Opinion ID: 1852091
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: Institutionalization

Text: Peraita argues that institutionalization is a psychological phenomenon among prison inmates analogous to battered women's syndrome (BWS). He argues that, like BWS, which causes a victim of domestic abuse to believe that she has no way to escape her abuser, institutionalization convinces an inmate that he cannot seek help from prison authorities because if he did prisoners other than his abuser would subsequently victimize him. In order to prove his institutionalization theory, Peraita attempted to introduce the testimony of Dr. Haney, a professor of psychology and an expert in prison psychology. Peraita contends that Dr. Haney is familiar with the Holman Correctional Facility, and Peraita notes that, after interviewing him, Dr. Haney determined that Peraita suffered from institutionalization. However, while Dr. Haney had been inside the facility multiple times, he had toured the facility only once, in 1994, years before Peraita arrived at the facility. Additionally, Dr. Haney conducted his three- or four-hour interview of Peraita in May 2001, nearly one and a half years after Peraita had killed Lewis. Dr. Haney conceded that there is no specific timetable in which institutionalization occurs. Moreover, while Dr. Haney testified that institutionalization might lead Peraita to believe that retaliation against Lewis was reasonable, Dr. Haney did not testify that actions Peraita took in retaliation were reasonable. His testimony was limited to explaining the theory and process of institutionalization and expressing his opinion that, at least as of May 2001, when he interviewed him, Peraita had become institutionalized. The trial court excluded this evidence. The judge ruled that the introduction of Dr. Haney's testimony might cause jurors to view the reasonableness of Peraita's belief that he could not escape Lewis in a subjective, rather than an objective, light. Although the State argues that the court excluded Dr. Haney's testimony as being irrelevant, it appears that the trial judge was more concerned that the testimony would mislead the jury or confuse the issue, matters addressed by Rule 403, Ala. R. Evid. However, the standard of review is the same regardless of whether he excluded the testimony because it was irrelevant or because it would mislead the jury or confuse the issue. For this Court to reverse the judgment of the trial court on this issue, we must find that the court exceeded its discretion in excluding Dr. Haney's testimony. Loggins, 771 So.2d at 1103. Given Dr. Haney's bare familiarity with Holman Correctional Facility, the long period of time between Peraita's crime and his interview with Dr. Haney, and the confusion that this evidence might cause the jury, we cannot say that the trial judge exceeded his discretion in excluding Dr. Haney's testimony.