Opinion ID: 2156002
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 7

Heading: Ill Other Issues

Text: When the State finished asking Mr. Bea questions pertaining to his grand jury testimony, it asked three questions concerning a statement allegedly made by Mr. Bea to Percy Hamilton, a neighbor, soon after the victims were found. The State asked: Q. Just a couple of more questions, Mr. Bea. On March 4, 1984, between 2:30 and 3:30 in the morning, were you in the apartment of Percy Hamilton at 6712 South Halsted on the second floor?    Q. Did Percy Hamilton ask you who could have done something like this?    Q. Did you tell Percy you didn't know, but you had seen Frank earlier that night with blood on his hands and his clothes? Mr. Bea neither admitted nor denied making the statement; rather he asserted his fifth amendment privilege to refuse to answer on the grounds that it might incriminate him. The State called Percy Hamilton to testify concerning the statements allegedly made to him by Mr. Bea. Defendant's objection to this was overruled on the grounds that Percy Hamilton's testimony was offered to impeach Mr. Bea. The following exchange took place between the prosecutor and Percy Hamilton: Q. Mr. Hamilton, I am going to call your attention to March 4, 1984 between the hours of 2:30 and 3:00 o'clock in the morning. Were you on the second floor apartment at 6712 South Halsted at that time? A. Yes, sir. Q. At that time in your living room did you have a conversation with Leslie Bea? A. Yes, sir. Q. Was there anybody else present besides you and Mr. Bea? A. No, sir, not in the immediate room. Q. At that time did you ask Mr. Bea who could have done something like this? A. Yes, I did. Q. And did he say he didn't know, but he had seen Frank earlier that night with blood on his hands and clothes? A. That's correct, sir. The State also called Detective Foley. Detective Foley testified he had a conversation with Mr. Bea on March 4, 1984, at approximately 11:30 a.m. at Area 3 headquarters. Detective Foley testified he told Mr. Bea that there was a discrepancy between Mr. Bea's account of events and Ruby Bea's account of events. Over defendant's objections, the State was allowed to question Detective Foley about statements which Ruby Bea had allegedly made to another officer. The State also questioned Detective Foley about what he had told Mr. Bea that Ruby Bea had said. The State argued its questioning was proper in order to perfect the impeachment that we have here. Detective Foley then testified that after confronting Mr. Bea with these discrepancies, Mr. Bea became visibly shaken, started to cry, and blurted out that defendant had returned to the apartment and had blood on him. Further, Detective Foley testified that Mr. Bea had told him that Mr. Bea lied to police originally about his account of events because he was afraid of defendant doing harm to himself and his family. The State argues it was proper for the circuit court to allow it to impeach Mr. Bea by proof that he made statements out of court contradicting his in-court testimony. We do not agree. The purpose of impeaching evidence is to destroy the credibility of a witness, not to establish the truth of the impeaching evidence. People v. Bradford (1985), 106 Ill.2d 492, 499. A witness who does nothing but assert the fifth amendment privilege against self-incrimination is not asserting anything other than that he believes he has reasonable grounds to fear incriminating himself. The only credibility issue under the facts of this case concerns whether or not Mr. Bea was being truthful in asserting he had reasonable grounds to fear incriminating himself. This issue was for the circuit court, and not the jury, to make; the circuit court, in allowing Mr. Bea to assert the privilege, resolved that issue in favor of Mr. Bea. Since Mr. Bea did not testify, it was error to allow him to be impeached by prior statements allegedly made by him concerning defendant to Percy Hamilton and Detective Foley. We do not agree with the State that Percy Hamilton's or Detective Foley's testimony was proper to rebut Mr. Bea's allegations of police coercion brought out by defense counsel on cross-examination of Mr. Bea. Mr. Bea never testified about police coercion, and the questions of defense counsel, unanswered by Mr. Bea, are not substantive evidence. Neither do we agree with the State that Detective Foley's testimony was proper to explain the investigative procedure in this case. It is true that statements which would be hearsay if offered for the truth of the matter asserted may be admissible if offered for the limited purpose of explaining investigative procedure. ( People v. Jones (1983), 114 Ill. App.3d 576, 589.) In this case, however, Detective Foley's testimony was not offered to explain investigative procedures, but was offered only to impeach Mr. Bea. On this record and under these circumstances, the testimony of Percy Hamilton concerning statements allegedly made by Mr. Bea to him, and the testimony of Detective Foley concerning statements allegedly made by Mr. Bea to him, were not proper impeachment. The State argues that if the substantive use of Mr. Bea's out-of-court statements to the grand jury is considered error, the error should be considered harmless. Additionally, if the impeachment of Mr. Bea by the testimony of Percy Hamilton and Detective Foley is considered error, the State argues the error is harmless. We do not agree. The determination of harmless error must be analyzed on the particular facts of each case, considering the trial record as a whole. ( United States v. Hastings (1983), 461 U.S. 499, 508, 76 L.Ed.2d 96, 105, 103 S.Ct. 1974, 1980.) Mr. Bea, sitting in the witness chair, refused to testify. The State was permitted to use his out-of-court statement in front of the grand jury, which placed defendant directly below the scene of the murders with blood on his hands and clothes, as substantive evidence against defendant. The State was then permitted to impeach Mr. Bea with alleged prior statements to Percy Hamilton which placed defendant directly below the scene of the murders with blood on his hands and clothes. Furthermore, the State referred to Leslie Bea's testimony during both closing argument and rebuttal. The State also was permitted to impeach Mr. Bea with alleged prior statements to Detective Foley which placed defendant directly below the scene of the murders with blood on his hands and clothes. This court is unable to conclude that the prejudicial impact to defendant of repeated references to statements placing defendant directly below the scene of the murders with blood on his hands and clothes made by a witness who was not subject to cross-examination concerning the statements was harmless error.
The circuit court allowed the State to introduce eight blown-up photographs of the victims to be admitted into evidence during the guilt phase of defendant's trial and given to the jury during deliberations. These eight photographs have not been included in the record before this court. We are informed that all the photos but one, which depicts Robert Bea's shirt which was taken from Leola's neck, depict the victims at the crime scene. The State argued to the circuit court that the pictures would corroborate the condition of the victims at the time they were found and would corroborate the testimony concerning their injuries. The blown-up photos were 11 by 14 inches, the regular pictures were 3 by 5 inches. Defendant argues that the blown-up photos were designed to excite the passions of the jury. The circuit court allowed the State to use the blown-up photos in the trial in order to aid the jury in understanding the way in which the crime occurred and the injuries sustained by the victims. After the State's case in chief, and during a conference concerning which photos would be admitted into evidence and would go to the jury, defendant objected to two of the pictures on the grounds that the photos were blowups designed only to excite the passions of the jury. Defendant also objected to two of the photos on the grounds that an improper foundation was laid. Defendant objected to three of the photos on the grounds that the photos were cumulative. Defendant now argues that the pictures which depicted the victims' conditions were not probative of any fact in issue because the manner and the cause of death were not at issue in defendant's case. Since these exhibits are not included in the record, we are unable to review the decision reached by the circuit court. The general rule regarding admissibility of photographs depicting the condition of the decedent was set forth in People v. Jenko (1951), 410 Ill. 478: Evidence having a natural tendency to establish the facts in controversy should be admitted. A party cannot have competent evidence excluded merely because it might arouse feelings of horror and indignation in the jury. Any testimony concerning the details of a murder or other violent crime may have such tendencies, but manifestly this could not suffice to render it incompetent. Of course, where spectacular exhibits having little probative value are offered for the principal purpose of arousing prejudicial emotions they should be promptly excluded. But questions relating to the character of the evidence offered, and the manner and extent of its presentation, are largely within the discretion of the trial judge, and the exercise of that discretion will not be interfered with unless there has been an abuse to the prejudice of the defendant. ( Jenko, 410 Ill. at 482.) It is the function of the circuit court to weigh the probative value and potential prejudicial effect of such evidence, and the decision of the court will not be reversed absent an abuse of discretion. ( People v. Greer (1980), 79 Ill.2d 103, 117.) In People v. King (1963), 29 Ill.2d 150, 154, the court stated: All evidence concerning `the physical facts and circumstances showing a killing are admissible in evidence as tending to throw light on the transaction and to reveal the nature' of the crime. [Citation.] Also all facts of the crime which show the aggravated nature of the offense are relevant to the punishment to be set by the jury. ( King, 29 Ill.2d at 154.) On remand, if the State seeks to admit the photographs complained of by defendant, the circuit court shall exercise its discretion in accordance with the principles discussed above. During the aggravation and mitigation phases of the sentencing hearing, the circuit court allowed 11 blown-up photos of the victims' bodies which were taken at the morgue to be published to the jury. Defendant argues that this was error because the photographs were being used solely to excite the passions of the jury. The circuit court allowed the photographs to be published because it found the photographs to be relevant at the sentencing phase to the issue of aggravation. The circuit court stated that it was relevant in aggravation for this jury to consider the trauma or potential trauma that was visited upon the two deceased girls. These photos graphically depict the injuries sustained by the three- and five-year-old deceased children. The photographs establish the severity of the beating inflicted upon Aretha Bea, the degree of force which was used in strangling Leola Bea, and the brutal manner in which both children were raped. While defendant did not refute the cause of death of the two children, this did not preclude the State from presenting evidence which established the degree of force used against the victims and the manner in which they were strangled. ( People v. Speck (1968), 41 Ill.2d 177, 203-04; People v. Kolep (1963), 29 Ill.2d 116, 124.) We cannot conclude the admission of these photographs was an abuse of discretion.
Prior to trial, the defense moved in limine for an order [p]reventing the State from presenting evidence of any alleged prior sexual misconduct by defendant. Defense counsel had been concerned about an allegation in a police report regarding defendant's prior sexual misconduct with his sister, Gloria Stewart. The State informed the circuit court that it had instructed its witnesses not to go into this matter. The circuit court granted defendant's motion. Detective Foley testified for the State concerning the murder investigation of Leola and Aretha Bea on March 4, 1984. During cross-examination, Detective Foley was questioned extensively concerning the circumstances surrounding the arrest of defendant. On redirect examination, the State asked Detective Foley about the basis of his decision not to allow defendant to leave the police station. Detective Foley testified he made the decision based on discrepancies between the account of Leslie Bea, Ruby Bea and Gloria Stewart concerning what had happened and defendant's account of what had happened. When Detective Foley started to testify as to what Leslie Bea, Gloria Stewart and Ruby Bea had said, defense counsel objected. The objection was overruled because the circuit court considered the area of Detective Foley's decision not to allow defendant to leave the police station to have been opened up by the defense during cross-examination. Detective Foley then testified that Gloria Stewart and Leslie Bea said defendant returned to the apartment after an absence and had blood on his hands and pants. Detective Foley, who had not interviewed Ruby Bea, testified that Ruby Bea had followed defendant out of Gloria Stewart's apartment when defendant left the second time to lock the door on the first floor. According to Detective Foley, Ruby Bea had told another police officer she did not see defendant when she looked down the stairs, and that defendant would not have been able to get down the stairs and out the door during the time in which she had followed him. The State then asked Detective Foley, What additional information did you have from Gloria Stewart? Detective Foley responded, Gloria Stewart had said, first of all, she was in fear for her safety, and he [defendant] had raped her previously when she was 9 and 12 years old. It was in response to Detective Foley's answer asserting Gloria Stewart had told a police officer her brother had raped her that defendant objected and moved for a mistrial. The State argued that defense counsel's cross-examination of Detective Foley as to when and why defendant was placed under arrest opened the door to this information by Detective Foley. Defense counsel argued that the statement concerning the alleged rape of Gloria Stewart by defendant violated the order in limine and was prejudicial and irrelevant. The circuit court concluded the area of when and why Detective Foley placed defendant under arrest was opened up during the extensive cross-examination of Detective Foley by defense counsel. The court also found the cross-examination placed Detective Foley's credibility in issue. The court did not consider the violation of the order in limine intentional and denied defendant's motion for mistrial. The circuit court offered to make a curative statement to the jury informing them they were not to concern themselves with a statement regarding what Ms. Stewart might have said regarding a purported rape of her by her brother. Defense counsel declined the offer. It is within the discretion of the circuit court to determine the propriety of declaring a mistrial. ( People v. Hall (1986), 114 Ill.2d 376, 405.) A mistrial should generally be declared only as the result of some occurrence at trial of such character and magnitude that the party seeking it is deprived of his right to a fair trial. ( Benuska v. Dahl (1980), 87 Ill. App.3d 911, 913.) Since we reverse on other grounds, we need not decide if the statement of Detective Foley concerning Gloria Stewart's alleged rape by her brother, standing alone, would be so prejudicial as to have made it an abuse of discretion for the circuit court to deny defendant's motion for mistrial. We note that immediately before the State asked Detective Foley what additional information Gloria Stewart had given him, the State had asked Detective Foley to tell the jury why he had made the decision not to allow defendant to leave the police station. As part of his answer, Detective Foley testified as to what Gloria Stewart had told him. On remand, defendant should be entitled to an order limiting the State from introducing evidence concerning the alleged rape of Gloria Stewart by defendant. Should the State consider it necessary to specifically ask Detective Foley, or another witness, for information provided by Gloria Stewart in addition to the discrepancy between her account and defendant's account of the events of March 3, the State should make clear to the witness, either before the witness testifies or outside the presence of the jury, that it is not seeking information about any alleged prior sexual misconduct of defendant.
Defendant made a motion in limine seeking to bar the use of his prior convictions for rape and attempted murder as impeachment evidence. In the alternative, the defense asked the circuit court to delete the subject matter of the prior convictions and replace it with the word felony. The circuit court denied the motion. In People v. Montgomery (1971), 47 Ill.2d 510, this court discussed the version of Rule 609 of the Federal Rules of Evidence relating to impeachment by evidence of conviction of a crime which had been proposed by the Committee on Rules of Practice and Procedure of the Judicial Conference of the United States. It was the opinion of the court in Montgomery that the provisions of the rule should govern future cases. ( Montgomery, 47 Ill.2d at 519.) The proposed rule set out in Montgomery reads in part: `Rule 609. Impeachment by Evidence of Conviction of Crime (a) General Rule. For the purpose of attacking the credibility of a witness, evidence that he has been convicted of a crime, except on a plea of nolo contendere, is admissible but only if the crime (1) was punishable by death or imprisonment in excess of one year under the law under which he was convicted, or (2) involved dishonesty or false statement regardless of the punishment unless (3) in either case, the judge determines that the probative value of the evidence of the crime is substantially outweighed by the danger of unfair prejudice.' ( Montgomery, 47 Ill.2d at 516.) Factors which are normally considered by the circuit court in exercising its discretion include the nature of the crime, nearness or remoteness of the crime, the subsequent career of the person, and whether the crime was similar to the one charged. Montgomery, 47 Ill.2d at 518. The record does not indicate that the circuit court performed the balancing test required by Montgomery: whether the probative value of the rape and attempted murder convictions was outweighed by the danger of unfair prejudice to defendant. The State argues that if the circuit court was aware of Montgomery and its provisions, it must be assumed that the circuit court gave appropriate consideration to the relevant factors, and such consideration need not appear of record. The State cites People v. Washington (1973), 55 Ill.2d 521, People v. Graves (1986), 142 Ill. App.3d 885, and People v. Hovanec (1979), 76 Ill. App.3d 401, as authority for this argument. In People v. Washington, the trial judge, in determining it was proper to allow the defendant to be impeached by a prior conviction, was cognizant of Montgomery, a then recent case, and    quoted its provisions at length from the bench. ( Washington, 55 Ill.2d at 523.) The Washington court rejected the defendant's argument that the trial judge failed to consider any of the factors enumerated in Montgomery other than remoteness of the crime. In Washington, it was apparent the judge was aware of the potential for prejudice in the admission of the prior conviction, as the judge commented on the necessity of a limiting instruction concerning the use of the impeaching conviction by the jury. Moreover, the State and defense argued whether the offense in question was contemplated by the rule. It was clear from [the] record that the trial court in fact had an adequate basis upon which to exercise its sound discretion. Washington, 55 Ill.2d at 524. In Graves, the court noted that the record did not expressly indicate the trial judge applied the Montgomery balancing test; the court found, however, that the trial court was well aware of the Montgomery provisions. Graves, 142 Ill. App.3d at 898. The court in Hovanec discussed the Montgomery case in the hearing on the admissibility of the defendant's prior conviction for impeachment purposes. Since the court was aware of Montgomery and its provisions, it must be assumed that the judge gave appropriate consideration to the relevant factors and they need not appear of record. Hovanec, 76 Ill. App.3d at 421. In this case, defendant argued to the circuit court that the prior rape and attempted murder convictions are so similar to the charges defendant faced at trial that defendant could not get a fair trial. The State responded that defendant's case turned on credibility; the State argued to the circuit court that the discretion you are given under Montgomery in order to know whether or not that [defendant's] conviction for the similar offense is also an aid in determining credibility and will not be reversed if in granting our motion using your discretion you allow us to use a similar offense. The circuit court then denied the motion. From the record, it appears the trial court understood its discretion under Montgomery, and properly denied defendant's motion.