Opinion ID: 1985511
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 4

Heading: Use of a Test Jury

Text: Soon after the first informations were filed, Burdine filed a motion for change of venue alleging prejudicial pre-trial publicity. Although most of the many news accounts which followed the beating merely recited the facts in the case, a few linked Burdine to a series of burglaries in the area. The State filed a Petition to Summon Random Members of the Current Jury Panel. The trial court, over the defendant's objection, granted the motion and ordered that six veniremen attend the hearing on the motion for change of venue. During that hearing, the defense presented copies of numerous news stories about the beating which had been published or broadcast. The attorneys also conducted voir dire of six veniremen, posing questions about their knowledge of the case and ability to act as impartial jurors. Five of the six test jurors said they had heard news accounts of the beating, but their knowledge was limited to the basic facts of the case. None mentioned hearing that Burdine was a burglary suspect. When the charges were dismissed and refiled, the parties stipulated that all evidence heard in the first cause would be admitted in the second cause. Burdine subsequently filed a second motion for change of venue. In denying that motion, the trial court thus had before it the evidence presented on the first motion. Burdine claims that the trial court deprived him of a fair trial because it had no authority to summon a test jury. A test jury is a novel concept. This Court encountered it for the first time in Boyd v. State (1986), Ind., 494 N.E.2d 284, cert. denied, ___ U.S. ___, 107 S.Ct. 910, 93 L.Ed.2d 860 (1987), where we held that it was not error for a trial court to refuse to call a test jury sought by the defendant for purposes of a motion for change of venue. That ruling rested on our conclusion that such a body is unknown to our legal process and the trial court consequently had no obligation to allow it. Of course, this case presents the opposite question, inasmuch as Burdine claims error from the granting of the request for the test jury. The trial court has the discretion to guide the course of proceedings before it. Bruce v. State (1978), 268 Ind. 180, 375 N.E.2d 1042, cert. denied, 439 U.S. 988, 99 S.Ct. 586, 58 L.Ed.2d 662. With regard to a hearing on a motion for change of venue based on pretrial publicity, the objective is to determine whether prejudicial publicity exists and, if so, the extent to which it has influenced prospective jurors. In effect, a defendant who tenders newspaper articles asks the trial court to consider the articles as evidence probative of the likelihood that an impartial jury can be seated. The testimony of persons drawn from the pool of potential jurors provides similar information to the court. It is not uncommon for a defendant in a hearing on a motion for change of venue to present witnesses, often relatives or associates, who testify that they have been influenced by the publicity at issue or that they sense pervasive prejudice against the defendant. See, e.g., Tabor v. State (1984), Ind., 461 N.E.2d 118. In this case, the defense called the victim's co-worker to testify about the number of people who had indicated an awareness of the beating or expressed sympathy for the victim. Admitting such testimony is an extension of the rule that the defendant's motion for change of venue should not be arbitrarily denied without affording the defendant an opportunity to bolster the credibility of such with supporting testimony. Brown v. State (1969), 252 Ind. 161, 173, 247 N.E.2d 76, 83. Having accepted testimony from witnesses associated with the parties as probative of the likelihood of a fair trial, it is only logical to allow trial courts, if they choose, to consider evidence from an objective group of community residents summoned to court as a test jury. We conclude that while a trial court is not obligated to grant a request for a test jury, the court is not prohibited from granting it either. Such a request lies within the sound discretion of the trial court. Burdine also claims that the trial court erred when it denied his motion for change of venue. To prevail on appeal from such a denial, the defense must show the existence of prejudicial publicity and that jurors were unable to set aside their preconceived notions of guilt and render a verdict based upon the evidence. Timmons v. State (1986), Ind., 500 N.E.2d 1212. Prejudicial pretrial publicity is that which contains inflammatory material which would not be admissible at the defendant's trial or contains misstatements or distortions of the evidence given at trial. Kappos v. State (1984), Ind., 465 N.E.2d 1092. Although those articles referring to Burdine as a suspect in a series of burglaries were prejudicial, the record does not show that any of the jurors encountered those particular stories. While five of the six test jurors knew about the beating, a juror need not be ignorant of the facts in the case. Bauer v. State (1983), Ind., 456 N.E.2d 414. The jury which heard Burdine's case was not selected until months later. It seems even less likely that they would remember the publicity or be affected by it. The small section of the voir dire from trial which is part of the appellate record does not establish otherwise. We conclude the trial court did not abuse its discretion by denying the motion for change of venue.