Opinion ID: 749590
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: Shifting the Burden

Text: 27 During closing argument Cruz objected after the prosecutor made the following statement: 28 Now, I'm going to ask you, ... has the defense been trying to help you in determining where the truth lies, or have they been trying to confuse the issues and muddy the water? (RT Vol. XXVI, 6/14/95: 120-121. ER 31-32) 29 At a side bar, defense counsel argued that the prosecutor's statement shifted the burden of proof by indicating that the defense had an obligation to present the truth. Once again, the trial court immediately gave a curative instruction. Our review of the record does not: support the interpretation that the prosecutor's comment was an attempt to shift the burden of proof. Rather, it was part of a diligent effort to get the jury to focus on the evidence rather than the elaborate conspiracy spin which defense counsel tried to put on the case. Even if the statement could have been misinterpreted in the manner urged by defense counsel, the curative instruction eliminated any chance that such a misinterpretation remained in the minds of the jury. Any error in the comment was clearly harmless.