Q: Chgd w/fel assault & picked out of a lineup but no evidence other than a persons word but innocent. Can be found guilty?
Did not commit a crime but someone is mad at me and is retaliating by saying I was the one who beat him up but I didn’t. He picked me out of a photo lineup. Wondering if I stand a chance even though I didn’t do anything.
A:
When it comes to a phone lineup there is a procedure that has to be followed before the line up can be considered reliable. The line-up procedure is governed by O. R.C. 2933.83. The procedures purpose is preventing suggestive methods when picking out a suspect.
Any law enforcement agency that conducts photo lineups to adopt specific procedures for conducting the lineups. Such procedures must provide, at a minimum, the use of a “blind” or “blinded” administrator and a folder system. That is, someone who: does not know the identity of the suspect; uses folders, dummy folders, the suspect’s photo, filler photos, and blank photos; and makes a written record of the lineup proceedings. R.C. 2933.83 also provides guidance on what the blind administrator must do, and cannot do, during the lineup. So, your lawyer should make sure those procedures were followed and if now, challenge them. Also, if you didn’t commit the crime and have witnesses that can place you somewhere else, you ask your lawyer about a notice of alibi. Additionally, does your accuser have a bad record? Are there any crimes of dishonestly on his record? If so, try to get certified copies of his record and use it to poke holes at his credibility. These are a few ways your lawyer can poke holes at the states witness. I hope this answer gives you a few ways you can poke holes in the States case.
Dimitrios Makridis agrees with this answer
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