Opinion ID: 2361084
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 3

Heading: Racial Slur

Text: Holloman was not denied a fair trial when the trial judge permitted the Commonwealth to introduce testimony that he had used a racial slur during his interrogation by the police. The record discloses that the language used by some of the parties in this case is crude, coarse and foul and includes what might be called a racial slur. Experienced law enforcement officers encounter such common vulgarity on a regular basis. Here, the police detective testified that when he asked Holloman about sexual intercourse with one of the victims, he denied it, stating he wouldn't do that because he perceived the victim as promiscuous. When the prosecutor then asked specifically what Holloman had stated, defense counsel objected. During a bench conference, the trial judge was advised by the prosecutor and the officer about the sexual activity of one of the victims in the neighborhood. The trial judge then asked if it was necessary to the prosecution's case and was told that it was an explanation of why Holloman had stopped his own sexual activities with one of the victims. The judge overruled the defense objection that the testimony was inflammatory and irrelevant. The detective then paraphrased Holloman's graphic language in testifying that Holloman claimed he did not engage in sexual intercourse with this victim because she was fall the `n-word[s]' in the neighborhood. Holloman was Caucasian, and three of the nine women on the jury were African Americans. Upon remand, if the Commonwealth again seeks to introduce testimony concerning this portion of the defendant's statement and the trial court again finds this testimony relevant, the trial court should evaluate the admissibility of this testimony pursuant to KRE 403 and determine whether the possible prejudice associated with the statement substantially outweighs its probativeness. If the trial judge finds the probative value of the statement is substantially outweighed by the danger of undue prejudice then it may be excluded. See KRE 403. Otherwise, the trial judge once again should allow the Commonwealth to introduce testimony concerning the defendant's statement.