Please ensure Javascript is enabled for purposes of website accessibility
Police Lineups Are Flawed. Can They Be Fixed?
GV-Wire-1
By gvwire
Published 7 years ago on
May 10, 2018

Share

Police lineups are a staple element of crime shows on TV and in the movies. An eyewitness, behind one-way glass, pointing out a criminal suspect among a group of four or five decoys standing along a wall at police headquarters makes for a highly dramatic moment on the screen.
But experts say police lineups are often unreliable. In many cases, innocent people have been wrongly convicted based on the outcome of a lineup, allowing those who are guilty to walk free.

California Lawmakers Seek Changes

Two state lawmakers are now looking to change the way police lineups are conducted in an effort to improve their accuracy. They’ve proposed a bill requiring California police and sheriff’s departments to follow new, research-based lineup procedures that have been adopted by federal law enforcement agencies.

Previous efforts to require changes to lineup practices across California have failed. In 2007, Former Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger vetoed a measure passed by the legislature, saying the policies should be decided by local agencies.
“A fair and equitable justice system must have the strongest policies in place to ensure that we correctly identify people who commit crimes,” said state Sen. Scott Wiener (D-San Francisco), co-author of the bill. “Requiring evidence-based standards for eyewitness identifications will help keep innocent people out of jail while still allowing public safety officials to do their jobs.”

Wrongly Convicted and Sent to Prison

BBC News recently posted a compelling video profiling the experiences of Uriah Courtney and Rafael Madrigal. Both men were wrongly identified in police line-ups and sentenced to long prison sentences for crimes they did not commit. They were both eventually freed through DNA evidence. Courtney had served seven years in while Madrigal had served nine years behind bars.
Among the requirements of the proposed law, police agencies would have to use a practice known as “blind administration” for live or photographic lineups. That means the lineup must be conducted by officers who don’t know the identity of the suspect to avoid the possibility of influencing an eyewitness.
Officers must also video record the process and inform witnesses that a suspect might not be in the lineup.

Other States Lead the Way

According to The Los Angeles Times, at least 19 states have adopted similar procedures for eyewitness identification.
“In California, counties such as Alameda, San Francisco, Contra Costa and Santa Clara have implemented them. But no statewide standards exist, even as mistaken identity has helped lead to convictions in 15 out of 23 cases in which people were later cleared by DNA evidence, according to the National Registry of Exonerations,” the Times reports.
Previous efforts to require changes to lineup practices across California have failed. In 2007, Former Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger vetoed a measure passed by the legislature, saying the policies should be decided by local agencies.

DON'T MISS

What Are Fresno Real Estate Experts Predicting for 2025 and Beyond?

UP NEXT

Clovis Goes Full Throttle With Biggest Old Town Motorama Yet

The Secret to Restaurant-Style Chicken at Home

22 minutes ago

One Person Killed in Explosion Outside Fertility Clinic; Police Say Act Was ‘Intentional’

2 days ago

Wall Street Drops, Treasury Yields Rise After Moody’s Downgrade

(Reuters) – Wall Street’s main indexes slipped on Monday, with technology stocks falling as Treasury yields spiked after Moody&#...

6 minutes ago

6 minutes ago

Wall Street Drops, Treasury Yields Rise After Moody’s Downgrade

Firefighters work at the site of a private enterprise hit by a Russian drone strike, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, outside of Kyiv, Ukraine May 18, 2025. REUTERS/Valentyn Ogirenko
9 minutes ago

Trump Speaks to Putin Amid ‘Impasse’ on Ending War in Ukraine

Palestinians wait to receive food cooked by a charity kitchen, in Jabalia, in the northern Gaza Strip, May 19, 2025. REUTERS/Mahmoud Issa
21 minutes ago

Netanyahu Says Israel Will Control Gaza as Aid Trucks Prepare to Enter

22 minutes ago

The Secret to Restaurant-Style Chicken at Home

2 days ago

One Person Killed in Explosion Outside Fertility Clinic; Police Say Act Was ‘Intentional’

2 days ago

Trump Wants a Deal With Iran, but It May Be Weaker Than His Supporters Demand

2 days ago

Duffy Blamed Biden for Air Traffic Woes. It’s a Decades-Old Problem.

2 days ago

The Day Grok Lost Its Mind

Help continue the work that gets you the news that matters most.

Search

Send this to a friend