Opinion ID: 202748
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: Misleading Statements

Text: 169 Appellants also assert that the prosecutors made misleading statements and referred to information outside the record. Many of appellants' characterizations of the prosecution's presentation are simply inaccurate. For example, appellants claim that the prosecutor falsely stated that Lugo (the Board president) had testified that the Board was not told of Modules' performance history, when Lugo had at most said he could not remember those statements. This claim is unsupported by the record. Lugo in fact testified: I don't recall that it was discussed. I believe that if it was discussed I would remember and it is not reflected in the minutes. . . . The best of my recollection is that it was not discussed. In another instance, appellants protest that the prosecutor improperly suggested to Joseph Gonzalez (an examiner for the Federal Home Loan Bank) that bank management, rather than the Board, was responsible for Caguas' lending practices, when in fact the prosecutor only elicited testimony that the Board relied on Muñoz-Franco and Sánchez-Arán to provide information relevant to its decisions, and often accepted Muñoz-Franco's recommendations regarding these decisions. Such comments were not improper, let alone prejudicial. 170 In other instances, even if we found the challenged statements improper, any resulting prejudice was negated either by appellants' own cross-examination or by a curative instruction from the district court. For example, appellants assert that the prosecution elicited testimony from Montilla (the developer on the Jardines de Villa Alba project) that Caguas sued him but then dismissed its claim, when in fact the bank settled with Montilla and obtained title to all but one of the Jardines de Villa Alba lots. 44 However, appellants then elicited the terms of the settlement on cross-examination, remedying any prejudice. On another occasion, the court addressed defense counsel's allegations that the prosecution's closing argument mentioned loans not charged in the indictment and mischaracterized Victor Kareh's testimony with a detailed curative instruction. 45 171 In sum, any impact resulting from these alleged misleading statements must be evaluated in light of the overwhelming evidence presented at this fifteen-month trial. Under such circumstances, we again conclude that the prosecutor's comments could not have caused unfairness that resulted in a denial of due process.