Opinion ID: 1103334
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: Albert J. Howard's Identifications

Text: Fitzpatrick challenges Howard's identification on the basis that (1) showing Howard a single driver's license photo of Fitzpatrick prior to a photo array was unnecessarily suggestive; and (2) showing Howard an array of photographs including only men with beards when Howard indicated that the man he saw was clean-shaven was unnecessarily suggestive. The evidence indicates that on September 20, 1996, Howard was shown a single driver's license photo of Fitzpatrick, and could not identify the man on the license as the pizza delivery man he observed leaving his house with Romines. On September 23, 1996, Howard picked Fitzpatrick out of a photo array. The trial court denied Fitzpatrick's motion to suppress the identification by Howard, finding that there was not any substantial likelihood that Howard's picking Fitzpatrick's photograph out of the array was influenced by the earlier showing to him of the single driver's license photo because the two photos were quite different. This Court has determined that the showing of a single photo [i]s unduly suggestive. Washington v. State, 653 So.2d 362, 365 (Fla.1994). Thus, showing Howard a single driver's license photo of Fitzpatrick was unduly suggestive. However, a pretrial identification obtained from suggestive procedures is not per se inadmissible, but may be introduced into evidence if found to be reliable and based solely upon the witness' independent recollection of the offender at the time of the crime, uninfluenced by the intervening illegal confrontation. Id. (quoting Edwards v. State, 538 So.2d 440, 442 (Fla.1989)). The record demonstrates that Howard got a good look at Fitzpatrick, who was at Howard's home for fifteen to twenty minutes. Howard testified that he had no problem observing Fitzpatrick because Fitzpatrick was directly in front of him, five to ten feet away. Howard also indicated that he had a conversation with Fitzpatrick in a well-lit room within the five- to ten-foot range. Given this sufficient degree of attention, we determine that even though showing a single photo prior to a photo array consisting of six pictures was unduly suggestive, Howard's ample opportunity to observe Fitzpatrick closely provided an independent basis for the identification, uninfluenced by the suggestive procedure. Moreover, any claim that the procedure was suggestive is diminished by the fact that Howard was not able to identify Fitzpatrick in the single driver's license photo. Fitzpatrick's allegation that the police further tainted Howard's out-of-court identification by including only men with beards in the photo array, after Howard had indicated that the man he saw was clean-shaven, also fails. The evidence indicates that the police showed Howard an array of six photographs. The photo array was not tainted by the mere fact that Fitzpatrick had a beard in his picture because all the men depicted in the photopack had that similar characteristic; all had beards. See Green v. State, 641 So.2d 391, 394-95 (Fla.1994). This is not a case where the police showed five bearded men and a clean-shaven Fitzpatrick, or a case where the police directed Howard's attention to one picture. Instead, the police showed Howard an array of six photographs, all of which depicted men with similar characteristics. Moreover, the fact that Howard stated that the man he saw the night in question was clean-shaven, yet could identify a bearded Fitzpatrick out of an array of bearded men, certainly bolsters the conclusion that Howard had a good opportunity to observe Fitzpatrick and eliminates any chance of misidentification. Accordingly, we conclude that the composition of the photo array in the instant case was not unduly suggestive. Next, Fitzpatrick contends that the trial court erred in failing to exclude Howard's courtroom identification of Fitzpatrick. An in-court identification may not be admitted unless it is found to be reliable and based solely upon the witness' independent recollection of the offender at the time of the crime, uninfluenced by any intervening illegal confrontation. Edwards, 538 So.2d at 442. This Court in Edwards explained: In gauging the reliability of an in-court identification, the trial judge must consider the following factors: the prior opportunity the witness had to observe the alleged criminal act; the existence of any discrepancy between any pretrial lineup description and the defendant's actual description; any identification prior to the lineup of another person; any identification by picture of the defendant prior to the lineup; failure to identify the defendant on a prior occasion; any time lapse between the alleged act and the lineup identification; and any other factors raised by the totality of the circumstances that bear upon the likelihood that the witness' in-court identification is not tainted by the illegal lineup. Id. at 443. It is the State's burden to demonstrate by clear and convincing evidence that the courtroom identification had an independent source or that its introduction into evidence was in any event harmless error. See id. at 444. The State has satisfied its burden in this case. Howard's testimony demonstrates his independent recollection of Fitzpatrick. Specifically, Howard testified that Fitzpatrick was in his house for ten to fifteen minutes, that he had a conversation with Fitzpatrick, and that seeing Fitzpatrick stood out in his mind because he was waiting for a pizza that night when Fitzpatrick, working as a Pro Pizza delivery man, arrived with a pizza. This situation is unlike the situation in Edwards, where this Court could not conclude that the witness's in-court identification had an independent source because the witness observed the defendant for only a few seconds, at which time the witness stated he had no reason to pay attention, and thus it was likely that his in-court identification was induced by the pretrial lineup. See Edwards, 538 So.2d at 444. Howard's in-court identification of Fitzpatrick was admissible. See Perez v. State, 648 So.2d 715, 719 (Fla.1995) (holding the in-court identification admissible, independent of the show-up, based on the witness's ability to observe the defendant at the crime scene for about a minute, within eight to ten feet). Therefore, we find no error. Finally, Fitzpatrick contends that Howard's in-court identification was further tainted by Howard's being informed the day of the suppression hearing that he had picked the right photo out of the array, thus improperly bolstering Howard's confidence in his identification. This claim is unpersuasive. Given the testimony regarding the ample opportunity Howard had to observe Fitzpatrick, Fitzpatrick cannot sustain the argument that Howard's simply being informed that he picked the right photo out of the array prior to the suppression hearing unduly bolstered his identification. See Paschal v. State, 251 So.2d 257, 259 (Fla.1971) (rejecting the defendant's contention that the in-court identification was improperly bolstered by the witnesses' view of the defendant at the inquest when the witness clearly saw the faces of the men at the time of the crime and had identified them from photographs prior to the inquest); Holton v. State, 535 So.2d 678, 679 (Fla. 1st DCA 1988) (finding that, notwithstanding viewing the defendant at a pretrial hearing, the reliability of the witness's in-court identification was supported by the fact that the victim had ample opportunity to view the defendant and in addition was able to select the defendant from a photo spread prior to trial). We conclude the in-court identification was properly admitted.