• Sometimes, children are called to testify in court.Child image by Serenitie from Fotolia.com
  
  When children testify in court, protecting their identities, upholding the validity of their testimony and safeguarding their identities are paramount. In the United States, there are laws ensuring that children are allowed to give testimony in courts in special conditions which make provisions for their innocence, vulnerability, language-interpretation and psychology. In a study, "Intelligent Interaction: Dynamic Trends in Today's Logic" by University of Amsterdam Professor Johan van Benthem, it was found that younger witnesses are more apt to tell the truth, since children have not learned the subtleties, complexities and euphemisms to mask thought, opinion or their interpretation of fact. Child witnesses are minors or those under 18 or, in some cases, 13.
  
  

Child Witness Protection Act

• A judge should be aware of laws protecting children who testify.judge image by dinostock from Fotolia.com
  
  The Child Witness Protection Act, defined in "HCS HB 863," states that before a child witness takes the stand, administration of the court oath has to be worded in understandable terms, and court officers have to explain all questions or unclear matters to the child. The court has to take the child's testimony during school hours and the duration of the testimony has to be much shorter than a typical adult's. This law allows the child witness to have a toy or other object to relax him in the tight atmosphere and ordeal of delivering testimony.
  
  In court, the child is also entitled to the presence of a supportive friend or family member. The Child Witness Protection Act also restricts the lengths to which aggressive lawyers could exploit and intimidate a child witness.
  
  

Uniform Child Witness Testimony by Alternative Method Act

• Protecting children is just as important during court proceedings as the truth.eyes image by Kalani from Fotolia.com
  
  The Uniform Child Witness Testimony by Alternative Method Act is a law that facilitates changes in standard ways in which a child witness would give testimony. The Child Witness Protection Act protects a child's identity when potentially confronting a criminal suspect or family members whose presence may affect the quality of the child's statements.
  
  Under this law, a presiding officer has to determine whether the child qualifies to subject the testimony to an alternative method according to criteria such as: the child's maturity, the child's psychology, the content of the testimony, the child's emotional constitution, the child's age and the anticipated trauma on the child. Proposed methods to interview the child involve a more secluded setting and the use of audio or audiovisual technology.
  
  

Child Victims' and Child Witnesses' Rights Code

• Children are treated differently in court.videotaper image by Aaron Kohr from Fotolia.com
  
  The U.S. Child Victims' and Child Witnesses' Rights code (Title 18, Part 2, Chapter 223, Paragraph 3509) proposes further alternatives for controlling, classifying and shortening the duration of child witnesses' testimonies. The two-way closed circuit television excuses the child from the public courtroom and permits a more comfortable zone for testifying.
  
  Parties allowed to remain in touch with the child witness during the testimony are court-appointed child lawyers, guardians, court officers and technological staff. Prior to the witnesses' statements, the court has to establish the child's competency and level of development. In some cases, the child may be totally unfit to testify due to mental and psychological suffering.