Ernest E. Crume, Jr. v. Dr. George J. Beto, Director, Texas Department of Corrections

WISDOM, Circuit Judge.

This case presents a close question: Was Ernest Crume, the petitioner, accorded due process of law in the procedures leading to his pre-trial identification 1 as one who had committed a robbery? We have resolved our nagging doubts in favor of affirming the district court’s denial of his petition for habeas corpus.

December 10, 1956, an armed bandit wearing a hat and a blue corduroy jacket robbed a liquor store in Houston, Texas. Four days later the Houston police arrested Ernest Crume for drunkenness. Soon after his arrest, the police began to suspect Crume of the liquor…