Opinion ID: 571514
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 3

Heading: The Sequestration of Witnesses

Text: 121 The appellants contend that they were severely prejudiced because Purvis, DeWeese, Barclay, and Sheehy discussed and allegedly tailored their testimony while confined at the Baldwin County Jail during the course of the trial, in violation of Rule 615 of the Federal Rules of Evidence, 17 or the rule of sequestration. They note that Purvis admitted discussing testimony with DeWeese and Sheehy while confined at the county jail, that DeWeese acknowledged talking to Purvis after Purvis began testifying, and that Barclay spoke with DeWeese by telephone during the trial. 18 DeWeese and Barclay, however, denied discussing any substantive matters. Sheehy denied discussing any testimony with Purvis or DeWeese either before or after their testimony. The district court denied the defendants' motion to strike the testimony of Purvis and DeWeese or for a mistrial based upon their alleged violation of the sequestration rule. 122 After trial, Eyster moved for an evidentiary hearing and a new trial based on alleged additional evidence that had to come to the defendants' attention that Sheehy had repeatedly discussed his testimony with Purvis and DeWeese during trial. The additional evidence, however, was unsworn, unattributed, and unsubstantiated. The district court denied the motion. Upon Eyster's motion to reconsider, joined by Lynn and Marshall, the district court issued a memorandum opinion and order, quoting United States v. Reed, 887 F.2d 1398, 1404 (11th Cir.1989), cert. denied, 493 U.S. 1080, 110 S.Ct. 1136, 107 L.Ed.2d 1041 (1990), to hold that in order to obtain a new trial based on newly discovered evidence, the court must be satisfied that: 123 (1) the evidence must be discovered following trial; (2) the movant must show due diligence to discover the evidence; (3) the evidence must not be merely cumulative or impeaching; (4) the evidence must be material to issues before the court; and (5) the evidence must be of such a nature that a new trial would probably produce a new result. 124 The district court concluded that the only value of the newly discovered evidence proffered by the defendants [was] impeachment, which is insufficient under United States v. Vitrano, 746 F.2d 766, 770 (11th Cir.1984). The court further concluded that the newly discovered evidence was not likely to produce a different result at trial because the testimony at trial was not alleged to have been untruthful and because that evidence was merely cumulative. (R6:41). 125 The standard of review of the district court's denial of a motion for a new trial based on alleged violations of the sequestration rule is abuse of discretion. United States v. Lattimore, 902 F.2d 902, 903-04 (11th Cir.), cert. denied, --- U.S. ----, 111 S.Ct. 272, 112 L.Ed.2d 228 (1990); United States v. Jimenez, 780 F.2d 975, 978 (11th Cir.1986). The district court's order is reversible only on a showing of prejudice. Jimenez, 780 F.2d at 978 (citing United States v. Womack, 654 F.2d 1034 (5th Cir. Unit B Aug. 1981), cert. denied, 454 U.S. 1156, 102 S.Ct. 1029, 71 L.Ed.2d 314 (1982)). 126 In Lattimore, the government called a witness who discussed her pending testimony with three other key government witnesses who had completed their testimony. 902 F.2d at 903. Defense counsel moved for a mistrial on the ground that the rule of sequestration had been violated. Id. The motion was denied. Id. at 904. We noted that a district court may treat a violation of the sequestration rule by: (1) citing the guilty party for contempt; (2) allowing opposing counsel to cross-examine the witness as to the nature of the violation; or (3) striking the testimony already given or disallowing further testimony where the rule has been intentionally violated and actual prejudice results. Id.; see United States v. Blasco, 702 F.2d 1315, 1327 (11th Cir.), cert. denied, 464 U.S. 914, 104 S.Ct. 275, 276, 78 L.Ed.2d 256 (1983). Our analysis here is no different than in Lattimore. Defense counsel fully cross-examined Purvis, DeWeese, Barclay, and Sheehy about the nature and extent of their contacts with each other, thereby giving the jury the opportunity to evaluate their credibility. Although the record here, as in Lattimore, reflects that both the district court and the government were lax in upholding the sequestration rule, which further undermines our confidence in the results of this trial, we do not find that given the curative aspect of the cross-examination, the district court abused its discretion by denying the motion for mistrial. 19 D. The Photographs 127 The appellants contend that the district court abused its discretion by admitting into evidence two 4x6 inch black and white photographs showing the charred remains of Fred and Joe Hartley. The first photograph, Government Exhibit 7-B, clearly shows the torso of a burned body with an arm extending over a faceless head. The parties stipulated that the second photograph, Government Exhibit 7-C, shows the remains of a body disbursed within the crash site, though no body parts are evident. Several 8x10 inch color photographs depicting the crash area and other 3x5 inch color photographs of sundry evidence were introduced without objection at trial. Defense counsel, however, objected to the black and white photographs under Rule 403 of the Federal Rules of Evidence. 20 The government argued that the photographs were admissible to establish that this is the activity that motivated people to risk their lives and that [m]uch has been made of deal making and liars and soforth [sic] and so on and this is what it comes down to, the element of risk and what these people are willing to do to commit this type of crime. (R8:427). The district court admitted both photographs. 128 The appellants contend that the photographs of the charred bodies were not relevant, that the cause of the Hartleys' deaths was not in question, that the photographs did not bear on whether any of the defendants had been involved in the importation of cocaine, and that their introduction could only have inflamed the jury. Eyster notes that the photographs related to Count 9, the only count upon which the jury returned a verdict of guilt against him. 129 We addressed the admission of photographs relative to Rule 403 in United States v. De Parias, 805 F.2d 1447 (11th Cir.1986), cert. denied, 482 U.S. 916, 107 S.Ct. 3189, 96 L.Ed.2d 678 (1987). De Parias involved defendants charged with kidnapping and extortion. The defense objected to the introduction of a photograph depicting the badly decomposed body of a murder victim where a coroner was scheduled to testify as to the cause of death. Id. at 1453. We found no abuse of discretion because the photograph showed the identity of the victim, the manner of death, and other elements of the crime. Id. at 1453-54. Moreover, the coroner's testimony addressing the same issues did not preclude the admission of the photographs. Rule 403 does not mandate exclusion merely because some overlap exists between the photographs and other evidence. Id. at 1454. 130 Here, we agree with the district court that Government Exhibit 7-C does not appear particularly gruesome in any way and Rule 403 is not implicated. We disagree, however, with the district court's Rule 403 balancing of Government Exhibit 7-B. The photograph is indeed disturbing, but unlike the photograph in De Parias, the manner of death of the body was not an issue for the jury to resolve. The photograph simply did not go to whether anyone other than the Hartleys was willing to risk death to engage in smuggling, nor was there need to show the jury the photograph to establish that smugglers are motivated to smuggle given all the evidence about the large sums of money involved. The depiction had no tendency to make the existence of any fact that is of consequence to the determination of the action more probable or less probable than it would be without the evidence. Fed.R.Evid. 401. Although we do not find sufficient prejudice in the introduction of the photograph to conclude that the district court abused its discretion, we do urge the district court to give greater focus to Rule 403 determinations. E. The Jury Selection 131 The appellants contend that the district court violated their Sixth Amendment right to trial before a jury drawn from a cross-section of the community by creating a venire of jurors with surnames that began with letters from only one portion of the alphabet. The district court qualified forty-eight jurors from which thirty-seven potential jurors were selected as the panel from which the parties would strike. Lynn objected when the forty-eight had been called on the grounds that the panel that has been selected for the jury venire was not done on a random basis. (R7:37). Eyster joined in the motion. The district court noted that the panel represented a fair cross-section of the panel called, and denied the motion. The jury was selected. Lynn later moved the district court to dismiss the indictment, stay the proceedings, or discharge the jury on the grounds that a venire composed of jurors with surnames beginning with letters A through J would overrepresent some ethnic groups while underrepresenting others. Eyster and Marshall joined in the motion. The district court again denied the motion. 132 We addressed this issue in United States v. Puleo, 817 F.2d 702 (11th Cir.), cert. denied, 484 U.S. 978, 108 S.Ct. 491, 98 L.Ed.2d 489 (1987), in which the defendant claimed that her trial had been tainted because jurors with last names beginning with the letters M through Z were excluded from the jury. We held that [w]hile we do not approve this practice, such an action does not systematically exclude a distinctive group of the community. Id. at 706; see Walker v. Goldsmith, 902 F.2d 16, 17 (9th Cir.1990) (persons with surnames W through Z found not to constitute a distinct class). 133 The appellants, recognizing our holding in Puleo, rely on the Jury Selection and Service Act, 28 U.S.C. §§ 1861-1878 (1988), an issue not raised in Puleo. The Act requires a random selection of jurors from a representative sample. 28 U.S.C. §§ 1861, 1866(a). The appellants contend that an arrangement of names in alphabetical order violates the Act's mandate of random selection. The very same contention was brought in United States v. Haley, 521 F.Supp. 290 (N.D.Ga.1981). In Haley, the district court noted that the Act does not require true or absolute statistical randomness, and that it is sufficient  'for the purpose of this legislation if the [jury selection] plan adopts some system of selection that affords no room for impermissible discrimination against individuals or groups.'  Id. at 294 (quoting S.Rep. No. 891, 90th Cong., 1st Sess. 16, n. 9 (1967)). The district court held that the practice of selecting names in alphabetical order does not violate the Act. Id. We agree, although we restate our admonition discouraging the practice. F. The Remaining Claims 134 We conclude by briefly addressing the appellants' remaining claims: first, Eyster's contention that the district court erred in not severing his trial from the trial of his co-defendants; second, Marshall's assertion that the application of the sentencing guidelines against him was unconstitutional; third, Marshall's contention that the district abused its discretion by admitting evidence seized by the government during trial; and lastly, Marshall's claim that the district court erred in refusing to grant his motion for mistrial. We find no merit in these claims. 135 Eyster asserts that the allegations against him involved no hint of violence because he was, if anything, merely a radio man, yet he was subject to the prejudicial spillover effect of evidence concerning the violent tendencies of his co-defendants. In assessing the merits of a severance motion, the district court must balance the possibility of prejudice to the defendant against the public interest in judicial efficiency and economy. United States v. Walker, 720 F.2d 1527, 1533 (11th Cir.1983), cert. denied, 465 U.S. 1108, 104 S.Ct. 1614, 80 L.Ed.2d 143 (1984). [S]everance will be granted only if a defendant can demonstrate that a joint trial will result in specific and compelling prejudice to the conduct of his defense. Id. The matter is in the sound discretion of the trial judge. Id. We find no showing of actual prejudice and no abuse of discretion. 136 Marshall contends that the sentencing guidelines were incorrectly applied against him because the district court improperly found: (1) that he used or possessed a weapon in connection with the commission of a drug offense, the count of which he was acquitted, and (2) that he was not entitled to an adjustment for acceptance of responsibility. These claims are moot as we are remanding his cause, but we note that under McMillan v. Pennsylvania, 477 U.S. 79, 91, 106 S.Ct. 2411, 2418-19, 91 L.Ed.2d 67 (1986), resolving issues at sentencing under a preponderance of the evidence standard is permissible. As to reviewing adjustments under the guidelines, we do so with great deference. United States v. Wallace, 904 F.2d 603, 605 (11th Cir.1990). We do not address Marshall's Eighth Amendment claim as it is no longer before us. 137 Marshall also contends that the district court abused its discretion in admitting evidence obtained from Marshall's residence in Huntsville, Alabama pursuant to a warrant during the trial. Marshall asserts that the government violated Rule 16(a)(1)(C) of the Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure 21 and that his defense that two Jack Marshalls existed, one in Alabama and one in Florida, was prejudiced by the evidence. The government asserts that it made the evidence available to Marshall the very day it was able to contact him through his attorney during the trial recess. The district court determined that the evidence was admissible in accord with United States v. Euceda-Hernandez, 768 F.2d 1307, 1311-12 (11th Cir.1985). We find no error in the admission of the evidence. 138 Lastly, we find no merit in Marshall's claim that the district court abused its discretion in denying his motion for mistrial after Purvis stated: Dealers are anybody that sells drugs to kids, you know, they deserve to be shot. And you wouldn't find anybody in that group with the exception of Jack that would be capable of doing anything like that. (R10:1180). We find that the potential for prejudice was substantially muted given the district court's immediate curative instruction. See United States v. Holmes, 767 F.2d 820, 823-24 (11th Cir.1985) (no abuse of discretion where the district court immediately minimized the prejudice through instruction).