Moak: Criminal Justice Procedure, 8th Edition


Case Studies

Chapter 10: The 6th Amendment

Alesa was arrested as a suspect in a residential burglary case. There was one witness who saw the suspect leaving the home around 10 pm. She had seen the suspect from her bedroom window across the street and immediately called the police. Alesa was arrested 15 minutes later as she was walking two blocks from for the home that was burglarized. Alesa stated that she had just returned home from work and was taking a late night walk to relieve some stress; however, she was more than 5 blocks from her home. At the police station, Alesa was placed in a lineup with five other individuals. Alesa was wearing a navy blue t-shirt, jeans, had a medium complexion skin tone and her brown hair was up in a ponytail. She is 25 years old. The other people in the lineup consisted of two women in their later 40s, one woman that was in her 30s, one woman that was in her 20s and a young teenager. The other women were wearing jeans with two wearing red shaded t-shirts, one with a flowered blouse, another wearing a white collared shirt, and the other wearing a blue tank top. All of the women had brown hair except the young teenager had blonde hair. Two of the women also had their hair in ponytails. The young blonde had a very light complexion as well as two of the other women. The other two women in the lineup had very dark complexions. The officers brought the witness into the room and stated that the suspect was in the lineup and to point her out. Based on this lineup, the witness was able to identify Alesa as the intruder in the residential burglary case. Alesa was subsequently found guilty at trial.

Questions

  1. According to the description given, does this lineup follow the guidelines recommended for a “fair” lineup?

    Correct Answer

    No. The first component is 5 to 6 participants. The lineup did this correctly. However the lineup did not use women with similar complexions, hair color, or clothing. Those are 3 of the 4 components for fair lineups.

  2. By telling the witness that the suspect was in the lineup, were the police acting in a “fair” manner?

    Correct Answer

    No. While performing lineups, the police should inform the witness that the suspect may or may not be in the lineup. This is to reduce the power of suggestion.

  3. In addition to asking the witness to identify the suspect, what else should the police ask the witness after the witness identifies a suspect in the lineup?

    Correct Answer

    After a positive identification, the police should ask the witness why he or she chose the suspect out of the lineup. The witness should be able to give particular details to substantiate the selection.

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