I looked at a photo line up at the police station today, hoping to identify the guy that hit me. I was shown six images, all obviously pictures from drivers’ licenses. I got to wondering — do they just pick random images? So, then have I been in a line up? Have you?
Anyhow, I could disregard a few of the guys right away. Too old. But the problem is that none of guys in the pictures had facial hair; the guy that hit me had a beard. I realized how outdated most people’s drivers license photos are, and figured that one particular guy, who looked like a younger version of the person I saw, might just be the man. But another guy looked like he might be the guy, too. And another guy had a good chance, too, in the dark, late at night.
I mean, I only saw the guy for a second (really) five seconds after being slammed into, while in shock, through the glare of his headlights. I looked at him just long enough to think "Wow, he looks a lot like Greg Howard." I also remember thinking that the driver looked…well…nice. You’re probably not supposed to say that of the guy that hits (and runs from) you, but he really looked like an OK guy.
That was my frustrating line up experience. So what if I picked the wrong guy? Is that the end of it, case closed? I guess I find out if I passed the test in a few days.