Eyewitness Identification
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Eyewitness IdentificationAmanda Hinojosa[Course Number][Date] Eyewitness Identification is an integral piece of evidence used in many court cases. There is no better evidence then a witness who saw the crime being committed with their own eyes, right? In truth, a person’s eyes can play tricks on them and there is always the power of suggestion to a person who maybe isn’t so sure of who they saw once they are presented with a line-up of very similar looking people. Victims have a vetted interest in identifying their attacker to make sure that the crime does not go unpunished. Is this kind of pressure too much for one to handle? This paper will explore the proper procedures for eyewitness identification, the reliability of said identifications, and the effect that these eyewitness identifications have in court cases.It is midnight, a man is sitting on his porch smoking a cigarette and enjoying the night air. He is staring across the parking lot and sees a man and woman struggling. In the moonlight, he sees the glint of metal and hears a shot ring out. The woman falls to the ground and the man runs off towards the witness, as he passes by a streetlight the man looks up directly into the eyes of the witness. He quickly looks away and keeps running. What could be more perfect? The police now have an eyewitness to the crime. How do they turn that into evidence to be presented in court? “A confrontation is any presentation of a suspect to a victim of or witness to a crime for the purpose of identifying the perpetrator of the crime. (Ferdico, John N., Henry F. Fradella, and Christopher D. Totten. Criminal Procedure for the Criminal Justice Professional. 12th ed. Boston, MA: Cengage Learning, 2016, 571). “Most witness identifications occur as a result of one of two pretrial confrontation techniques: showups or lineups. (Ferdico, Fradella, Totten, 571).” “A showup is a presentation of a single suspect to a victim of or witness to a crime. (Ferdico, Fradella, Totten, 571).” “Showups are highly suggestive and, accordingly, produce high levels of false identifications. Moreover, showups have a biasing effect on any subsequent identification in a lineup or in court. Showups should, therefore, not be used unless there is some extenuating circumstance that prevents a photo array or lineup from being used. (Ferdico, Fradella, Totten, 586). “A lineup is the presentation of several persons at one time to a victim of or witness to a crime for the purpose of identifying the perpetrator of the crime. (Ferdico, Fradella, Totten, 571).” There are two different types of lineups that a witness can be presented with. “The two types of lineups require different mental processes from the witness. (
In order to make eyewitness identification via a lineup as reliable as possible there are several guidelines that are expected to be followed. “Only one suspect should appear in the lineup. If there are two or more suspects, no two should appear together in the same lineup or photo array. (Ferdico, Fradella, Totten, 599).” “Whenever practicable, the person who conducts a lineup or photo array and all others present (except for defense counsel, when his or her presence is constitutionally required) should be unaware of which of the participants is the suspect. (Ferdico, Fradella, Totten, 599).” This is called a double-blind administration. It is also important that the identifying witness be given instructions indicating that the suspect may or may not be in the lineup and that they do not have to identify anyone. (Ferdico, Fradella, Totten, 600). They also should be provided with a lineup identification form to fill out. (Ferdico, Fradella, Totten, 600). “The people who appear in a lineup or photo array other than the suspect are called foils or fillers. (Ferdico, Fradella, Totten, 600).” These fillers should resemble the suspect and be able to be described with the same general description as the suspect. (