Skip to content

Simultaneous Lineup

Definition

A lineup in which the witness views all persons or photographs at the same time and selects one. Encourages relative judgement (who looks most like the perpetrator?) and produces higher false-identification rates than the sequential format in target-absent conditions.

Related terms

BNSS 2023 § 54
The Indian statutory provision governing identification parades, replacing CrPC § 9. Requires the parade to be held before a magistrate with persons...
Double-Blind Administration
Lineup administration by an officer who does not know which member is the suspect. Removes the possibility of administrator cue effects. The...
Functional Size
The number of lineup members who are plausible perpetrators given the witness's prior description. A lineup with nominal size six but functional...
Must-Be-There Bias
The tendency of witnesses to make a lineup identification even when uncertain, if they believe the perpetrator is present. Substantially reduced by...
Relative Judgement
The cognitive strategy of comparing lineup members to each other and selecting the best match to memory. Encouraged by the simultaneous format...
Sequential Lineup
A lineup in which members are presented one at a time, with the witness making a yes/no decision on each before seeing...
VIPER System
Video Identification Parade Electronic Recording, the default identification procedure in England and Wales since 2003. Uses standardised database clips administered by an...

Explained in

Your journey to becoming a forensic professional starts here.

Practice with mock tests, learn from structured notes, and get your questions answered by a global forensic community, all in one place.