Opinion ID: 508775
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 3

Heading: Alleged Judicial Errors

Text: 36 The defendants claim that, as a result of certain errors by the trial judge, they were denied their rights to due process of law and a fair and impartial trial. We affirm the district court's rulings. 37
38 The defendants claim that the trial court failed to properly respond to the jury's question. During deliberation, the jury sent the following question to the judge: 39 We need to clarify overall conspiracy Between the years 1983 and 1986. Does this mean the defendents [sic] (each) (or) had to be continuing conspiring during all this time, like contact in 1984 and 1985. Also Does Between mean the same as Thru. 40 Record at 122. The district judge responded: It is suggested you read all the conspiracy instructions as a whole and rely on your collective recollections of the facts. Id. The judge declined the defendants' request to give the jury the dictionary definition of between. 41 We have repeatedly held that it is within the trial court's discretion to decide what supplemental instructions to give to a deliberating jury that seeks clarification of the law. United States v. Zabic, 745 F.2d 464, 475 (7th Cir.1984); Davis v. Greer, 675 F.2d 141, 145 (7th Cir.), cert. denied, 459 U.S. 975, 103 S.Ct. 310, 74 L.Ed.2d 289 (1982); United States v. Papia, 560 F.2d 827, 843 (7th Cir.1977); United States v. Castenada, 555 F.2d 605, 611 (7th Cir.), cert. denied, 434 U.S. 847, 98 S.Ct. 152, 54 L.Ed.2d 113 (1977); United States v. Braverman, 522 F.2d 218, 224 (7th Cir.), cert. denied, 423 U.S. 985, 96 S.Ct. 392, 46 L.Ed.2d 302 (1975). If the original jury charge clearly and correctly states the applicable law, the judge may properly answer the jury's question by instructing the jury to reread the instructions. Davis, 675 F.2d at 145-46; Papia, 560 F.2d at 843; Castenada, 555 F.2d at 611. Because the defendants did not challenge the correctness of the instructions that the jury received, it was within the judge's discretion to direct the jury to reread the original instructions rather than giving the jury the dictionary definition of between as the defendants had requested. United States v. Lang, 644 F.2d 1232, 1239 (7th Cir.), cert. denied, 454 U.S. 870, 102 S.Ct. 338, 70 L.Ed.2d 174 (1981). Thus, we find that the court did not abuse its discretion in referring the jury to the original instructions which correctly and clearly stated the law. See supra note 5 (quoting the relevant jury instruction). 42
43 During direct examination of Jerry Juenger, a government witness, the prosecutor asked Juenger whether a co-conspirator, C.J. Rylands, was also a cooperating witness. Juenger replied that [h]e was not under protection at that time, no. Counsel for defendant Mealy objected to Juenger's answer and moved for a mistrial on the grounds that the phrase under protection suggested that Rylands had been exposed to some sort of danger. The court sustained the objection and ordered the jury to disregard the comment. The court denied the motion for a mistrial. The defendants claim that the comment so prejudiced them that they could not receive a fair trial, and thus the district court should have declared a mistrial. 44 Juenger's comment regarding protection was misleading. None of the witnesses involved in this case were placed in the federal witness protection program. Juenger probably meant to say that Rylands had not yet agreed to cooperate with the government. Nevertheless, the jurors conceivably might have assumed that Rylands needed protection because he was serving as a witness against the defendants. The risk of this faulty assumption, however, was slight. No evidence was presented at trial of threats or intimidation against any of the witnesses. 11 Nevertheless, the trial court sustained the objection and promptly gave the jury a cautionary instruction to disregard Juenger's comment about Rylands being under protection. 45 A trial judge has broad discretion in deciding whether, in the context of the entire trial, a defendant's motion for a mistrial should be granted. We will not reverse the trial court's decision unless it was an abuse of discretion. United States v. Fulk, 816 F.2d 1202, 1205 (7th Cir.1987); United States v. D'Antonio, 801 F.2d 979, 983 (7th Cir.1986); United States v. Phillips, 640 F.2d 87, 91 (7th Cir.), cert. denied, 451 U.S. 991, 101 S.Ct. 2331, 68 L.Ed.2d 851 (1981). In deciding whether the court abused its discretion, we must keep in mind that a trial judge is often in the best position to determine whether an incident was so serious as to warrant a mistrial. United States v. Liefer, 778 F.2d 1236, 1245-46 (7th Cir.1985). 46 We have previously upheld a trial court's exercise of discretion in issuing a cautionary instruction, rather than declaring a mistrial, to cure any potential prejudice. See Fulk, 816 F.2d at 1205-06; Liefer, 778 F.2d at 1246; United States v. Torres, 733 F.2d 449, 462 (7th Cir.), cert. denied, 469 U.S. 864, 105 S.Ct. 204, 83 L.Ed.2d 135 (1984); Phillips, 640 F.2d at 91; but see United States v. Boroni, 758 F.2d 222, 225 (7th Cir.1985) (instruction insufficient to dispel prejudice where the verdict was substantially affected by the erroneously admitted evidence of prior bad acts). We generally must assume that the jury followed the court's cautionary instructions. Fulk, 816 F.2d at 1205; Phillips, 640 F.2d at 91. 47 Considering the improper testimony in the context of the entire trial, we find that any potential prejudicial effect of Juenger's comment was insignificant in light of the overwhelming evidence of the defendants' guilt. Torres, 733 F.2d at 461-62; Phillips, 640 F.2d at 92. The trial court did not abuse its discretion in denying the defendants' motion for a mistrial.