United States v. Gregory H. Valenzuela

Appellant seeks reversal of two convictions for armed bank robbery arguing the district court erred in 1) failing to suppress the in-court identification of defendant by Lane, a bank teller, and 2) in granting the government’s motion requesting defendant to be clean shaven at trial.

I. Did the district court err in failing to suppress the in-court identification of defendant?

The First Interstate Bank was robbed by a lone gunman who approached Lane, a bank teller. The robbery lasted three to four minutes and the gunman stood three feet from Lane. After the robbery, Lane described the gunman as a dark haired Mexican-American male, 5'9" to 6' tall, 140 pounds and in his mid-thirties. This description roughly matched the defendant except the defendant is 48 years old and apparently has a wrinkled face and is balding.

Approximately one and one-half months before trial, ten months after the robbery, Lane was shown a photographic line-up containing a seven year old picture of defendant wearing a mustache. Surveillance photographs at the bank showed the bandit to be clean shaven.. Lane was unable to pick defendant as the robber and on cross-examination at trial said she thought she…