R v Reiken

The appellant was convicted of armed robbery, involving the theft of goods from a liquor store while armed with a knife. The incident was captured on a closed circuit camera, and stills and a video were shown to the jury. The appellant was later identified by a witness from a photo board shown to them. Police found clothing in the appellant's home consistent with that worn during the robbery. The appellant appealed the conviction, arguing that the trial judge erred in admitting the photo board as identification evidence and should have exercised a judicial discretion to exclude it. The appellant also claimed that the jury verdict was unreasonable and unsafe. The court of appeal considered whether the jury would have reached the same verdict had the photo board not been admitted and whether the jury verdict was unreasonable, unsafe, and unsatisfactory. The court found that the trial judge did not err in admitting the photo board as identification evidence, and the jury verdict was not unreasonable, unsafe, or unsatisfactory. The court held that the trial judge had correctly directed the jury on the unreliability of photo identification and the weaknesses in this evidence. The appeal against conviction was dismissed, and the conviction was upheld.