Opinion ID: 1149666
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 3

Heading: did the trial court err in overruling appellant's objection to questions concerning the arson of her house?

Text: Defendant contends that the State's questions, addressed to her on cross examination, concerning arson and the fact that defendant's house burned down, violated Miss.R.Evi. 404(b). She argues that this series of questions attempts to show the commission of other crimes and was introduced to establish that the defendant was the kind of person who would commit the crime for which she was on trial here, citing: Robinson v. State, 497 So.2d 440, 442 (Miss. 1986); Lancaster v. State, 472 So.2d 363, 368 (Miss. 1985); Davis v. State, 377 So.2d 1076, 1079 (Miss. 1979). In addition, defense notes that the prior offense must result in a conviction to be admissible, citing Elmore v. State, 510 So.2d 127, 130 (Miss. 1987); and Lightsey v. State, 493 So.2d 375, 379 (Miss. 1986). Pertinent portions of the colloquy were: Q. (By the state) They just decided to come up and tell him about machine guns and crimes and things? A. (By defendant, Deborah Rose) They liked to brag. Q. And how many different crimes did they brag about doing? ..... Q. Okay. And did they ever talk about arson? (OBJECTION) THE COURT: Overruled. Q. (By Mr. Buntin) Did you all ever talk about arson at your house, Ms. Rose? A. I don't think so. I don't remember. If they did, I don't remember that. Q. Did you ever talk about arson with them? A. No, sir. ..... Q. (By Mr. Buntin) You never discussed arson with those men? A. No, sir, I didn't. Q. How many times has your house burned down? A. Once. Q. Once here? A. Yes, sir. Q. Did it burn down anywhere else before you moved down here? A. I've never had another home. This Court made the following observation in Neal v. State, 451 So.2d 743, 759 (Miss. 1984), decided prior to the adoption of Mississippi Rules of Evidence, and cited in the comments to MRE 404(b): Evidence of prior offenses committed by a defendant, not resulting in a conviction, is generally inadmissible either for impeachment purposes or as a part of the State's case in chief. Mason v. State, 429 So.2d 569, 572-73 (Miss. 1983); Gray v. State, 351 So.2d 1342 (Miss. 1977); Mills v. State, 304 So.2d 651 (Miss. 1974); Allison v. State, 274 So.2d 678 (Miss. 1973). On the other hand, our law recognizes certain exceptions to the rule. See, e.g. Johnson v. State, 416 So.2d 383 (Miss. 1982); Mason v. State, 429 So.2d 569, 572-73 (Miss. 1983); Woods v. State, 393 So.2d 1319, 1325 (Miss. 1981). (emphasis added) Ms. Rose did not place her character in issue in this case. No witnesses were called to testify to her good character. The arson question was not posed to develop evidence of any criminal act with which she was charged. We have repeatedly held that the admission of evidence of unrelated crimes is reversible error, most recently in Houston v. State, 531 So.2d 598, 605 (Miss. 1988). We find that the failure to sustain defendant's objection to this question, suggesting the commission of another crime, was error. The State contends that if the admission of this evidence be deemed error, it is harmless due to the overwhelming weight of the evidence against defendant. We do not agree. The only evidence presented was the testimony of the three co-defendants, all of whom were of dubious reputation. There is no gauge by which this court, on review, can assess the impact on the jury of the suggestion of the commission of the other crime. This error, together with the matter addressed in part IV of this opinion, has the cumulative effect of a denial to the defendant of a fair trial.