Opinion ID: 853073
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: Jail Clothing

Text: At his habitual offender proceeding, French appeared in bright orange clothing with the word jail on the back. The United States Supreme Court has held that a defendant cannot be compelled to appear before a jury in identifiable prison clothing because this may impair the presumption of innocence. Estelle v. Williams, 425 U.S. 501, 502-05, 96 S.Ct. 1691, 48 L.Ed.2d 126 (1976). French argues that requiring him to wear prison clothes during the habitual offender phase of his trial in front of a separate jury violated his right to due process. French made no objection to the jail garb. The failure to object to being tried in prison clothes negates the compulsion necessary to establish a constitutional violation. Id. at 512-13, 96 S.Ct. 1691. Although it is not a denial of due process if a defendant appears in jail garb without objection, we agree that the same reasons requiring an appearance in street clothes at trial also apply in a supplemental proceeding before a jury such as the habitual offender phase. Accordingly, if a defendant objects, it is error to require the defendant to appear in jail garb at the habitual offender phase. Here, however, there was no objection and the issue is not preserved. Recognizing that no objection was raised in the trial court, French contends that his appearance in jail garb constituted fundamental error reviewable despite the lack of objection. We do not agree. Although, as Justice Sullivan points out, French is entitled to the presumption of innocence as to the habitual offender charge, he was convicted of the underlying charge of dealing cocaine, and the jury was informed of this. The Ninth Circuit addressed a similar issue in Duckett v. Godinez, 67 F.3d 734, 746 (9th Cir. 1995), where the defendant appeared in prison clothes, handcuffs, and a security chain before a sentencing jury. Although a sentencing proceeding is not identical to the habitual offender phase, in both instances the presumption of innocence of the underlying charge no longer applies. As the Ninth Circuit put it: His condition as a prisoner is no surprise to the jury, which just found him guilty. Prison clothing cannot be considered inherently prejudicial when the jury already knows, based upon other facts, that the defendant has been deprived of his liberty. Id. at 747. In French's case a second jury was assembled for the habitual offender phase of the trial. When this is done the jury is to be informed of the underlying felony that provoked the habitual offender charge. Gilliam v. State, 563 N.E.2d 94, 96 (Ind.1990) (The State is not required to prove the primary underlying felony to a second jury which has been subsequently assembled during a habitual offender proceeding.); see also Denton v. State, 496 N.E.2d 576, 581 (Ind.1986) (There is no harm in a trial court informing a jury subsequently assembled during the habitual offender proceeding that a previous jury returned a guilty verdict on the underlying felony.). In view of these authorities we do not believe this error approaches fundamental error requiring retrial despite French's failure to object.