Opinion ID: 17698
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: Redacted Statements

Text: 14 Each Defendant argues the introduction of the other's redacted statement prejudiced him severely therefore requiring a severance. They rely on Bruton v. United States, 391 U.S. 123, 88 S.Ct. 1620, 20 L.Ed.2d 476 (1968) (holding that the confession of a non-testifying co-defendant is admissible only against himself and only if it does not implicate the other defendant) and Gray v. Maryland, 523 U.S. 185, 118 S.Ct. 1151, 1155, 140 L.Ed.2d 294 (1998) (holding that a redaction that replaces a defendant's name with an obvious indication of deletion, such as a blank space, still falls within Bruton's protective rule), arguing that the introduction of their statements violated their Sixth Amendment right to confront witnesses. 15 The government responds that the district court did not abuse its discretion in allowing the redacted statements, because it is guided by the law in force at the time the Defendants were tried. Additionally, the government argues even if the district court erred, it was either harmless or invited error. 16 New constitutional rules of law always apply retroactively to criminal cases pending on direct review. See Brecht v. Abrahamson, 507 U.S. 619, 634, 113 S.Ct. 1710, 123 L.Ed.2d 353 (1993) (citing Griffith v. Kentucky, 479 U.S. 314, 320-328, 107 S.Ct. 708, 93 L.Ed.2d 649(1987)). The government cites cases that clearly do not support its position. Gray represents an extension in the law from Bruton, requiring that the trial court either grant a severance or exclude the redacted statements from evidence. Gray, 523 U.S. 185, 118 S.Ct. 1151, 1155, 140 L.Ed.2d 294. 1 Because the introduction of the Defendants' redacted statements are now error under Gray, the remaining issues are whether this error was invited or harmless. 17 The government argues the district court's error was invited because both of the Defendants' attorneys elicited testimony from the officers reading the statements identifying the non-testifying co-defendant. See United States v. Reyes-Alvarado, 963 F.2d 1184, 1187 (9th Cir.1992) (a defendant who elicits a statement that may be violative of Bruton may not later claim error based on the admission of that statement.); United States v. Raymer, 876 F.2d 383, 388 (5th Cir.1989) (when injection of inadmissible evidence is attributable to the actions of the defense, the defense cannot later object to such 'invited error'.) However, the doctrine of invited error does not resolve this issue. The error was not that officers' testimony revealed the identity of the non-speaking Defendant in the redacted statements, but that the statements were introduced at all, thus violating Gray. 18 The government also contends that the introduction of the redacted statements was harmless error because there was overwhelming evidence of the Defendants' guilt excluding the redacted statements. See United States v. Vejar-Urias, 165 F.3d 337, 340 (5th Cir.1999) (a Bruton error may be considered harmless when, disregarding the co-defendant's confession, there is otherwise ample evidence against a defendant.) 19 The record reveals the following evidence in support of Matthews' conviction: (1) Nicholson 2 , Williams, and Douglas testified that Matthews bragged about shooting Dittman and attempting to steal her van; (2) Nicholson testified that Matthews rode in the front seat of the Chevette while they followed the van, and that Matthews took Cook's gun and exited the vehicle; (3) Williams and Douglas testified that Matthews said he escaped from the scene by stealing a red car; (4) Douglas testified that Matthews told her he would not be caught for the shooting because Cook was arrested with the gun Matthews used; and (5) Matthews told police he was involved in a carjacking, and told Williams several weeks before the incident that he was interested in getting a van. The record reveals the following evidence in support of Cook's conviction: (1) Nicholson testified that Cook drove the Chevette following the van, gave Matthews the gun he used to shoot Dittman, and tried to locate and aid Matthews after the shooting; (2) Douglas and Williams testified that Cook carried the Chevette keys that night and asked where Matthews was; (3) the police recovered the gun from the shooting when they apprehended Cook; (4) Cook told police that he owned the gun used in the shooting; and (5) Cook defied two court orders requiring him to be photographed and measured. Because this evidence is more than sufficient to render the district court's error harmless, the Defendants' arguments fail.