Opinion ID: 1406967
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 4

Heading: mr. hyatt's hearsay statement

Text: At trial, two officers testified on behalf of the state to statements made by a Mr. Hyatt to the effect that a third person had told Hyatt that the defendants had robbed the Club Manchu. Neither Mr. Hyatt nor the third person testified at trial or were available for cross-examination. Counsel for Blue made timely objections to the admission of the statements. Blue claims that introduction of this statement is classic hearsay and violates his rights to confrontation as guaranteed by both the Alaska [14] and Federal Constitutions. [15] We agree with Blue that the introduction of Hyatt's statement involves classic hearsay. [16] The inherent unreliability of hearsay statements raises special problems within the context of a criminal case since the out-of-court declaration also involves a defendant's constitutional right to cross-examine and confront the witnesses against him. In Lemon v. State, 514 P.2d 1151, 1153 (Alaska 1973), we stated: This right of confrontation protects two vital interests of the defendant. First, it guarantees him the opportunity to cross-examine the witnesses against him so as to test their sincerity, memory, ability to perceive and relate, and the factual basis of their statements. Second, it enables the defendant to demonstrate to the jury the witness' demeanor when confronted by the defendant so that the inherent veracity of the witness is displayed in the crucible of the courtroom. (footnotes omitted) We held in Lemon, supra, that except pursuant to one of the constitutionally acceptable exceptions to the hearsay rule, the use of out-of-court testimony would reduce the right of cross-examination guaranteed by the confrontation clause to a nullity. [17] The right of cross-examination has been described as ... beyond any doubt the greatest legal engine ever invented for the discovery of truth. [18] The trial court admitted this hearsay evidence based on two theories. First, the trial court stated that the declarations were not hearsay because they were made in the defendant's presence. Second, the trial court stated that even if it was hearsay, it fit within an exception to the hearsay rule in that the statements were, by virtue of the defendant's responses, adoptive admissions. [19] We hold the trial court erred on both grounds. The fact that a statement is made in the presence of a defendant does not establish an exception to the hearsay rule, and the mere presence of a defendant does not obviate any of the confrontation problems we discussed in Lemon, supra . As stated by Professor McCormick: The presence or absence of the party against whom an out-of-court statement is offered has significance only in a few particular situations, e.g., when a statement spoken in his presence is relied upon to charge him with notice, or when failure to deny a statement spoken in his presence is the basis for claiming that he acquiesced in or adopted the statement. (Footnotes omitted) [20] The responses of the defendants furthermore do not fit the adoptive admission exception to the hearsay rule. Professor McCormick states: If a statement is made by another person in the presence of a party to the action, containing assertions of facts, which, if untrue, the party would under all the circumstances naturally be expected to deny, his failure to speak has traditionally been receivable against him as an admission. Whether the justification for receiving the evidence is the assumption that the party has intended to express his assent and thus has adopted the statement as his own, or the probable state of belief is to be inferred from his conduct is probably unimportant. Since it is the failure to deny that is significant, an equivocal or evasive response may similarly be used against him on either theory, but if his total response adds up to a clear-cut denial this theory of implied admission is not properly available. (footnotes omitted; emphasis added) [21] In this case, the testimony indicates that both Blue and Benefield denied the accusations. In addition, Blue stated that if he and Benefield were accused of such acts, they might as well go and do them. We hold that these responses are not adoptive admissions. [22] The response does not show an unequivocal intent to adopt the statement of Hyatt. To the contrary, the responses are implicit and explicit denials, and Hyatt's statements do not fit any exception to the hearsay rule. Not only does this evidence violate the hearsay rule, it also violates the fundamental constitutional right that every defendant has to cross-examine and challenge his accuser. Here, the jury heard the accusation that Blue was involved in the robbery without an opportunity to view the demeanor of either Hyatt or the third party and without the benefit of Blue's cross-examination of them. [23] We hold that admission of Hyatt's statements was error. We must next determine whether the error was reversible or harmless. Since the error is of constitutional dimensions involving the right of an accused to be confronted with the witnesses against him, the standard we must apply is whether the error was harmless beyond a reasonable doubt. [24] The hearsay declaration was not the only evidence linking Blue to the commission of the robbery. The state also presented an identification of Blue by Ms. Nickens and testimony with respect to threads on Blue's jacket which might have tended to show that a patch had been removed. Finally, Blue admitted that he spent the evening of the robbery with Benefield, who was strongly identified by Ms. Nickens. The strength of this evidence, however, is questionable. Ms. Nicken's eyewitness identification of Blue was not a strong one. While Ms. Nickens identified Blue at trial, she originally was unable to identify Blue at the Circle M Bar. It was not until Blue stood up and moved about that she could recognize him. At the second lineup in district court, Ms. Nickens was unable to identify Blue at all, and one witness, Mr. Haskins, excluded Blue as a possible robber. The evidence of the patches on Blue's coat was also equivocal. There was no evidence that anyone ever saw Blue with patches on his coat. The police officers also stated at trial that although some stitch marks were visible on the jacket, the outlines of a patch which they previously had observed could no longer be detected. While the police took swab tests and fingerprints from shell casings and money, none of this evidence was sent to a laboratory or introduced into evidence. In light of the nature of the eyewitness identification and the equivocal evidence, we cannot say that the hearsay statement did not influence the jury's decision and was harmless beyond a reasonable doubt. [25] The decision of the trial court is therefore reversed, and the case is remanded for a new trial.