MA Show Up ID
A show up is an identification procedure that is used by Massachusetts police. During a show up the eye witness views only a single suspect. In many cases, the Massachusetts Courts feel that line up and photo ID are more reliable. As you can imagine the show up ID is usually quite bias as the eye witness is shown one person.
An example of a show up ID would be the situation in which the suspect grabs a purse from an old lady. A girl who happens to be in the area sees the suspect run away with the purse. The girl calls 911 and states that the suspect is wearing a black sweat shirt and a blue and white cap. A police officer two blocks away from where the eye witness is calling sees a young man wearing a black sweat shirt and black and white cap. The police officer stops the young man who doesn’t have a purse. The young man is brought to where the eye witness is located.
In this situation, the police will usually put the eye witness in a spot where she can see the young man. However, the police will try to put the young man in a place where he cannot see the eye witness. The eye witness is then given the opportunity to try to identify the young man as the suspect. Because the eye witness is only given one person to look at, it becomes increasingly likely that the eye witness would ID any person that is brought to the show up.
Call Attorney Jason Chan to talk about your case today at 508-808-8902.
