Opinion ID: 1766558
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: Comment regarding Gerjuan's Testimony

Text: At trial, Gerjuan Rowe's deposition was read into evidence. The trial court found Gerjuan's testimony that Rowe called Gerjuan from a pay phone on November 28th was hearsay and inadmissible. However, testimony as to the phone call was permitted. [13] During closing arguments, the State argued: ... Look at the records here on Gerjuan Rowe. Phone calls from the victim's house to Gerjuan. Those two calls I told you about the early morning hours, twenty-two minutes after midnight on the 24th. That's her sister. We playedwe read into evidence Gerjuan's depo. Of course Gerjuan first time says last time I talked to her was the 20th and 21st, the correct weekend. But when she's questioned again she changes. She has drug problems, drug convictions. Very upset about this. You heard the depo. She kind of makes it to where the 27th, 28th where all these phone calls were happening, there's trouble, there was a falling out, she said. Probably the defendant and the victim. Look at the amount of calls that happened on the 21st, 22nd, 23rd. She's correct, she has the wrong weekend. I also asked Dan Jensen, did you go through Gerjuan Rowe's records line by line? And when was the last time her outgoing called the victim's house? November 23rd. So whatever the defense wants to say about Gerjuan Rowe what you know from these facts is that the last callCharter counts only outgoing calls, the last outgoing call to Gerjuan Rowe was on the 24th at 12:22 a.m., twenty-two minutes after midnight. And that's from the victim to her sister Gerjuan Rowe. And if you look at the records, Gerjuan Rowe's Sprint, which captured the incoming and outgoing, you will not find the victim's number after 11/23. Two cell phone companies or one house company and one cell phone, there's absolutely no communication between these two women, sisters, from 11/24 after theafter twenty-two minutes after the hour ever again ... The State did not refer to the inadmissible statement in Gerjuan's testimony that Rowe had told Gerjuan that she was calling from a pay telephone. In making its closing arguments, the State referred to Gerjuan's and Rowe's telephone records to refute Gerjuan's testimony that she spoke to Rowe after November 24th. The telephone records as well as Gerjuan's testimony that she spoke to Rowe on November 28th were admitted as evidence. It was not plain error to allow these statements.