RD50 - HJ 137 - Mistaken Identify


Executive Summary:
During the 2002 Session of the Virginia General Assembly, Delegate Harry R. Purkey introduced House Joint Resolution 137 (HJ 137) (*1), establishing a joint subcommittee to study mistaken identification in criminal cases. This bill was referred to House Rules where it was passed by indefinitely and referred by letter to the Virginia State Crime Commission to examine the issues and determine if further study is warranted. As a result of the study effort, the following recommendations were made to improve eyewitness identification procedures in the Commonwealth.

Recommendation

It is the recommendation of the Virginia State Crime Commission to require the Virginia Department of Criminal Justice Services (DCJS), Criminal Justice Services Board to develop a workgroup, consisting of local police, sheriffs, Commonwealth’s Attorneys, and the Virginia Department of Motor Vehicles, to consider adopting the United States Department of Justice Guidelines (DOJ Guidelines), applicable to Virginia, and report their findings to the Virginia State Crime Commission by November 2002.
_________________________________
(*1) House Joint Resolution 137 (2002). See attachment 1.