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HERE A WITNESS TO THE SHOOTING IDENTIFIED THE DEFENDANT AS THE SHOOTER FOR THE FIRST TIME AT TRIAL; UNDER THE FACTS, THE DEFENDANT WAS NOT PREJUDICED; THE COURT OFFERED GUIDANCE ON HOW TO HANDLE OR AVOID THE SITUATION (CT APP).

The Court of Appeals, in a full-fledged opinion by Judge Singas, over a comprehensive dissenting opinion, affirming the Appellate Division, determined defendant was not prejudiced by a witness to the shooting who identified him as the shooter for the first-time at trial. The opinion takes note of the suggestiveness of a first-time identification at trial and offers instructions on how the situation should be handled and/or avoided. Here, however, the the defendant was aware of the witness and did not request any identification procedures, surveillance video captured both the shooter and the victim, the victim knew the shooter, and the victim identified the shooter. The court noted that any error was clearly harmless:

Concerning identifications made at trial, this Court and many others have recognized the inherent suggestiveness of the traditional in-court identification procedure, with a single defendant sitting at a table with defense counsel … . As with an unduly suggestive pretrial identification, it will often be immediately clear to the witness who the accused defendant is, especially if the witness has a rudimentary knowledge of courtroom seating arrangements. The principal danger is that, faced with the pressures of testifying at trial, the witness will identify the defendant as the perpetrator simply because the defendant is sitting in the appropriate spot, and not because the witness recognizes the defendant as the same person that they observed during the crime. Inasmuch as the traditional courtroom seating arrangement may itself suggest to the witness who should be identified, trial courts must be vigilant to ensure that where a witness has not previously identified the defendant in a properly conducted pretrial identification procedure such as a photo array or lineup, the suggestiveness of a first-time, in-court identification procedure does not create an unreasonable danger of a mistaken identification. People v Perdue, 2023 NY Slip Op 06404, CtApp 12-14-23

Practice Point: Here, under the unique facts of the case, defendant was not prejudiced by allowing a witness to identify him as the shooter for the first time at trial. The court offered guidance on how the situation should be handled and/or avoided.

 

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