This collaborative initiative will provide an essential framework for navigating new forms of evidence within legal proceedings.
"Evaluating Digital Open Source Imagery: A Guide for Judges and Fact-Finders" is a comprehensive new online resource which will be launched on 24 May 2024. Authored by experts from esteemed institutions worldwide, including our Director at the Centre for Fundamental Rights Başak Çalı and PhD Researcher Joseph Finnerty, the Guide aims to equip judges, fact-finders and decision-makers with the means and skills to effectively evaluate digital open source evidence.
Recognising the increasingly critical importance of digital open-source imagery in legal proceedings, particularly in the realms of human rights, humanitarian law, and international criminal law, this collaborative effort brings together legal scholars, human rights advocates, and experts in open-source investigation to demystify the complex process of evaluating new forms of legal evidence. The Guide covers a range of key issues relevant to the evaluation of digital open-source imagery, including authenticity verification, metadata analysis and source validation. With practical examples, insightful guidance, and clear definitions, it will enable informed assessments and decision-making in the pursuit of justice and accountability. Available in multiple languages including English, Ukrainian, Arabic, French, and Spanish, the Guide also ensures accessibility to a global audience.
Reflecting on the upcoming launch, Başak Çalı reiterated the value of this new legal resource. “We, at the Centre for Fundamental Rights at the Hertie School, are strongly committed to contributing to the practice of human rights. This Guide, by making the complex and technical terrain of open-source evidence more accessible for judges and fact-finders, will bring us closer to ensuring accountability for human rights violations around the world.”
"Evaluating Digital Open Source Imagery: A Guide for Judges and Fact-Finders" is available here: https://www.trueproject.co.uk/osguide
The production of this resource is an international collaboration between the Centre for Fundamental Rights, Hertie School, the Bonavero Institute of Human Rights, University of Oxford, the Human Rights Centre, University of Essex, the Human Rights Centre, University of California, Berkeley, Mnemonic, Open Society Justice Initiative, Queen Mary University of London, Swansea University and Witness.