Policy
610
Alameda Police Department
Alameda Police Department Policy Manual
Copyright Lexipol, LLC 2022/01/13, All Rights Reserved.
Published with permission by Alameda Police Department ***DRAFT*** Eyewitness Identification - 1 Eyewitness Identification
610.1 PURPOSE AND SCOPE
This policy sets forth guidelines to be used when members of this [department/office] employ eyewitness identification techniques (Penal Code § 859.7). 610.1.1 DEFINITIONS
Definitions related to the policy include:
Eyewitness identification process - Any field identification, live lineup or photographic identification.
Field identification - A live presentation of a single individual to a witness following the commission of a criminal offense for the purpose of identifying or eliminating the person as the suspect.
Live lineup - A live presentation of individuals to a witness for the purpose of identifying or eliminating an individual as the suspect.
Photographic lineup - Presentation of photographs to a witness for the purpose of identifying or eliminating an individual as the suspect.
610.2 POLICY
The Alameda Police Department will strive to use eyewitness identification techniques, when appropriate, to enhance the investigative process and will emphasize identifying persons responsible for crime and exonerating the innocent.
610.3 INTERPRETIVE SERVICES
Members should make a reasonable effort to arrange for an interpreter before proceeding with eyewitness identification if communication with a witness is impeded due to language or hearing barriers.
Before the interpreter is permitted to discuss any matter with the witness, the investigating member should explain the identification process to the interpreter. Once it is determined that the interpreter comprehends the process and can explain it to the witness, the eyewitness identification may proceed as provided for within this policy.
610.4 EYEWITNESS IDENTIFICATION PROCESS AND FORM
The Investigations Division supervisor shall be responsible for the development and maintenance of an eyewitness identification process for use by members when they are conducting eyewitness identifications.
The process should include appropriate forms or reports that provide (Penal Code § 859.7):
(a) The date, time and location of the eyewitness identification procedure. (b) The name and identifying information of the witness.
Alameda Police Department
Alameda Police Department Policy Manual
Eyewitness Identification
Copyright Lexipol, LLC 2022/01/13, All Rights Reserved.
Published with permission by Alameda Police Department ***DRAFT*** Eyewitness Identification - 2 (c) The name of the person administering the identification procedure. (d) If applicable, the names of all of the individuals present during the identification procedure.
(e) An instruction to the witness that it is as important to exclude innocent persons as it is to identify a perpetrator.
(f) An instruction to the witness that the perpetrator may or may not be among those presented and that the witness is not obligated to make an identification. (g) If the identification process is a photographic or live lineup, an instruction to the witness that the perpetrator may not appear exactly as he/she did on the date of the incident. (h) An instruction to the witness that the investigation will continue regardless of whether an identification is made by the witness.
(i) A signature line where the witness acknowledges that he/she understands the identification procedures and instructions.
(j) A statement from the witness in the witness's own words describing how certain he/ she is of the identification or non-identification. This statement should be taken at the time of the identification procedure.
(k) Any other direction to meet the requirements of Penal Code § 859.7, including direction regarding blind or blinded administrations and filler selection.
The process and related forms should be reviewed at least annually and modified when necessary. 610.5 EYEWITNESS IDENTIFICATION
Members are cautioned not to, in any way, influence a witness as to whether any subject or photo presented in a lineup is in any way connected to the case.
Members should avoid mentioning that:
• The individual was apprehended near the crime scene.
• The evidence points to the individual as the suspect. • Other witnesses have identified or failed to identify the individual as the suspect.
In order to avoid undue influence, witnesses should view suspects or a lineup individually and outside the presence of other witnesses. Witnesses should be instructed to avoid discussing details of the incident or of the identification process with other witnesses.
Whenever feasible, the The eyewitness identification procedure should be audio and video recorded and the recording should be retained according to current evidence procedures. When it is not feasible to make a recording with both audio and visual representations, an audio recording should be made (Penal Code § 859.7).
610.5.1 PHOTOGRAPHIC LINEUP AND LIVE LINEUP CONSIDERATIONS When practicable, the person composing the lineup and the person presenting the lineup should not be directly involved in the investigation of the case. When this is not possible, the member Alameda Police Department
Alameda Police Department Policy Manual
Eyewitness Identification
Copyright Lexipol, LLC 2022/01/13, All Rights Reserved.
Published with permission by Alameda Police Department ***DRAFT*** Eyewitness Identification - 3 presenting the lineup must take the utmost care not to communicate the identity of the suspect in any way.
When practicable, the employee presenting a lineup to a witness should not know which photograph or person is the suspect.
Other persons or photos used in any lineup should bear similar characteristics to the suspect to avoid causing him/her to unreasonably stand out. In cases involving multiple suspects, a separate lineup should be conducted for each suspect. The suspects should be placed in a different order within each lineup.
The employee presenting the lineup to a witness should do so sequentially and not simultaneously (i.e., show the witness one person at a time). The witness should view all persons in the lineup.
The order of the suspect or the photos and fillers should be randomized before being presented to each witness.
A live lineup should only be used before criminal proceedings have been initiated against the suspect. If there is any question as to whether any criminal proceedings have begun, the investigating officer should contact the appropriate prosecuting attorney before proceeding. 610.6 DOCUMENTATION
A thorough description of the eyewitness process and the result of any eyewitness identification should be documented in the case report.
If a photographic lineup is utilized, a copy of the photographic lineup presented to the witness should be included in the case report. In addition, the order in which the photographs were presented to the witness should be documented in the case report. 610.6.1 DOCUMENTATION RELATED TO RECORDINGS
The handling member shall document the reason that a video recording or any other recording of an identification was not obtained (Penal Code § 859.7). 610.6.2 DOCUMENTATION RELATED TO BLIND ADMINISTRATION If a presentation of a lineup is not conducted using blind administration, the handling member shall document the reason (Penal Code § 859.7).
610.7 FIELD IDENTIFICATION CONSIDERATIONS
Field identifications, also known as field elimination show-ups or one-on-one identifications, may be helpful in certain cases, where exigent circumstances make it impracticable to conduct a photo or live lineup identifications. A field elimination show-up or one-on-one identification should not be used when independent probable cause exists to arrest a suspect. In such cases a live or photo lineup is the preferred course of action if eyewitness identification is contemplated.
When initiating a field identification, the member should observe the following guidelines:
(a) Obtain a complete description of the suspect from the witness.
Alameda Police Department
Alameda Police Department Policy Manual
Eyewitness Identification
Copyright Lexipol, LLC 2022/01/13, All Rights Reserved.
Published with permission by Alameda Police Department ***DRAFT*** Eyewitness Identification - 4 (b) Assess whether a witness should be included in a field identification process by considering:
1. The length of time the witness observed the suspect.
2. The distance between the witness and the suspect.
3. Whether the witness could view the suspect’s face.
4. The quality of the lighting when the suspect was observed by the witness.
5. Whether there were distracting noises or activity during the observation.
6. Any other circumstances affecting the witness’s opportunity to observe the suspect.
7. The length of time that has elapsed since the witness observed the suspect. (c) If safe and practicable, the person who is the subject of the show-up should not be handcuffed or in a patrol vehicle.
(d) When feasible, members should bring the witness to the location of the subject of the show-up, rather than bring the subject of the show-up to the witness. (e) The person who is the subject of the show-up should not be shown to the same witness more than once.
(f) In cases involving multiple suspects, witnesses should only be permitted to view the subjects of the show-up one at a time.
(g) The person who is the subject of the show-up should not be required to put on clothing worn by the suspect, to speak words uttered by the suspect or to perform other actions mimicking those of the suspect.
(h) If a witness positively identifies a subject of the show-up as the suspect, members should not conduct any further field identifications with other witnesses for that suspect. In such instances members should document the contact information for any additional witnesses for follow up, if necessary.
610.8 PHOTOGRAPHIC LINEUP AND LIVE LINEUP CONSIDERATIONS When practicable, the member presenting the lineup should not be involved in the investigation of the case or know the identity of the suspect. In no case should the member presenting a lineup to a witness know which photograph or person in the lineup is being viewed by the witness (Penal Code § 859.7). Techniques to achieve this include randomly numbering photographs, shuffling folders, or using a computer program to order the persons in the lineup.
Individuals in the lineup should reasonably match the description of the perpetrator provided by the witness and should bear similar characteristics to avoid causing any person to unreasonably stand out. In cases involving multiple suspects, a separate lineup should be conducted for each suspect.
The suspects should be placed in a different order within each lineup (Penal Code § 859.7).
The member presenting the lineup should do so sequentially (i.e., show the witness one person at a time) and not simultaneously. The witness should view all persons in the lineup.
Alameda Police Department
Alameda Police Department Policy Manual
Eyewitness Identification
Copyright Lexipol, LLC 2022/01/13, All Rights Reserved.
Published with permission by Alameda Police Department ***DRAFT*** Eyewitness Identification - 5 A live lineup should only be used before criminal proceedings have been initiated against the suspect. If there is any question as to whether any criminal proceedings have begun, the investigating member should contact the appropriate prosecuting attorney before proceeding. 610.8.1 OTHER SAFEGUARDS
Witnesses should be asked for suspect descriptions as close in time to the incident as possible and before conducting an eyewitness identification. No information concerning a suspect should be given prior to obtaining a statement from the witness describing how certain he/she is of the identification or non-identification. Members should not say anything to a witness that that may validate or invalidate an eyewitness’ identification. In photographic lineups, writings or information concerning any previous arrest of a suspect shall not be visible to the witness (Penal Code § 859.7).