Opinion ID: 771185
Heading Depth: 4
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: Impact of George Flota Deposition

Text: 65 The district court correctly held that the admission of the videotape of George Flota's deposition was harmless error. George Flota's testimony was almost entirely cumulative of the testimony of Deputy DeTrolio and Jeanetta Massey. Whelchel argues that George Flota testified he saw more of the house than Deputy DeTrolio or Jeanetta Massey. This may be true factually, but the point was not highlighted during the deposition or at trial. Furthermore, the testimony of Jeanetta Massey and Deputy DeTrolio is not subject to a presumption of unreliability since neither witness was a co-defendant. Thus, George Flota's cumulative testimony does not bolster the credibility of inherently suspect testimony. 66 Whelchel also argues that George Flota's testimony was prejudicial because Jeanetta Massey's and Deputy DeTrolio's testimony was contradicted at trial by testimony from the Whelchel family that Jeanetta Massey and Deputy DeTrolio actually visited their home on an earlier date. Therefore, Whelchel argues, George Flota's deposition was not cumulative because it is the only uncontroverted evidence disputing Whelchel's alibi. This argument was rebutted by other evidence at trial giving the jury reason to believe Deputy DeTrolio and Jeanetta Massey were correct about the date of their visits. An entry in the police department's dispatch book noted that Deputy DeTrolio called the station on September 27th, indicating he was going to the Whelchel residence. Jeanetta Massey testified that she visited the residence after Deputy DeTrolio had been there and reported back to her. Thus, George Flota's deposition does not stand alone as the only proof of a visit to the Whelchel home on September 27th. Accordingly, George Flota's deposition testimony was merely cumulative and the constitutional error arising from the Confrontation Clause violation was harmless.