Opinion ID: 536574
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 5

Heading: Refusal to Sever Shelia Westbrook's Trial

Text: 44 Shelia argues that the trial court erred in failing to sever her trial from that of James. She points to the fact that the majority of the evidence presented by the government went toward proving James's participation, and she argues that the jury was incapable of compartmentalizing evidence against James Westbrook. See United States v. Kopelciw, 815 F.2d 1235, 1238 (8th Cir.1987). She also contends that her trial was tainted because an admission made by James's counsel was attributed to her. In his closing argument, James's counsel said that James was guilty of wrongdoing. The prosecutor, in his closing argument, commented on the concession made by James's counsel: 45 Defense counsel for Mr. Westbrook admits that James was around for two cooks. That's what he told you. He's guilty of associating with the people that did this. That's the conspiracy at a minimum. They joined this group of people. They were the creators of this group of people. They were involved. 46 Trial Transcript at 408 (emphasis added). 47 The first question that must be addressed is whether Shelia has properly preserved this issue for appeal. If Shelia has preserved the issue, the trial court's action will be reviewed to determine whether the joinder of the trials adversely affected her substantial rights and was an abuse of discretion. United States v. Thornberg, 844 F.2d 573, 575 (8th Cir.), cert. denied 487 U.S. 1240, 108 S.Ct. 2913, 101 L.Ed.2d 944 (1988); United States v. Miller, 725 F.2d 462, 467 (8th Cir.1984). If, however, the issue has not been preserved, then this court can only review for plain error. 48 The view taken by this circuit is that a defendant who fails to renew a motion for severance at the conclusion of the government's case or at the end of trial has waived his or her demand. United States v. Shearer, 606 F.2d 819, 821 (8th Cir.1979). The reviewing court must evaluate whether a motion for severance has been preserved in light of two concerns: (1) the appellate court's practical ability to determine whether the appellant knew of the error and consented to it; and (2) the unfairness of reversing the trial court on an issue that it did not have the opportunity to consider. United States v. Marin-Cifuentes, 866 F.2d 988, 994 (8th Cir.1989); United States v. Thornberg, 844 F.2d at 575-76. 49 Shelia's motions for severance were denied prior to trial, and she never resurrected her request. Her counsel did not object to the prosecutor's closing argument. It is therefore impossible to know whether Shelia consented to the alleged error, or whether the trial court had an opportunity to rule on the issue. Under these circumstances, Shelia did not preserve the severance issue. 50 The plain error doctrine requires that an appellant must demonstrate that the error alleged affected substantial rights and was so egregious that it seriously affected the fairness of the proceedings. United States v. Young, 470 U.S. 1, 15, 105 S.Ct. 1038, 1046, 84 L.Ed.2d 1 (1984); United States v. Thornberg, 844 F.2d at 575; Fed.R.Crim.P. 52(b). On reviewing the record, this court finds that the facts of the conspiracy are not so complex that the jury could not easily have separated Shelia's role from that of James. The mere fact that the government presented a disproportionate amount of its evidence against James is not grounds for severance. United States v. Kopelciw, 815 F.2d 1235. Further, the prosecutor's closing argument expressly attributed the admission of wrongdoing only to James Westbrook, and not to Shelia. This statement was not unfairly prejudicial to her. Consequently, this court concludes that substantial rights of Shelia have not been affected, and that, in any event, any harm that has been alleged is not so egregious as to require reversal.