Unit 11: Identification Evidence Flashcards
What is the purpose of PACE Code D?
Procedures designed to test a witness’s ability to identify, under controlled conditions, any suspect they claim to recognise from a previous occasion.
Can non-compliance with PACE Code D lead to exclusion of evidence?
Yes, but not inevitably.
Depends on whether prejudice resulting from non-compliance would have such an adverse effect that justice requires the evidence to be excluded. (s78 PACE).
What are the three major safeguards to reduce mistaken identification?
PACE Code D
Turnbull rules (to guide judges)
Rule against dock-identification.
What is the rule against dock identification?
In trials on indictment, P must not invite W to identify D for the first time in court.
Does either Turnball or Code D apply where the accuracy of a purported identification is not in issue?
No.
Does either Turnball or Code D apply where the honesty of the accusing witness is in question?
No.
Can Turnball warnings be given in cases of alleged recognition?
Yes.
A witness, who has not previously identified D at an identity parade, will not be invited to make a dock identification unless…
…their attendance at the parade was unnecessary or impracticable, or there are exceptional circumstances.
Turnbull: when a case depends wholly/substantially on correctness of an identification, what must the judge warn the jury of?
Caution before convicting in reliance on such identification.
Give reasons for the warning - a mistaken witness can be a convincing one.
List several factors for a jury to consider in a Turnbull decision.
How long was the observation?
Distance?
Light?
Impeded vision?
Seen them before?
Any reason for remembering them?
How long between the observation and police report?
Any material discrepancies in account?
What must a jury be warned about when a witness purports to recognise D?
Mistakes in recognition of close relatives and friends are sometimes made.
When must Turnbull direction be provided?
When prosecution case depends wholly or substantially on visual identification.
Is the absence of an adequate Turnbull direction always going to lead to quashing conviction
Only if the other evidence is not overwhelming.
Is Turnbull applicable to motor vehicle identification?
No.
TRUE or FALSE. No Turnbull direction is necessary if D’s presence at the scene is admitted.
FALSE. Sometimes it may still be appropriate.
GIve examples of supporting evidence for a disputed identification:
Bad character
Cell site analysis
Self-incrimination
Other identification witnesses
TRUE or FALSE. Identification of D by two different witnesses carries more weight than one.
TRUE, but only if the identifications are of a quality that a jury can safely be left to assess.
When can fabrication provide support for identification evidence.
Only when the jury is satisfied that the sole reason for fabrication was to deceive the jury and no other reason can be found. (e.g. a variation on the rule that people lie for a number of reasons)
Does Lucas apply in identification cases?
Yes - see Goodway.
(The jury must be be able to discount any possible innocent motives for the lies and they must be proved to be lies by evidence other than the identifications that they are to support)
Are police officers considered to be more observant than ordinary witnesses?
Yes - see Ramsden, although this is controversial.
If evidence is both deficient and unsupported, what must the judge do?
Per Turnbull, they should direct an acquittal.
Can a case based on largely unsupported ID evidence by left to the jury?
Yes.
Can a defendant be convicted on qualified identification evidence alone (e.g. I am 90% sure it was them)
No, but it has a legitimate role to play alongside other, more reliable, evidence.
What is the Galbraith test, in summary?
If no evidence of D committing X, no difficulty.
If P evidence is such that J could not properly convict, stop the case.
If prosecution evidence is such that its strength/weakness depends on the views of a witness’s reliability…and the jury could properly conclude that D is guilty, the mattr should be left to the jury.
