Opinion ID: 1699658
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 3

Heading: Assignments of Error Numbers Seven and Ten

Text: In these assignments, defendant complains of the trial court's refusal to declare a mistrial after two allegedly prejudicial statements made during the testimony of state witnesses. The victim, Marvin Butler, was asked how long he had known the defendant. His reply was: He used to go down to my brother-in law's, lived down on Claiborne Street, and give him a lot of the trouble. The second allegedly prejudicial statement was made by Lt. Wood, a fingerprint expert. Lt. Wood testified that he was asked to check known prints against latents obtained at the scene. Defendant argued that this statement led the jury to believe that since the police department had known prints of Mr. Davenport, that he had previously been arrested for another crime. The trial judge did not err in denying the request for a mistrial. Lt. Woods' remark did not expressly or necessarily by implication refer to known fingerprints obtained in connection with other crimes. As to the first allegedly prejudicial statement, the witness's reference to the trouble given his brother-in-law by the defendant did not necessarily refer to criminal activity. Moreover, the judge admonished the jury against considering Mr. Butler's remark as evidence of defendant's guilt in the present case. Furthermore, the record does not reflect that the defendant was prejudiced in his defense by these remarks.