Opinion ID: 1147572
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: waiver of the right to testify in one's own behalf in criminal cases.

Text: Criminal defendants have the right to testify on their own behalf under the due process clause of the fourteenth amendment, the compulsory process clause of the sixth amendment and the fifth amendment's privilege against self-incrimination. Rock v. Arkansas, 483 U.S. 44, 49, 107 S.Ct. 2704, 2708, 97 L.Ed.2d 37 (1987). Phillips urges this court to adopt the minority rule of People v. Curtis, 681 P.2d 504 (Colo. 1984). Curtis requires the trial court, sua sponte and on the record, to conduct a colloquy establishing waiver by a criminal defendant of the defendant's right to testify. Curtis, 681 P.2d at 512. Curtis is a minority view. Id. at 512, n. 9. This court finds only two other cases adopting the same rule. See State v. Neuman, 371 S.E.2d 77 (W. Va. 1988); Culberson v. State, 412 So.2d 1184 (Miss. 1982). One court has held that Curtis mandates reversal of a criminal conviction for failure to conduct the colloquy, even when, as here, the record is merely silent as to whether or not the defendant was aware of this right or desired to testify. See Neuman, supra . We decline to adopt the rule of Curtis that mandates the reversal of any criminal conviction if the defendant has not been expressly advised by the court of his right to testify. Neither the United States Supreme Court nor any other federal court has required a waiver on the record of the right to testify in all cases. Indeed, some federal courts have declined to impose such a requirement. See United States v. Systems Architects, 757 F.2d 373, 376 (1st Cir.1985), cert. denied, 474 U.S. 847, 106 S.Ct. 139, 88 L.Ed.2d 115 (1985); United States v. Janoe, 720 F.2d 1156, 1161 (10th Cir.1983), cert. denied, 465 U.S. 1036, 104 S.Ct. 1310, 79 L.Ed.2d 707 (1984). We do believe that every defendant should be advised on the record, but outside the presence of the jury, by the court of his right to testify at or near the end of the State's case-in-chief. This will eliminate any question about the defendant knowing that he has such a constitutional right and that the decision is ultimately his to make. In summary, while it is good practice, the Curtis colloquy is not a sine qua non of a valid conviction in all cases. There is no evidence on the record that defense counsel or the trial judge coerced or misled the defendant into not testifying or that Phillips did not know of his right to testify and wanted to take the stand. The fact that Phillips had three prior convictions suggests that Phillips knowingly waived his right to testify for two reasons. First, Phillips probably decided not to take the stand in order to avoid being impeached with the three prior convictions in front of the jury. Second, in light of his three prior involvements with the criminal justice system, Phillips' claim that he was unaware of his right to testify strains credulity. This is especially so where Phillips' defense counsel called six other witnesses on Phillips' behalf at trial.