Case Title: Stabb v. State

Citation: 

Docket Number: 2/11

State: maryland

Court: Maryland Supreme Court

Date: 2011-11-22T00:00:00Z

Document:
Kenneth Gerald Stabb v. State of Maryland, No. 2, September Term 2011
CRIMINAL LAW - JURY INSTRUCTIONS - STATE’S LACK OF SCIENTIFIC
EVIDENCE - Petitioner’s right to a fair trial by jury was violated, under the circumstances
of this case, where the trial judge instructed preemptively the jury that there is “no legal
requirement that the State utilize any specific investigative technique or scientific test to
prove its case.”  Although the language of this jury instruction is not impermissible per se,
its use, where perhaps appropriate otherwise, ought to be restricted to cases where curative
instructions are necessary.  In this case, there was no necessity for a curative instruction, and
the instruction, when given, served to relieve the State of its burden to prove the defendant’s
guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.
Circuit Court for Wicomico County
Case No. 22-K-08-0841
IN THE COURT OF APPEALS
OF MARYLAND
No. 2
September Term, 2011
                                                                             
KENNETH GERALD STABB
v.
STATE OF MARYLAND
                                                                             
 
Bell, C.J.,
Harrell
Battaglia
Greene
*Murphy
Adkins
Barbera,
JJ.
                                                                             
Opinion by Harrell, J.
                                                                             
Filed:    November 22, 2011
*Murphy, J., now retired, participated in the
hearing and conference of this case while an
active member of this Court but did not
participate in the decision or adoption of this
opinion.
This case concerns the propriety of an “anti-CSI effect,” or “no duty,” jury instruction,
given before closing arguments in a criminal trial, that instructed the jury that there is “no
legal requirement that the State utilize any specific investigative technique or scientific test
to prove its case.”  We addressed a similar issue recently in Atkins v. State, 421 Md. 434, 26
A.3d 979 (2011), and revisit it here primarily to provide additional guidance to Bench and
Bar when confronted with requests (usually from the State) for this (or a similar) type of jury
instruction seeking to avert the purported “CSI effect.”  Since filing our opinion in Atkins,
there have been published or made available no additional empirical studies that convince
us that a “CSI effect” even exists, and, if it does, whether the effect is likely to influence
unduly the final verdict. Although we continue to believe that “anti-CSI effect” or “no duty”
instructions are not per se improper necessarily, we conclude, for reasons that we shall
explain, that the trial court, in the context of the present case, abused its discretion in giving
an “anti-CSI effect” jury instruction.  Accordingly, we shall reverse the judgment of the
Court of Special Appeals and direct remand of the case to the Circuit Court for Wicomico
County for a new trial.
I.  Factual and Procedural Background
Kenneth Gerald Stabb, Petitioner, was convicted by a jury, sitting in the Circuit Court
for Wicomico County, of one count of third-degree sexual assault and one count of second-
degree assault.  In the State’s case-in-chief at Stabb’s 27 April 2009 trial, eight-year-old
Kaylen J., who was seven years old at the time of the assault, testified that, on 17 August
2008, she was sitting on the hood of her mother’s van, parked in front of the family home in
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Salisbury, Maryland, when Stabb touched her “private” with his hand, inside of her
underwear.  Kaylen J. continued that Stabb told her, “If you tell anyone I’ll kill you.”  Kaylen
J. related that her mother, Melissa R., ran out of the house, took Kaylen J. off the hood of the
van, brought her inside, and someone “called the cops.” Before the incident, Kaylen J. said
that she liked Stabb, and thought he was nice and funny.
Officer Jonas Berry testified for the State that he responded to Kaylen J.’s family
home at 11:40 p.m. (based on a telephone complaint), spoke with Melissa R., and
interviewed Kaylen J. briefly.  He observed that Kaylen J. appeared “offset, skittish, very
introverted,” with shaking hands and pulling nervously on her nightgown during the
interview.  Kaylen J. told Officer Barry that Stabb “touched her pee pee” on the inside of her
underwear.  Kaylen J. began to cry, so Barry ended the interview and went looking for Stabb.
He found Stabb asleep in his home nearby and informed him that he was under arrest for a
sexual assault on Kaylen J.  Stabb professed his innocence, but was taken into custody.
Officer Barry referred Kaylen J. to the Child Advocacy Center (“CAC”), but, because there
was no reported penetration during the assault, he did not refer her for medical treatment.
The State called next Phillip R., Kaylen J.’s uncle, who testified that he saw Stabb
outside the house on the evening of the incident. He saw Kaylen J. greet Stabb with a hug,
which was not unusual, and later saw Kaylen J., on the hood of the van, with Stabb’s arms
around her closely.  When Kaylen J. went into the house, she looked scared. He thought
Stabb had been drinking, based on his actions and the smell of alcohol on his breath.  
Heather Sullivan, a licensed graduate social worker employed by the CAC, was called
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as a State’s witness.  Sullivan interviewed Kaylen J. at the CAC on 21 August 2008.  A video
and audio recording of the interview was made, and portions of it were replayed for the jury.
In the recording, Kaylen J. identified parts of the human body on drawings and on dolls, and
demonstrated on them where Stabb touched her.  Sullivan was cross-examined as to why she
did not refer Kaylen J. for a Sexual Assault Forensics Exam (“SAFE”).  Sullivan responded
that a SAFE is done to treat injuries and determine whether there is any physical evidence
of sexual assault.  Kaylen J. was not referred for a SAFE because she did not disclose that
penetration occurred.  Defense counsel pressed Sullivan about the potential for obtaining any
kind of physical evidence had a SAFE been performed on Kaylen J.  Sullivan responded that
there was no possibility of the continued existence on 21 August 2008 of physical evidence
as it had been several days between the assault and Kaylen J.’s interview at the CAC.  By
that time, Kaylen J. had changed clothing and bathed.  Moreover, Sullivan opined that it was
not in Kaylen J.’s best interest to undergo a full pelvic exam, in the absence of previous
disclosure of penetration.  The State rested its case-in-chief at this point.  
Defense counsel requested dismissal of the case, which was denied.  The jury was
excused for lunch and the trial judge, defense attorney, and prosecutor addressed
administrative matters, including the verdict sheet and proposed jury instructions. The trial
judge anticipated argument over the State’s requested lack of scientific evidence jury
instruction (presumably generated by the exchanges over the absence of a SAFE of Kaylen
J. and on what physical evidence might have been obtained had such been carried out), and
questioned defense counsel as to whether she had reviewed the pertinent case law.  Defense
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counsel confirmed an appreciation for Evans v. State, 174 Md. App. 549, 922 A.2d 620, cert.
denied, 400 Md. 648, 929 A.2d 890 (2007).  At that point, the jury returned, and trial
resumed.
Melissa R. was called as the first witness by the defense.  She testified that, on August
17, she saw Stabb leaning over and whispering to her daughter (then seated on the van), so
she ran out of the house, took Kaylen J. from the hood of the van, and brought her inside.
Kaylen J. had a “look of pure horror.” Melissa R. also said that Kaylen J. told her that Stabb
told her to “spread her legs, then spread them wider,” and that she was scared.  Melissa R.
acknowledged that she had an intimate relationship with Stabb (which she did not disclose
to the investigating police) which began to sour shortly before the assault of Kaylen J.  After
learning of the assault, Melissa R. went to a nearby convenience store to tell a friend about
the incident.  The friend instructed Melissa R. to call the police, which she did.  
The defense then called Jane R., Kaylen J.’s grandmother.  Jane R. had been in her
bedroom of the family home at the time of the alleged assault.  She testified that she saw
Stabb leaning over Kaylen J., seated on the hood of the van, with her nightgown pulled over
her knees, and looking frightened.  Jane R. urged Melissa R. to retrieve Kaylen J.
immediately.  Several weeks before the assault, Jane R. sent Stabb a letter stating that Kaylen
J. was upset by Melissa R. and Stabb spending so much time together and urging Stabb to
“back off,” but not to show the letter to Melissa R.  Stabb shared the letter with Melissa R.
anyway, shortly after it was received.
During a recess, the trial judge, the prosecutor, and defense counsel discussed jury
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instructions again. The one proposed by the State, at issue in this case, provided:
During this trial, you have heard testimony of witnesses and
may hear argument of counsel that the State did not use a
specific investigative technique or scientific test.  You may
consider these facts in deciding whether the State has met its
burden of proof.  You should consider all the evidence or lack
of evidence in deciding whether a defendant is guilty.  However,
I instruct you that there is no legal requirement that the State
utilize any specific investigative technique or scientific test to
prove its case.  Your responsibility as jurors is to determine
whether the State has proven based upon all the evidence the
defendant’s guilty beyond a reasonable doubt. [Emphasis
added.]  
Stabb’s attorney objected to the instruction, arguing that the facts of Stabb’s case were
distinguishable from those in Evans, 174 Md. App. at 549, 922 A.2d at 620, where the Court
of Special Appeals approved the use of the same jury instruction:
Defense Counsel: I would incorporate all of the arguments that
the defense in [Evans] made as far as the shift – the burden
shifting.  I would point out that its not a pattern instruction, and
that maybe one day could be, but it’s not now.  And given the
facts of this case, and how the facts were generated, in that they
were not generated by cross-examination, I would ask the court
to just give the pattern instructions as to evidence, direct and
circumstantial evidence, and reasonable doubt and not to give
any specialized instruction in this case. . . . [Emphasis added.]
The Court: All right your objection is noted. Did [the State]
want to be heard?
The State: Your Honor, . . . . It will nonetheless be a vigorous
argument that [Defense Counsel] makes in closing.  The State
believes that it’s an appropriate instruction, and I would ask the
Court to give it.
Defense Counsel: If the Court determines after I gave my
closing argument that I gave a vigorous – then I would ask the
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Court to consider it, but to give it prior to the closing argument
and without making any conclusion that I made a robust or
vehement argument and basically harped on that fact, I would
say its improper.
With the jury back in the box, defense counsel called Robin Stabb, Stabb’s ex-wife,
as an alibi witness.  Ms. Stabb testified that she was with Stabb on 18 August 2008 from
approximately 11:00 p.m. (when she picked him up in her van) to 11:30 p.m. (when she
dropped him off at his house).  
Defense Counsel then called Stabb, who testified that, on the evening of 17 August
2008, he saw Melissa R. outside the convenience store near her house, bought her cigarettes
and beer, and upon noticing the ex-Mrs. Stabb sitting in her van across the street, left the
store and entered Ms. Stabb’s van.  Stabb continued that thereafter he left Ms. Stabb’s van,
walked directly to his house, and fell asleep.  Stabb also claimed that, during another
interview by a policeman named Detective Seichepine, the detective told him that his DNA
was found on Kaylen J. Stabb responded to that revelation by asserting that his DNA was
“not on that child.”  
The State called Detective Seichepine as a rebuttal witness.  On cross-examination by
defense counsel, Detective Seichepine admitted that he told falsely Stabb that an exam had
been performed on Kaylen J.  On redirect examination, the State questioned the detective
whether a SAFE would have yielded any medical evidence, to which the detective  responded
that the possibility was “very minimal.”  When questioned further by the State, Seichepine
testified specifically that he had never heard of anyone obtaining fingerprints from a SAFE.
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During recross-examination, the detective claimed that DNA evidence could be found in
skin-to-skin contact.
After the defense rested and before closing arguments, the trial judge gave the jury
its instructions, including the scientific evidence instruction, supra, to which the Court noted
defense counsel’s objection.  In her closing argument, defense counsel focused heavily on
the State’s reliance on a single child witness and the inconsistent recollections of the
investigating officers and the State’s other witnesses.  She also covered briefly the motive
of Jane R. and Melissa R. to encourage Kaylen J. to implicate Stabb, the possibility of an
alternative assailant, Stabb’s alibi witnesses, and the lack of physical evidence.  
After almost two hours of deliberation, the jury returned a verdict of guilty on both
of the counts with which Stabb was charged.  At the 13 May 2009 sentencing hearing, after
merging the convictions for sentencing purposes, the judge sentenced Stabb to eight years
in prison, with all but four years suspended.
On 13 May 2009, Stabb noted timely an appeal to the Court of Special Appeals.  A
panel of the intermediate appellate court, in an unreported opinion, concluded that, based on
that court’s holding in Evans,  174 Md. App. at 549, 922 A2d at 620, the jury instruction
regarding scientific evidence was proper, affirming the judgment of the Circuit Court.   The
Court of Special Appeals’s decision was filed prior to our decision in Atkins, which did not
overrule explicitly the holding in Evans, but created a new basis for evaluating the giving of
“anti-CSI effect” jury instructions.  Also before we decided Atkins, Stabb filed a petition for
writ of certiorari with this Court.  We granted the petition, Stabb v. State, 418 Md. 397, 15
1  Article 21 of the Maryland Declaration of Rights states: 
Article 21. Rights of accused; indictment; counsel;
confrontation; speedy trial; impartial and unanimous jury:  That
in all criminal prosecutions, every man hath a right to be
informed of the accusation against him; to have a copy of the
Indictment, or charge, in due time (if required) to prepare for his
defence; to be allowed counsel; to be confronted with the
witnesses against him; to have process for his witnesses; to
examine the witnesses for and against him on oath; and to a
speedy trial by an impartial jury, without whose unanimous
consent he ought not to be found guilty.
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A.3d 298 (2011), to consider the following question:
Did the trial court err in instructing the jury that there is no legal
requirement that the State utilize any specific investigative
technique or scientific test to prove its case?
Based on Atkins, we conclude that, although we remain persuaded that “anti-CSI effect” jury
instructions are not improper per se, under the facts of this case, the trial court abused its
discretion in providing essentially a preemptive jury instruction that there was “no legal
requirement for the State to utilize any specific investigative technique or scientific test to
prove its case.”  Therefore, we reverse the judgment of the Court of Special Appeals and
remand with instructions to remand further the case to the Circuit Court for Wicomico
County for a new trial consistent with this opinion.  
II.  Discussion
Article 21 of the Maryland Declaration of Rights1 and the Sixth Amendment to the
United States Constitution grant to criminal defendants the right to a fair trial, which includes
a  requirement that trial judges refrain from making statements that may influence improperly
2  Article 23 of the Maryland Declaration of Rights states: 
Article 23.  Jury judges law and fact; right of trial by jury in
civil proceedings.  In the trial of all criminal cases, the Jury shall
be Judges of Law, as well as of fact, except that the Court may
pass upon the sufficiency of the evidence to sustain a conviction.
The right of trial by Jury of all issues of fact in civil proceedings
in the several Courts of Law in this State, where the amount in
controversy exceeds the sum of $15,000, shall be inviolably
preserved.
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the jury.  Butler v. State, 392 Md. 169, 192, 896 A.2d 359, 373 (2006); see also Gore v.
State, 309 Md. 203, 214, 522 A.2d 1338, 1343 (1987) (stating that “it is generally improper
for a trial judge to show his or her opinion of those matters upon which the jury will
eventually pass”).  Article 23 of the Maryland Declaration of Rights2 states that “the Jury
shall be the Judges of the Law, as well as of fact . . .,” which limits the trial court from giving
jury instructions that comment on evidence properly before the jury.  Gore, 309 Md. at 210,
522 A.2d at 1341. Trial judges occupy a position of such authority in a court room that they
“should be exceedingly careful in any remarks made . . . during the progress of a trial, either
in passing upon evidence or ruling upon prayers, and should carefully refrain, either directly
or indirectly, from giving expression to an opinion upon the existence or not of any fact,
which should be left to the finding of the jury . . . .”  Gore, 309 Md. at 212, 522 A.2d at 1342
(quoting United Rys. & Elec. Co. v. Carneal, 110 Md. 211, 232-33, 72 A. 771, 775 (1909)).
The proper role of the trial court in delivering jury instructions is to “aid the jury in clearly
understanding the case, to provide guidance for the jury’s deliberations, and to help the jury
arrive at a correct verdict.”  Chambers v. State, 337 Md. 44, 48, 650 A.2d 727, 729 (1994).
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Maryland Rule 4-325(c) guides trial courts in delivering jury instructions:
How given.  The court may, and at the request of any party
shall, instruct the jury as to the applicable law and the extent to
which the instructions are binding.  The court may give its
instructions orally or, with the consent of the parties, in writing
instead of orally.  The court need not grant a requested
instruction if the matter is fairly covered by instructions actually
given.
We said in Thompson v. State, 393 Md. 291, 302-303, 901 A.2d 208, 214 (2006)
(quoting Ware v. State, 348 Md. 19, 58, 702 A.2d 699, 718 (1997)), that Rule 4-325(c)
“requir[es] the trial court to give a requested instruction under the following circumstances:
(1) the requested instruction is a correct statement of law; (2) the requested instruction is
applicable under the facts of the case; and (3) the content of the requested instruction was not
fairly covered elsewhere in the jury instruction actually given.”
An improper, objectionable instruction includes one that serves to relieve the state of
its burden to prove a defendant’s guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.  State v. Evans, 278 Md.
197, 207, 362 A.2d 629, 635 (1976).  In order to preserve for appeal properly, an objection
to a particular jury instruction, a party must make timely an objection, after the instruction
is given, that states the particular grounds of the objection.  Gore, 309 Md. at 207, 522 A.2d
at 1339 (explicating Md. Rule 4-325(e)).  The timing of the objection is important because
it should give the trial court an opportunity to correct the instruction in light of a well-
founded objection.  Gore, 309 Md. at 209, 522 A.2d at 1340 (citing Bennett v. State, 230 Md.
562, 568, 188 A.2d 142, 145 (1962)). 
A Maryland appellate court reviews a trial court’s refusal or giving of a jury
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instruction under the abuse of discretion standard.  Gunning v. State, 347 Md. 332, 351, 701
A.2d 374, 383 (1997).  We stated in In re Don Mc., 344 Md. 194, 201, 686 A.2d 269, 272
(1996) (quoting State ex rel. Carroll v. Junker, 482 P.2d 775, 784 (Wash. 1971)): 
Judicial discretion is a composite of many things, among
which are conclusions drawn from objective criteria; it means a
sound judgment exercised with regard to what is right under the
circumstances and without doing so arbitrarily or capriciously.
Where the decision or order is a matter of discretion it will not
be disturbed on review except on a clear showing of abuse of
discretion, that is, discretion manifestly unreasonable, or
exercised on untenable grounds, or for untenable reasons.
We consider the following factors when deciding whether a trial court abused its
discretion in deciding whether to grant or deny a request for a particular jury instruction: (1)
whether the requested instruction was a correct statement of the law; (2) whether it was
applicable under the facts of the case; and (3) whether it was fairly covered in the instructions
actually given.  Gunning, 347 Md. at 348, 701 A.2d at 381 (citing Grandison v. State, 341
Md. 175, 211, 670 A.2d 298, 415 (1995), cert. denied, 519 U.S. 1027, 117 S. Ct. 581, 136
L. Ed. 2d 512 (1996)).  In addition to the general framework established for evaluating
challenges to jury instructions, we spoke directly to the specific jury instruction at issue in
the present case in Atkins. 
A.  Atkins v. State
Atkins was convicted of three counts of second-degree assault stemming from a
physical altercation of unexplained origin that culminated eventually in Atkins drawing a
foldable-blade pocketknife and wounding three people.  Atkins, 421 Md. at 438-39, 26 A.3d
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at 981.  Three days later, police obtained a search warrant for Atkins’ home and retrieved a
12-inch-long (6 inch, non-foldable blade), black knife from his bedside table.  Atkins, 421
Md. at 439, 26 A.3d at 981.  At trial, the State relied heavily on this knife as evidence of the
crime, while the defense counsel focused on the lack of physical evidence collected from the
knife tying it to the crime through DNA or fingerprints.  Atkins, 421 Md. at 440-42, 26 A.3d
at 981 - 83.  Moreover, an eyewitness called by the State testified that she saw a silver (not
black) knife used by Atkins at the affray.  The trial court, over Atkins’s objection, delivered
the same scientific evidence jury instruction at issue in the present case.  Atkins, 421 Md. at
441-42, 26 A.3d at 982-83.  The Court of Special Appeals, based on its holding in Evans, 174
Md. App. at 549, 922 A.2d at 620, affirmed the trial court’s use of the jury instruction.  We
reversed, however, finding that the “instruction was not proper under the facts of the case,
was fairly covered in the instructions actually given, and, rather than solving a problem
arising from the circumstances of the case, created a problem that unfairly prejudiced the
defendant’s case.”  Atkins, 421 Md. at 447, 26 A.3d at 986.
In Atkins, we stated that the most important consideration in evaluating whether a trial
judge abused his/her discretion in giving a scientific evidence jury instruction is whether the
“instruction will run afoul of the prohibition against relieving the State of its burden where
. . . its relation [of the instruction] to the reasonable doubt standard [is] unclear.” 421 Md. at
451, 26 A.3d at 988 (quoting Evans, 174 Md. App. at 571, 922 A.2d at 633).  Further, we
evaluated whether there was a need for a curative instruction to clarify the State’s burden as
it relates to specific investigative techniques or scientific tests.  Id.  We concluded that
3 Many prosecutors hold the view that perhaps some potential jurors, over time,
acquire, from watching television crime dramas and/or reading popular print media reports
on the forensic capacities of scientific tests (some falling in the realm of speculation), an
unrealistic expectation for certain forensic investigations or techniques, such as “DNA
sequencing, fingerprint analysis, and ballistics analysis,” and this expectation impacts their
(continued...)
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defense counsel questioned properly the lack of evidence presented by the State by asking,
during cross-examination of police witnesses, whether the police were capable of looking for
blood or skin cells on the knife recovered from Atkins’s bedroom during a “legitimate, brief,
and reasonable inquiry.”  Atkins, 421 Md. at 452-53, 26 A.3d at 989 (relying on Sample v.
State, 314 Md. 202, 207, 550 A.2d 661, 663 (1988)), where we stated that when “the State
has failed to utilize a well-known, readily available, and superior method of proof to link the
defendant with the criminal activity, the defendant ought to be able to comment on the
absence of such evidence”).  Under the circumstances in Atkins, the jury instruction
constituted an improper comment on the weight of the evidence, thus abrogating Atkins’s
protected right to a fair trial.   421 Md. at 453, 26 A.3d at 989.  We found that the instruction
“directed the jury to ignore the fact that the State had not presented evidence connecting the
knife to his crime, implying that the lack of such evidence is not necessary or relevant to the
determination of guilt, and to disregard any argument by the defense to the contrary.” Id.  
B.  The “CSI Effect” Redux
The concurring opinion in Atkins considered at length the reputed underpinning for
giving instructions like that given in Atkins or here, the so-called “CSI effect,” the competing
theories about the “effect,” and the inconclusive state of scholarly research on the topic.3  The
3(...continued)
ability to evaluate reasonable doubt in the absence of such evidence.  Atkins, 421 Md. 434,
458, 26 A.3d 979, 992 (2011).  On the other hand, the findings of one study suggest that the
“CSI effect” can “promote the modern jury’s desire to see that people are punished for the
crimes they commit.”  Atkins, 421 Md. at 460, 26 A.3d at 995.
4 In this study, the viewers were 217 college undergraduates who, after watching the
(continued...)
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“CSI effect” refers generally to various theories that assert that exposure to courtroom or
criminal investigative fictional media may influence jurors’ objective evaluation of an actual
trial.  Since Atkins was decided, several additional studies have been published, or access to
them made available, with equally inconclusive results as reported in the Atkins concurrence.
One study used a “science-rich” episode of The Simpsons television cartoon comedy to
evaluate the influence of the episode on viewers’ perception of science.  See Lindy A. Orthia,
et al., How Do People Think About the Science They Encounter in Fiction?  Undergraduates
investigate responses to science in The Simpsons, Int’l J. of Sci. Educ., Part B.,  Abstract,
available at http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/21548455. 2011.610134) (last
visited 20 Oct. 2011).  The research found that viewers’ impression of science was
influenced highly by their own personal and religious beliefs, historical knowledge, political
persuasion, and exposure to other television programs.  Id.  The bottom line of this study was
that the effects of seeing science integrated in the context of a television fictional program,
if any, were neither linear or predictable.  Another study subjected mock jurors, who viewed
an actual recorded criminal trial, to a battery of questions aimed at identifying the factors
involved in evaluating the information presented in the trial.4  Dante E. Mancini, The CSI
4(...continued)
trial, answered questions about their verdict preference, verdict reasoning, forensic television
viewership and realism, and need for cognition. 
5Need for cognition is a measure of “one’s tendency to engage in and enjoy effortful
thought.”  The study theorizes that individuals with a high-level need for cognition will be
more likely to organize and thoughtfully evaluate information, such as evidence presented
at a trial.  A high need for cognition, combined with high forensic television viewership,
might encourage a juror to be more critical of the scientific evidence presented at trial.  A
low need for cognition, combined with high forensic television viewing, might create a juror
who views fictional science as realistic and therefore be less critical in evaluating the
evidence presented at trial.
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effect reconsidered: is it moderated by need for cognition?, N. Am. J. Psychol. (Mar. 2011).
The results of this study indicated that, although viewership of forensic-themed television
shows increased skepticism of scientific evidence favoring the prosecution’s case, it did not
influence the final verdict.  The study, however, identified a psychological personality trait,
need for cognition, as an important and determining factor that moderated the effect of
viewership.5  The results of this study indicate that additional studies are required to
determine the exact causative factors related to a juror’s perception and evaluation of
evidence.  Yet another scholarly paper found that exposure to crime drama was significantly
and positively related to the belief that forensic evidence is infallible.  Amber L. Ferris,
Examining the “CSI Effect”: The Impact of Crime Drama Viewership on Perceptions of
Forensics and Science (Aug. 2011) (unpublished Ph.D. dissertation, Kent State University).
Ms. Ferris also found a significant positive relationship between viewing crime dramas and
the expectation of forensic evidence in every trial.  Id. 
Massachusetts added recently to its ongoing judicial discourse on the “CSI effect” in
6 The format of similar questions varied during voir dire.  Other forms were “Would
you agree or disagree with this statement?  In order to prove its case beyond a reasonable
doubt, the Commonwealth always has to produce scientific evidence,” and “If the
Commonwealth did not produce scientific evidence, would you feel required to return a
verdict of not guilty?”  Commonwealth v. Perez, 460 Mass. 683, 689 (Mass. 2011).
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Commonwealth v. Perez, 460 Mass. 683 (2011), see also Atkins, 421 Md. at 466-67, 26 A.3d
at 998. (explaining the Massachusetts view, found in Commonwealth v. Seng, 924 N.E.2d
285, 295-98 (Mass. 2010), and Commonwealth v. Bowden, 399 N.E.2d 482 (Mass. 1980),
that there is little empirical evidence about the existence of the “CSI effect.”).  The issue in
Perez was a question during jury voir dire that asked whether the jurors believed that “the
Commonwealth is never able to prove a case beyond a reasonable doubt unless it presents
scientific evidence to corroborate witness testimony.”6  Perez, 460 Mass. at 689.  The
defendant did not object timely to the jury instruction; therefore, the issue was unpreserved
and the appellate court reviewed only for plain error.  Id.  The court found no abuse during
voir dire because the questions were aimed at seating a jury that would be capable of
deciding the case without bias.  Perez, 460 Mass. at 691.  The form of questioning did not
“suggest to potential jurors that a lack of scientific evidence could not be considered in
determining whether a reasonable doubt existed as to the defendant’s guilt.”  Id. (citing
Commonwealth v. Young, 899 N.E.2d 838, 844 (Mass. App. Ct. 2009)).  Noting the tension
between allowing the scientific evidence question in voir dire, but excluding it from jury
instructions, as was the case in Bowden, the court cautioned that trial judges should exercise
caution in composing the voir dire questions so as not to frame them in a way that presumes
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or insinuates guilt of the defendant.  Id.  As shown in the most recent studies and Perez, the
scholarly research on, and judicial view of, the “CSI effect” remains as inconsistent and
inconclusive as it was when we decided Atkins.  
C.  The Present Case
Without resolving whether the form of the jury instruction given in the present case
was a correct statement of law, it nonetheless was  given improperly in the circumstances of
the case.  Also, the subject law was covered fairly by other given instructions.  The pertinent
jury instruction at issue in the present case is identical to the instruction given in Atkins;
however, the similarities end there.  In Atkins, we found that the “missing” forensic or other
evidence connecting the alleged weapon to the crime was “of critical importance” to the
State’s case, as there was little evidence linking the foot-long knife recovered from Atkins’s
night stand with the crime.  Atkins, 421 Md. at 450, 26 A.3d at 988.  Here, the lack of
forensic evidence, i.e., DNA or fingerprints corroborating Stabb’s asserted misconduct
towards Kaylen J., may not have been as critical to the strength of the State’s case because
of the victim’s testimony and the circumstantial evidence supplied by the State’s other
witnesses.  In closing, although defense counsel commented on the lack of physical evidence,
the overwhelming majority of her argument focused on the State’s reliance on a single child
witness, conflicting statements of the State’s other witnesses, motive of Melissa R. and Jane
R. to influence Kaylen J.’s statements, Stabb’s alibi, and possibility of an alternative
assailant.  Nonetheless, the lack of scientific evidence was an integral part of the defense’s
theories.  
7 As in Atkins, the lack of the “robust and vehement closing arguments of counsel”
distinguishes the present case from Evans.  
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Another problem with the “anti-CSI effect” jury instruction in the present case is that
it was given preemptively, i.e., before any explicit argument by the defense on the absence
of DNA or fingerprint testing of Kaylen J. or her clothing. Well before closing arguments,
the trial court hinted that it might deliver the State’s “anti-CSI effect” instruction, after
defense counsel first questioned Sullivan as to whether any physical evidence could have
been obtained from a SAFE of Kaylen J.  Later, during a recess in the defense’s case, the trial
court revisited the issue and allowed defense counsel to state and explain her objection to the
proposed jury instruction.  Defense counsel argued that it would be improper to give the jury
instruction unless the court needed to cure a “robust and vehement” closing argument that
“harped” on the lack of scientific evidence.7  Defense counsel was correct.  Stabb’s defense
argued properly and without undue emphasis the lack of corroborating physical evidence of
the crime, and questioned Detective Seichepine and Sullivan as to the likelihood of the
existence of such evidence and why a SAFE was not performed, but did not “harp”
impermissibly on the lack of physical evidence in its case-in-chief or during closing
arguments.  In fact, the main thrust of Stabb’s defense rested on an alibi theory.  His closing
arguments focused also on numerous ways the defense contended that the State had failed
to satisfy its reasonable doubt burden, only one of which was its failure to perform a SAFE.
When the defense did allude to the lack of corroborating physical evidence, its comments
were “legitimate, brief, and reasonable,” as in Atkins.  These factors distinguish the present
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case from Evans.  
It was up to the jury to weigh the absence of physical evidence corroborating Stabb’s
alleged assault on Kaylen J., Stabb’s alibi defense, and the testimony of the other defense
witnesses.  Further, Stabb did not advance a “missing evidence” argument that implied that
“missing” evidence would favor him; rather, counsel alluded to the absence of corroborating
physical evidence because the State chose not to administer a SAFE.  The State responded,
during recross-examination of witnesses and in closing arguments, to defense counsel’s
implication regarding the lack of a SAFE, i.e., why a SAFE was not administered and the
unlikelihood that a SAFE, had it been administered, would have yielded testable DNA or
fingerprints.  Rebuttal by the State was the proper approach.  When the trial judge injected
the pertinent instruction into the jury’s calculus, it had more “force and effect than if merely
presented by counsel,” and could have influenced impermissibly the drawing by the jury of
inferences regarding the absence of physical evidence.  Cost v. State, 417 Md. 360, 381, 10
A.3d 184, 197 (2010).  In giving the “anti-CSI effect” instruction to the jury, the trial court
directed effectively the jurors not to consider the absence of a SAFE or corroborating
physical evidence.  The trial court invaded impermissibly the province of the jury
deliberations with the given “anti-CSI effect” instruction under the circumstances.  
The “anti-CSI effect” jury instruction given, in the circumstances of this case, was
improper because it relieved the State of its burden to prove Stabb was guilty beyond a
reasonable doubt, invaded the province of the jury, and, thus, violated Stabb’s constitutional
right to a fair trial.  Therefore, we reverse the judgment of the Court of Special Appeals and
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remand to that court with directions to reverse the judgment of the Circuit Court and remand
this case to the Circuit Court for a new trial, consistent with this opinion.  
In closing and with a nod to the future, we observe that, because of the currently
inconclusive state of the scholarly legal and/or scientific communities’ research, taken as a
whole,  regarding whether such a phenomenon as the “CSI effect” exists, the use of  “anti-
CSI effect” jury instructions (especially when given preemptively before closing arguments
or otherwise improper defense questioning or commentary during trial regarding the absence
of scientific evidence as part of the State’s case) is fraught with the potential for reversible
error.  To the extent that such an instruction is requested, its use ought to be confined to
situations where it responds to correction of a pre-existing overreaching by the defense, i.e.,
a curative instruction.  We may revisit this view at such time as a proper case comes before
us where it can be demonstrated by appropriate scholarly research that a “CSI effect” has
been found to exist by the relevant legal and/or scientific communities and its scope and
effect can be relied upon to tailor an appropriate response through voir dire questions and/or
jury instructions.  
JUDGMENT OF THE COURT OF SPECIAL
APPEALS REVERSED.  CASE REMANDED
TO THAT COURT WITH INSTRUCTIONS
TO REVERSE THE JUDGMENT OF THE
CIRCUIT COURT FOR WICOMICO
COUNTY AND TO REMAND THE CASE TO
THAT COURT FOR A NEW TRIAL.  COSTS
IN THIS COURT AND THE COURT OF
SPECIAL APPEALS TO BE PAID BY
WICOMICO COUNTY.