Fights sometimes happen, and sometimes they lead to criminal charges. Yet, even if those involved shake hands and make up, the police may still get involved if others call them or someone later convinces one of the involved parties to report the incident to the police.
You could face serious problems if the police are looking to charge someone, especially if there is an eyewitness telling them that you started the fight. Even if you know this is not true, and you merely acted in self-defense, the eyewitness could pose a significant problem for you because the police and prosecution may push the story that an eyewitness is indisputable proof of what happened. They aren’t, and here is one significant reason why.
Misinformation after the event
Many people think memories are unchangeable. The reality is that memories can be changed by the information they are exposed to after an event. If they are exposed to misinformation, they can form a new memory of events that overrides the original one.
Things that could cause this contamination of the memory include the police telling them someone is guilty, comments someone makes on social media, or an article they read in the press about a person’s past convictions.
Eyewitness testimony can have a powerful effect in a criminal case, so if you are facing charges, it will be important that you develop an equally powerful argument to show why the eyewitness is wrong, or at least why they could be wrong. Remember, the baseline in criminal charges is that the prosecution must prove things beyond a reasonable doubt. Getting help to show why the eyewitness was wrong, or could be wrong, is important.