Massachusetts Criminal Attorney, Kevin J. Mahoney, Explains “Photo Array” IdentificationMost people are familiar with a police “lineup.” A “photo array” is another method police use to obtain a witness identification of a suspect. It works like this: Detectives have a witness (or victim) come to the police station, where they present the witness with a set (an “array”) of 6-9 photographs. The detective will then ask the witness if he can identify the alleged perpetrator from those photographs.As … [Read more...]

Boston Criminal Lawyer, Kevin J. Mahoney, Explains How to Challenge a Line-up Identification You know how a line-up works: a witness (or victim) is brought to the police station and placed in a room with a two-way mirror. From a group of individuals is lined up on the other side of the mirror, the witness is asked if he can identify the perpetrator among the individuals presented. While a line-up identification may seem like strong and persuasive evidence against a defendant, an experienced … [Read more...]

Boston Criminal Defense Attorney Describes Basic Identification Procedures Are the criminal charges against you based, even in part, on a witness having identified you as the person who committed the crime? If so, an experienced Boston criminal defense attorney will review the identification procedure used by the police and, if possible, challenge the identification on constitutional grounds. Constitutional restrictions on identification proceduresPre-trial identification procedures must conform … [Read more...]