Opinion ID: 158651
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: Vouching for the Credibility of State Witnesses

Text: 91 In responding to the petitioner's claim that evidence had been planted, the prosecutor apologized, on behalf of the State, to the officers who worked on the case, the men who go out and work the streets and try to make this society safe. According to petitioner, the prosecution was attempting to make the jurors feel a debt of gratitude to these officers, who had been wronged by petitioner's challenge to their testimony. In addition, petitioner challenges the prosecutor's comment that petitioner's attack on the searches was an attack on both himself and another prosecutor. The federal district court determined that there had been no improper vouching, as the first instance was grandstanding and the second was merely skirting the boundaries, but did not warrant relief. 92 Generally, prosecutors should not personally vouch for the credibility of state witnesses or place their own integrity and credibility in issue. See Hopkinson v. Shillinger, 866 F.2d 1185, 1209 (10th Cir.), reh'g on other grounds, 888 F.2d 1286 (10th Cir. 1989). Here, however, the statements were made in response to comments of defense counsel. See Darden, 477 U.S. at 182; see also Hopkinson, 866 F.2d at 1210 (recognizing that improper statement made in response to defense counsel's arguments does not make statement proper, but it may affect context in which jury views improper statement). Also, the statements were made in isolation. See Donnelly, 416 U.S. at 647 (determining court should not lightly infer prosecutor intended isolated, ambiguous remark to have most damaging meaning or that jury will draw that meaning from other less damaging interpretations); see also United States v. Ludwig, 508 F.2d 140, 143 (10th Cir. 1974) (reversing conviction in direct criminal appeal where prosecutor vouched for integrity of state police and vouching was not isolated incident). Nor did the prosecutor cross the line from advocate to witness with these isolated statements. Furthermore, the trial court instructed the jury to consider the evidence in the case in making its decision. We conclude the remarks, viewed in the context of the entire trial, did not prejudice petitioner by influencing the jury to stray from its responsibility to be fair and unbiased. See United States v. Young, 470 U.S. 1, 12, 18 (1985). 93