Opinion ID: 23933
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 5

Heading: Explanation of the Absence of Acquitted Co-Defendant

Text: 48 McClatchy claims that the trial court erred in instructing counsel to make no reference during closing argument to the absence of co-defendant McElmurray. He also complains of the court's statement to the jury that McElmurray would no longer be participating in the trial and that the court would inform the jury of the status of McElmurray's case after the trial was concluded. Additionally, McClatchy argues that the court's interruption of defense counsel's closing argument to admonish him to refrain from referring to McElmurray was improper. According to McClatchy, the sequence of the court's instructions was extremely prejudicial to his case because (1) the jury was left to speculate about the status of McElmurray's case; (2) McClatchy was prevented from arguing joint partnership conduct in his defense; and (3) the trial court's remarks during McClatchy's closing argument could have been interpreted by the jury as an expression by the court that McClatchy was guilty. The government argues that the trial court's statements regarding the absence of McElmurray cannot fairly be interpreted as an expression by the court of its belief that McClatchy was guilty. 49 The trial court's statements regarding the absence of the co-defendant were appropriate and were not an indication of an opinion of McClatchy's guilt. Furthermore, the trial court later made the following statement to the jury: 50 Do not assume from anything I may have said during the course of this trial that I was trying to express or did express any opinion concerning any of the issues in this case. And except for my instructions to you now on the law, you can disregard anything I may have said during the trial in deciding the facts of the case. 51 Thus, if the trial court erred in making certain statements regarding the absence of the co-defendant, such error was harmless in light of the above instruction. Moreover, McClatchy has not articulated a statement regarding the absence of the co-defendant that would have been more appropriate than the one given by the trial court.