Opinion ID: 1709217
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: did the prosecutor improperly comment upon the marriage of simpson to katie james?

Text: During closing argument, the Assistant District Attorney made the following comment upon Simpson's claim of self defense: First of all, it wasn't his house. It was where Katie James lived. Pete lived with Katie, on and off. In the second place, she wasn't his wife. He didn't have the decency to marry her when he did. The only reason he married Katie James was because he wanted to marry the only eye witness to the murder that he committed. You remember he married her after this happened. The defendant's objection was overruled, and the prosecutor continued: By his own testimony, he lived with her several years before he married her. Then he is charged with murder and he knows she is an eye-witness, and what did he do? He married her. The State argues, in its brief, that this comment was made in order to counter the impression made at trial that Simpson shot Blanchard because he was in bed with his wife, when, in fact, Simpson and Katie were not married until after the shooting. However, at trial, Simpson specifically testified that I didn't shoot him because he was in bed with my wife. I shot Blanchard because he was fixing to shoot me. His sole defense at trial was not provocation or passion, but self-defense. This Court has long held that the prosecutor cannot call the defendant's wife to the stand to testify, thereby forcing the defendant to assert, before the jury, his right to have her testimony excluded. Outlaw v. State, 208 Miss. 13, 43 So.2d 661 (1949). Nor is the state entitled to an instruction regarding the defendant's failure to call his wife to the stand. Johnson v. State, 63 Miss. 313 (1885). The appellant characterizes the prosecutor's comments as a comment upon his wife's failure to testify. This Court has held that such a comment is improper. In Cole v. State, 75 Miss. 143, 21 So. 706 (1897), such a comment mandated reversal of the conviction, even though the defendant did not object to the prosecutor's remarks, the Court there holding that the comments denied the defendant a fair and impartial trial. 75 Miss. at 144, 21 So. at 707. In Johnson v. State, 94 Miss. 91, 47 So. 897 (1909), the prosecutor's closing argument contained the following language: Gentlemen of the jury, there is another witness to this difficulty. Where is she? Where is the wife he says he loved so dearly? Where is the wife he called his baby? If the defendant had wanted a fair hearing of this case, if he had been willing that the circumstances of the fight be fairly investigated why did he not put her on the stand? 94 Miss. at 92, 47 So. at 897. The Court, citing Cole, reversed the conviction. Finally, in Fannie v. State, 101 Miss. 378, 58 So. 2 (1912), the prosecutor, in his closing argument: [C]alled the attention of the jury to the fact that appellant's wife had not testified, reminded them of the fact that the state could not introduce her as a witness, but that appellant could, and suggested to them, that his failure to do so could be accounted for only on the ground that her evidence would show that he was guilty of murder. 101 Miss. at 381, 50 So. at 3. The Court there also reversed, referring to the following language from Johnson v. State: The statute does not contemplate or countenance such result as that husband and wife shall, directly or indirectly, be coerced by others into the witness box. The sanctities of the marital relation cannot be exposed to public scrutiny, in a case like the one before us, without the consent of the husband and wife. If, for any reason, they decline to testify for each other, their decision is final and their motives should not be questioned. 63 Miss. at 316. Convictions have been affirmed, in spite of the jury's being aware that the defendant's wife did not testify, where the error was not deemed prejudicial. In Carter v. State, 99 Miss. 435, 54 So. 734 (1911), the prosecutor asked the defendant if his wife would testify, and whether he would object. His attorney objected to the questions, and the objection was sustained. In Bell v. State, 244 Miss. 867, 147 So.2d 624 (1962), the prosecutor called the defendant's wife to the stand, not knowing of their marital status. The Court affirmed, but noted that The situation is different where the conduct of the prosecutor is in a taunting and reproachful manner, which can be construed as a criticism of the defendant for failure to put his wife on the stand or to let her testify. 244 Miss. at 870, 147 So.2d at 625. Finally, in Wideman v. State, 339 So.2d 1378 (Miss. 1976), the Court noted that it is normally error for a prosecutor to comment upon a wife's failure to testify. However, because the defendant subsequently called his wife to the stand and questioned her himself, the error was held to be harmless. At issue here is whether the prosecutor's statement amounted to a comment on Katie James' failure to testify. He stated that The only reason he [Simpson] married Katie James was because he wanted to marry the only eye-witness to the murder that he committed. While the prosecutor did not flatly state that Katie's testimony would be unfavorable to Simpson, he came impermissibly close to the argument complained of in Johnson. Furthermore, considering that Simpson's only defense  self-defense  depended entirely upon the jury's accepting his version of what happened at the apartment, Katie's testimony, as the only other eyewitness, was crucial. Most jurors are aware of spousal immunity, and it is likely that they drew the inference from the prosecutor's remarks that Simpson married Katie because her testimony would be damaging. Thus, the remarks constituted an impermissible comment upon Simpson's failure to call his wife to testify, and refusal to sustain the objection to them was error.