Opinion ID: 1621755
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 15

Heading: whether the trial court erred in overruling the appellant's objection to the introduction of certain photographs of the victim.

Text: The appellant contends that the trial court erred in overruling his motion to suppress certain photographs of the victim. Specifically, he insists that the pictures were admitted only for the purpose of inflaming the jury, thus, their prejudicial effect outweighed their probative value. Additionally, the appellant argues that the photographs had no probative value in light of the vivid description of the victim's body given in Officer Lane's testimony. During a jury-out hearing, the State attempted to present four photographs of the victim. Exhibit 25 was a photograph of the victim as she was discovered by Officer Lane. Exhibit 26 was a photograph which showed wounds to the victim's head. Exhibit 27 was a photograph which showed the lower dental plate of the victim on the floor next to her body. Exhibit 28 showed a wound to the victim's left knee. The State argued that the photographs were relevant to corroborate medical testimony, to aid the jury in determining the extent of the wounds, and to establish the element of malice. The appellant responded that the pictures did not add to testimonial value as Officer Lane had already described the wounds in great detail. The appellant concluded that, moreover, the pictures were more prejudicial than probative. The trial court accepted the State's argument that Exhibit 25 was probative to show the placement of the wounds on the body, Exhibit 27 was probative as to the amount of force that was used to dislodge the dental plate from the victim's mouth, and Exhibit 28 was probative to show additional wounds on the body. Furthermore, the trial court found that the probative value of these three photographs was not outweighed by their prejudicial effect. However, the trial court sustained the appellant's objection to Exhibit 26, finding it to be the most gruesome of the pictures, and finding it to not accurately depict the victim's wounds. To be admissible, a photograph must be relevant to some issue at trial, and its prejudicial effect must not outweigh its probative value. State v. Banks, 564 S.W.2d 947, 951 (Tenn. 1978); see also Tenn. R. Evid. 403. The discretion of a trial judge in allowing the admission of a photograph into evidence will not be overturned except upon a clear showing of an abuse of discretion. State v. Bordis, 905 S.W.2d 214, 226 (Tenn. Crim. App. 1995) (citations omitted); see also State v. Stephenson, 878 S.W.2d 530, 542 (Tenn. 1994). We conclude that it was not error to admit the photographs in this case. The photographs were relevant to supplement the testimony of the medical examiner and the officer who initially investigated the crime scene in establishing the cause of death, see Stephenson, 878 S.W.2d at 542, and to show the brutality of the attack and extent of force used against the victim, from which the jury could infer malice. See State v. Brown, 836 S.W.2d 530, 551 (Tenn. 1992). This issue is without merit.