Opinion ID: 1059329
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 8

Heading: evidence of other suspects

Text: Bell's defense theory rested on his claim that three people were involved in the chase during which Sergeant Timbrook was shot: Bell, Sergeant Timbrook, and an unidentified gunman. Thus, he proposed to question some of the police officers about other suspects who were investigated by asking what the police were told and what they did as a result of that information. Bell claimed that he was not offering this testimony for the truth of the assertions but to determine what the police did with the information that they gathered about other potential suspects. The circuit court refused to allow this type of questioning because it would have elicited responses based on hearsay. Although Bell did not proffer any testimony but only advised the court as to the nature of the questions he wished to ask, we agree with the circuit court's conclusion that any question requiring a police officer to state what he was told regarding other possible suspects would elicit hearsay. The court, however, advised Bell that he could present evidence about other suspects so long as it was admissible under the rules of evidence, and that he could ask whether blood samples taken from those suspects had been tested. We also note that Bell did establish that Captain Sobonya had received both oral and written information about other suspects. Only when Bell asked Sobonya about the basis for having issued a look out for a certain vehicle did the court sustain the Commonwealth's hearsay objection. Thus, we conclude that the circuit court did not err in refusing to allow Bell to elicit hearsay testimony about other suspects from police officers.