Opinion ID: 1788509
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 3

Heading: whether the court erred in preventing latiker from introducing documents in support of his alibi testimony.

Text: ¶ 16. Latiker claims that the trial court prevented him from submitting documents from the Salvation Army that would corroborate his alibi defense that he was in Chicago, Illinois, at the time the alleged crime was committed. We find that these documents were not properly offered by Latiker to the trial court for a ruling on their admissibility. We have long recognized that there is a presumption that the trial court ruled correctly, and it is the burden of the appellant to prove otherwise. Branch v. State, 347 So.2d 957, 958 (Miss.1977). This burden requires that the appellant present to this Court a record of sufficient detail to prove that the alleged error occurred and what the substance of that error was. Winters v. State, 473 So.2d 452, 457 (Miss.1985). This requires that the appellant actually present to the trial court the material constituting the error. Acker v. State, 797 So.2d 966, 971 (Miss.2001) (citing Moawad v. State, 531 So.2d 632, 635 (Miss.1988); Williams v. State, 522 So.2d 201, 209 (Miss.1988)). ¶ 17. Latiker did not make the above-mentioned documents part of the record. There is no indication that Latiker asked that they be admitted into evidence. There was no offer of proof made: therefore, for the purposes of this Court, these documents do not exist. They are not a part of the record; and therefore, this Court cannot know them. Acker, 797 So.2d at 971. Counsel had a duty to present these documents to the trial court in an appropriate manner, but failed to do so. Thus, Latiker has no evidence to present to this Court for the purpose of rebutting the presumption that the trial court correctly ruled in excluding the evidence. Latiker's third assertion of error is procedurally barred.