Opinion ID: 533777
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: Government's Witness Takes the Fifth.

Text: 34 The government called Michael Celeberto (Celeberto), a crew member of the Sandy & Cindy, to testify about the boat's use on or about July 4, 1983. Prior to calling Celeberto, the prosecutor acknowledged to the judge and defense counsel that Celeberto might not testify but indicated that he did not think Celeberto would invoke the fifth amendment. Newton's attorney requested that Celeberto be examined outside the presence of the jury. The judge denied the request. 35 When Celeberto took the witness stand, he answered a few introductory questions, and then was asked if he had testified before the grand jury. He said no. Upon being shown a transcript of his grand jury testimony, Celeberto continued to deny that he had testified. The prosecutor continued the examination by asking Celeberto about his work on the Sandy & Cindy. Celeberto admitted that he knew Gilbert and identified him in the courtroom but denied having a conversation with him in late June or early July of 1983. When asked about an unusual use of the Sandy & Cindy in the same time period, he exercised his fifth amendment privilege against self-incrimination and refused to answer. 36 The judge immediately excused the jury. When the jury returned they were given a cautionary instruction that you should infer nothing from the last witness's indication of unwillingness to testify or to answer any particular question that was put to him. The judge did not give a cautionary instruction specifically on the fifth amendment. Defendants contend that they were denied their right to cross-examination. 37 Our inquiry focuses on two questions: whether the government made a conscious and flagrant attempt to build its case out of inferences arising from use of the testimonial privilege, and whether the inferences from the refusal to testify add critical weight to the prosecutor's case. Namet v. United States, 373 U.S. 179, 186-87, 83 S.Ct. 1151, 1154-55, 10 L.Ed.2d 278 (1963). 38 There was certainly reason for the prosecutor to believe that Celeberto not only might not testify but also might exercise his fifth amendment privilege. The prosecutor told the court that Celeberto was reluctant to testify, and in fact had been refusing to testify because he was worried about being the stand up guy. Under the circumstances, the witness should first have been questioned outside of the presence of the jury. But, the prosecutor did not attempt to use Celeberto's brief appearance as a witness to the government's advantage; he did not refer to it in his closing or at any other time during the trial. 39 We do not think that the prejudice from Celeberto's brief appearance on the witness stand rose to the level of reversible error. The prejudice, if any, to Newton was minimal because the witness neither identified him nor added anything to the case against him. There is little merit in Newton's contention that Celeberto's refusal to testify reflected badly on his own refusal to testify. 40 Arguably, Celeberto's invocation of the fifth amendment added weight to the prosecutor's case against Gilbert. The jury might have tied Celeberto's fear of self-incrimination to Gilbert. Conversely, by denying that he had ever met or discussed the use of the Sandy & Cindy with Gilbert, Celeberto supported Gilbert's position that he had nothing to do with the boat on the days in question. Given the other evidence presented against Gilbert, the short length of the examination of the witness, and the fact that the government never referred to Celeberto's testimony throughout the trial, we cannot say that the witness's refusal to testify further was unduly prejudicial. 41