California IN BRIEF : SAN JOSE : Police Use of Photos of Innocent Debated

Photos of hundreds of Vietnamese-American men, some of whom have never been arrested, have been assembled by police investigating attacks on Vietnamese families. The album contains about 430 photos and is used in photo lineups for crime victims, said acting Police Chief Fred Abram. Most are young Vietnamese men who have been arrested before. But some have never been arrested. The practice is legal, Abram said, adding, “We do not stop people on the street. Everyone in the book has been arrested or with someone who’s been arrested.” But Stanford University law professor Bill Hing, director of the Immigrant Legal Resources Center, said, “This community is so small that, even though they are not criminals, if their picture is in the book there is a distinct possibility that people will associate them with criminality without a real basis.” In 35 similar attacks in 1989 and 1990, Vietnamese families and businesses were hit by young Vietnamese men who invaded homes and robbed the occupants at gunpoint.