Opinion ID: 1989359
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 3

Heading: Police Photo of Nelson and Leading Questions

Text: Nelson argues that the prosecutor improperly elicited evidence showing that a police photograph of him had been taken before the offense in this case. The photograph depicted Nelson with plats in his hair, and witnesses had identified one of the assailants as wearing plats. In identifying the photograph, Detective Leech testified that it was a police department photograph. The trial court declined a defense request to approach the bench at that point. The prosecutor then asked the detective the date of the photograph, and the detective gave a date before the offenses in this case occurred. [16] Nelson moved for a mistrial, and the trial court denied it, concluding that an appropriate instruction would be sufficient. Subsequently, the trial court gave an instruction to the effect that the fact that the police have a photograph of a person does not mean the person has ever committed an offense. We are not persuaded that the trial court abused its discretion in denying the mistrial motion. The reference was brief in this lengthy trial, and the court gave a curative instruction. We presume that the jury follows the court's instructions. See McCoy v. United States, 760 A.2d 164, 186 (D.C.2000), cert. denied, 532 U.S. 987, 121 S.Ct. 1636, 149 L.Ed.2d 496 (2001); Allen v. United States, 603 A.2d 1219, 1224 (D.C.1992) (en banc), cert. denied, 505 U.S. 1227, 112 S.Ct. 3050, 120 L.Ed.2d 916 (1992). This type of reference, although troublesome, is not in this case reversible error. See Sheffield v. United States, 397 A.2d 963, 965 n. 1 (D.C. 1979), cert. denied, 441 U.S. 965, 99 S.Ct. 2414, 60 L.Ed.2d 1071 (1979); see also United States v. Williams, 324 U.S.App. D.C. 290, 294, 113 F.3d 243, 247 (1997). Nelson also argues that the prosecutor's repeated use of leading questions requires reversal of his conviction. Almost all of Nelson's objections to the leading nature of the questions were sustained. In this lengthy trial, we can not say that any reversible error occurred.