HB 21-1142: Eyewitness Identification Showup Regulations

• Restricts law enforcement use of showup identifications (presenting a single suspect to a witness) to three limited circumstances: detaining a suspect within minutes of a crime, cases where lineups and photo arrays are unavailable, or verifying identity in domestic violence and familial relationships.

• Requires peace officers conducting showups starting January 1, 2022 to follow 12 specific procedural safeguards including separate witness transportation, well-lit locations, avoiding suggestive statements, documenting confidence levels, and video recording of the entire procedure with body-worn cameras by January 1, 2023.

• Mandates peace officers provide a standardized admonition to witnesses before showups explaining the person may not have committed a crime and that eliminating suspects serves as important a purpose as identifying them.

• Requires law enforcement agencies to collect and report data on all showups starting January 1, 2022 including date, time, location, demographics of witness and subject, alleged crime, and outcome.

• Makes law enforcement compliance with showup requirements admissible evidence in court proceedings, and requires agencies to update eyewitness identification policies consistent with peer-reviewed research by November 15, 2021.