[Voice identification in the Dr. Schneider case. Problems in speaker identification by lay persons]

In this case report a number of problems with speaker identification by lay persons are discussed. It is argued that specific circumstances of the identification procedure(s) and factors such as subjects' emotional states, personal attitudes towards the speaker in question, short-term changes in the speaker's vocal behaviour and the semantic content and type of speech material used may heavily bias subjects' judgements. On the other hand, a 'conventional' forensic voice comparison carried out by professionals provided clear-cut results even under severe time constraints. It is argued that speaker identification by lay persons, if indispensable in a case, should be carried out by means of a formalized, classical voice line-up experiment.