applied research that have had too little contact in recent decades. The chapter begins by reviewing some well-known observations, and equally well-known misconceptions, about speech. It then provides a simple analogy as a basis for understanding and comparing different views about speech, and goes on to use the analogy in an interpretive overview of the historical development of phonetics and phonology in relation to applied linguistics. Discussion then turns to how the knowledge acquired by phonetics and phonology can be framed in a way that allows fruitful, two-way interaction with various branches of applied linguistics, especially sociocognitive theories of second language teaching.
‘Enhancing’ forensic audio: false beliefs and their effect in criminal trials
Indistinct covert recordings admitted as evidence in criminal trials are routinely ‘enhanced’ to assist a jury in making out their contents. But just what is ‘enhancing’, and how effective is it? This paper uses two short experiments to demonstrate that a subjective impression that ‘enhancing’ has made the audio ‘clearer’ does not necessarily indicate there has been an objective improvement in intelligibility. It then outlines, in a non-technical manner, the capabilities and limitations of various ‘enhancing’ techniques, and discusses implications in relation to current legal practices around the admission and use of ‘enhanced’ audio in Australian criminal trials. Finally, it recommends that ‘enhanced’ versions of forensic recordings should only be admitted on the basis of objective evidence of the extent to which they have genuinely improved the intelligibility of the specific audio being used, noting that such evidence is easy to obtain and provide.
Underpinning success in the real world of corporations law
This paper reports on an action research project which sought to evaluate and guide ongoing teaching and learning development in Principles of Corporations Law, a semester-long unit of study. Typically, enrolments in this subject area include students from a range of cultural contexts for whom the legislative and administrative concepts of the unit are unfamiliar and who also experience significant difficulties with cultural conventions of communication and business practice. At our university, unit enrolments include a high proportion of distance education as well as non-English speaking background (NESB) students, predominantly from China, who have not studied units formerly considered as prerequisite, and many of whom experience difficulties with basic academic skills. As the development team planned and created teaching features to ensure better learning outcomes for these students, it was clear that some truly contextual thinking as well as some practicable solutions would be required. While we had determined in the redesign planning that scenario- or problem-based learning (PBL) with its emphasis on finding, understanding and using information in context, was best suited to help students acquire the skills that underpin success in the unit, our experience in the project indicated students had a broader range of more basic needs. It emerged that students were struggling with fundamental issues that would need to be addressed before real change could occur.
The role of 'educated native speakers' in providing language analysis for the determination of the origin of asylum seekers
This paper speaks to a debate which has arisen across various branches of linguistics (see Eades 2009) regarding the relative levels of responsibility that should be given to (a) qualified linguists with professional expertise in a particular language, and (b) 'educated native speakers' of the language, in conducting Language Analysis for the Determination of the regional or social Origin of asylum seekers (LADO). It reviews existing evidence from the phonetics and sociolinguistic literature regarding the reliability of accent judgments by linguists and non-linguists. It argues that, while LADO is a valid form of assistance to offer in the asylum process, careful evaluation of its limitations, in general and in specific cases, is crucial, as in other branches of forensic linguistics. The paper concludes by calling for(a) a proper research program to investigate people's actual abilities in recognising, discriminating and identifying accents under various sociolinguistic conditions; (b) collaboration between LADO agencies and linguists to develop analysis and testing procedures; and (c) a system of accreditation by an independent, international authority for the agencies that carry out LADO.
Helping teachers help students with pronunciation
This article introduces a theoretical framework for understanding speechand pronunciation based on insights from cognitive phonology in whichpronunciation is seen as a cognitive skill. In learning a cognitive skill, practice isessential, but its value depends on students having the right concept of what itis they are practising. Helping students form concepts appropriate to the newlanguage is therefore a crucial part of a language teacher's role. The article startswith an informal overview of the role of concepts and concept formation incognition. I then consider how well-known observations about pronunciationand pronunciation learning can be understood from this perspective, andsuggest some principles which can account for and extend these observations.Finally, I compare the cognitive approach with more familiar mainstream viewsof phonology, and suggest that they are not in conflict but offer significantlyand usefully different perspectives appropriate to different applications.
Thirty Years Is Long Enough: It Is Time to Create a Process That Ensures Covert Recordings Used as Evidence in Court Are Interpreted Reliably
This article outlines a number of serious problems arising from the handling within the legal process of covert recordings used as evidence in criminal trials. These problems relate specifically to four key areas, namely: translation of material in languages other than English, transcription of indistinct English, attribution of utterances to speakers and “enhancing” of poor quality audio. The paper traces the problems back to the landmark High Court judgment of Butera 1987, and attributes them to insufficient understanding within the judiciary of well-established but counterintuitive findings of linguistic science regarding factors that affect the reliable interpretation of recorded speech. Several possible solutions to the problems are canvassed, and it is recommended that the most promising way forward is via enhanced communication and collaboration between law, law enforcement and linguistic science.