From a press release:
Ammiano bill would reduce mistaken convictions
SACRAMENTO – Assemblymember Tom Ammiano today introduced AB 604, a bill that would promote the use of research-proven witness identification procedures to reduce the incidence of wrongful convictions.
“Prosecutors and police investigators are often under pressure to identify a culprit. It’s important to make sure they identify the right person,” Ammiano said. “The case of Ronald Ross shows that shoddy witness identification has horrible consequences.”
Ronald Ross is due to be released from prison this month after spending years in state prison on the basis of a wrong identification. Following efforts by the Northern California Innocence Project, prosecutors in Alameda County have said they will ask a judge to release Ross, who was convicted of attempted murder in a 2006 shooting.
“The injustice to Ronald Ross was not the only terrible result in the Alameda County case,” Ammiano added. “There was also the fact that the true culprit went free and committed other crimes because police stopped looking for him. This bill will reduce the chances of both of those problems.”
The bill requires trial judges to give juries instructions about witness identification procedures. The instruction would tell jurors they could take into account the way in which identification took place, and whether it met certain criteria. The presence of that instruction would create an incentive for investigators to use more careful procedures.
Among the procedures that improve the quality of identification are sequential presentation of photo lineups (as opposed to showing all photos at one time) and having double-blind administration, in which a party not directly involved in the case administers the lineup presentation.
In Ross’ case, there was not double-blind administration. As a result, the victim was reportedly pressured to make the identification of Ross as the shooter. The actual culprit was not included in the lineup.
The bill is sponsored by the ACLU of California, the California Public Defenders Association and the Northern California Innocence Project.
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