| The International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia's ("ICTY") jurisdiction encompasses three main categories of crime: war crimes, genocide, and crimes against humanity. Between 1997 and 2004, the frequency of Trial Chambers' citations to forensic evidence in establishing a victim's death has decreased. This shift in frequency could be a result of an amendment to the ICTY's Rules of Procedure and Evidence to incorporate Rule 92 bis, which allows the Trial Chambers to admit confidential and lay witness written statements to establish a victim's death in order to shorten the trial process.; Since 2001, the ICTY Trial Chambers has changed the types of evidence it cited to establish a victim's death. First, the Trial Chambers dramatically decreased the number of expert witness citations. Second, although the Trial Chambers cited similar number of forensic exhibits in pre-and post-Rule 92 bis judgments, forensic evidence citations decreased forty-four percent in relation to the total number of citations. Third, the Trial Chambers significantly increased their reliance on non-forensic exhibits. Finally, the Trial Chambers cited more confidential 92bis statements and 92bis statements to establish death than forensic exhibits in post-Rule 92bis judgments. This bias attitude toward eyewitness testimony could jeopardize the accuracy and integrity of the trial proceedings. |
