I'm a witness - what should I expect?

This is a legal requirement so that there is an accurate record of those present during the viewing. This will include the person from the Identification Unit, a defence solicitor, yourself and possibly one or two others. For example, you may have asked for someone to be there to support you, you may require an interpreter, or if you are a child then you will need an appropriate adult present.

There may be a video camera set-up in the viewing room which will record the procedure. You should not worry about this as it ensures the video identification procedure is conducted fairly and accurately and is common practise if a defence solicitor is not present.

You will be required to watch the parade twice and then after this, if you cannot make an identification you can choose to watch all or part of the parade again. During the viewing the person conducting the identification procedure may make some notes for administrative purposes.

After viewing the video identification parade, you may be asked some additional questions to help with the validity of the procedure. The witness viewing procedure should take between 15 to 30 minutes to complete.