State v. Howard Jones (A-112-13; 073827)
In determining the reliability of evidence obtained through a suggestive showup identification procedure, extrinsic evidence of guilt should play no role in the determination of the evidence’s admissibility. A reliability assessment must restrict its focus to the accuracy and trustworthiness of the specific identification. In this matter, the showup was impermissibly suggestive, and evidence from that showup was assessed for reliability under an erroneous analysis. Defendant’s conviction is reversed and the matter is remanded for new proceedings.
