State v. Artis, 2012 Conn. App. LEXIS 329

The defendant Troy Artis appeals conviction for accessory to assault in the first degree by means of a dangerous instrument after a jury trial.
The incident occurred February 14, 2008, involving Otero at clubs NV and Blu in Hartford; the defendant confronted Otero during a multi-person assault that followed a confrontation after a car incident.
Evidence showed the defendant briefly entered the Infiniti, joined a group that assaulted Otero as he lay on the ground, and then fled when police approached.
A knife was found in the Infiniti earlier that evening; the state charged Artis as accessory to assault in the first degree and conspiracy-related offenses.
Otero identified the defendant in court and, earlier, through an out-of-court photographic identification that the trial court found unnecessarily suggestive but reliable; the defense moved to suppress.
The trial court granted a judgment of acquittal as to assault in the first degree while aided by two or more persons, but denied motions on other counts; the jury convicted Artis of accessory to assault in the first degree by means of a dangerous instrument and acquitted on conspiracies.

Issue	Plaintiff's Argument	Defendant's Argument	Held
Insufficient evidence for accessory liability	Artis contends evidence fails to prove intent to aid and that a dangerous instrument caused serious injury.	Artis asserts lack of proof that he intended to aid in causing serious injury or was aware of a dangerous instrument.	Court held sufficient evidence to support accessory liability
Admissibility of identifications	Gonzalez argues identifications were reliable despite suggestive procedures and should be admitted.	Artis argues pretrial identification was unnecessarily suggestive and unreliable, tainting in-court identification.	Court held identifications should have been suppressed; reversal and remand necessary

State v. Ledbetter, 275 Conn. 534 (2005) (reliability factors for eyewitness identification; certainty not perfect predictor)
State v. Outing, 298 Conn. 34 (2010) (identification reliability framework; due process considerations)
Manson v. Brathwaite, 432 U.S. 98 (1977) (establishes reliability test for unnecessarily suggestive identifications)
Neil v. Biggers, 409 U.S. 188 (1972) (factors to assess eyewitness identification reliability)
State v. Gordon, 185 Conn. 402 (1981) (harmless error doctrine for unreliable identifications; strong policy rationale)
State v. Milner, 206 Conn. 512 (1988) (overruled Gordon in practice; harmless error available in many identification cases)
State v. Gonzalez, 302 Conn. 287 (2011) (limits on harmless error related to identification when constitutional rights implicated)
State v. Wooten, 227 Conn. 677 (1993) (identification reliability in the context of suppression and taint)