Opinion ID: 470403
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 4

Heading: Absent Witness Instruction

Text: 13 Nahoom's final contention of error concerns the court's refusal to give an absent witness instruction. During trial, the government attempted to establish on cross-examination of Nahoom that he undertook to contact Brenda Wentworth in order to carry out a drug deal with her husband. Nahoom asserts that because Ms. Wentworth's involvement in the Witness Protection Program placed her within the power of the government to call as a witness, and because the government failed to do so, he was deprived of his only opportunity to corroborate his denial of any alleged contact with Ms. Wentworth for purposes of conducting a drug transaction. When a witness is peculiarly within the control of one party, and the witness' testimony would elucidate facts in issue, an instruction is appropriate regarding the permissible inference which the jury may draw from the party's failure to call the witness. United States v. Chapman, 435 F.2d 1245, 1247 (5th Cir.1970), cert. denied, 402 U.S. 912, 91 S.Ct. 1392, 28 L.Ed.2d 654 (1971). However, even assuming that Nahoom in fact could not call Brenda Wentworth as a witness, and that he was therefore entitled to an absent witness instruction, the absence of this single inference could not have affected the jury's verdict here; the error, if any, was harmless. See Chapman, 435 F.2d at 1248. 14 Appellant's convictions are AFFIRMED.