Massachusetts law about eyewitness identification

Guidelines, cases, and web sources on eyewitness identification law.

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Court rules and guidelines

Massachusetts guide to evidence, § 1112: Eyewitness identification

Mass. rules of criminal procedure 14(b)(1)(I): Pretrial discovery from the prosecution
"The prosecutor shall disclose to the defense...[a] summary of identification procedures, and all written, recorded, or oral statements made in the presence of or by an identifying witness that are relevant to the issue of identity or to the fairness or accuracy of the identification procedures."

Jury instructions

Model jury instructions on eyewitness identification, 2026.
Includes Statement of the Supreme Judicial Court on the latest revisions to the jury instructions.

Selected cases

Selected court cases on the topic of eyewitness identification

Web sources

Identifying the culprit: Assessing eyewitness identification, National Academy of Sciences, National Research Council Committee Report, 2014.
"In this report, the committee offers recommendations on how law enforcement and the courts may increase the accuracy and utility of eyewitness identifications. In addition, the committee identifies areas for future research and for collaboration between the scientific and law enforcement communities."

Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court limits impact of landmark identification case, Mass. Bar Association, Criminal Law Section Review, 2018.
Summarizes Judicial Court decisions that  fundamentally changed the rules regarding the identification of criminal defendants at their trials by commonwealth witnesses.

Print sources

Criminal defense motions, 5^th ed. (Mass. practice v. 42) West, 2019- with annual supplement.
Section 5:23: Witness statement concerning identification; Section 5:25: Information relating to identification of defendant; Sections 8:45 – 8:49: Exclude evidence, identification.

Criminal law, 3^rd ed. (Mass. practice v. 32) West, 2001 with supplement.
Section 144: Direct evidence.

Criminal practice and procedure, 4^th ed. (Mass. practice v. 30) Thomson Reuters, 2014 with supplement.
Chapter 8: Eyewitness identification evidence, Sections 8:1 – 8:72.

Criminal procedure by Wayne R. LaFave, 7^th ed., West, 2025.
Chapter 7: Identification procedures.

Eyewitness identification, MCLE, 2025.

Massachusetts criminal law: A District Court prosecutor’s guide, Massachusetts Prosecutor’s Guide, 2018.
Pages 467-506: Identification.

Massachusetts Superior Court criminal practice jury instructions, 3^rd ed., MCLE, loose-leaf.
Section 6.2: Identification.

Suppression matters under Massachusetts law, annual, LexisNexis. (eBook available with library card)
Chapter 19: Motions to suppress identifications.

Trends in eyewitness identification, MCLE, 2016.

Last updated:	July 24, 2026