Opinion ID: 2804139
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: Exclusion of Evidence of Medical

Text: Condition Kolodesh argues that the District Court abused its discretion by preventing him from countering Pugman’s testimony that Kolodesh met him at the office almost daily. Kolodesh says he had evidence that he was homebound due to illness from 2003 to 2005. He contends that, because the illegal activity began in earnest in 2003, the excluded evidence would have provided “exculpatory alibi testimony” showing that he “was physically too ill to be involved in the operation of [Home Care Hospice]” at that time. (Opening Br. at 42.) If the Court erred in this respect – and it appears it did – the error was harmless. Kolodesh called his wife, Yakobashvili, as a witness and attempted to have her testify as to his health. The District Court ruled that Yakobashvili had personal knowledge to testify as to “whether he got up in the morning and went or left the house,” but testimony that illness was the reason he could not go to work would be hearsay. (App. at 4275.) When Yakobashvili repeatedly ignored the scope of defense counsel’s questions and testified not only that Kolodesh was “[n]ot really” going into work at Community Home Health, but that the reason was that he was “very sick,” the District Court cut off questioning and ordered defense counsel to move on. (App. at 4276.) “Testimony that conveys a witness’s personal knowledge about a matter is not hearsay.” United States v. Vosburgh, 602 F.3d 512, 539 n.27 (3d Cir. 2010). The proffered testimony could be understood to establish that Yakobashvili had personal knowledge that her husband was 15 ill in some way and that the illness had an effect on his ability to work. That testimony could certainly have been subjected to close scrutiny under cross-examination, but her impressions of her husband’s health and capacity to work were not hearsay.13 However, even if Kolodesh had been allowed to pursue that line of questioning, it would not have affected the outcome of the trial. We are quite sure of that. See United States v. Zehrbach, 47 F.3d 1252, 1265 (3d Cir. 1995) (en banc) (stating that an error is harmless “when it is highly probable that the error did not contribute to the judgment,” which “requires that the court possess a sure conviction that the error did not prejudice the defendant” (emphasis and internal quotation marks omitted)). Kolodesh wanted Yakobashvili to testify as to his health between 2003 and 2005. The incriminating evidence that Kolodesh identifies as being undermined by such testimony, however, refers to Kolodesh’s almost-daily office visits with Pugman during 2000 and 2006. Elsewhere, Pugman testified that he and Kolodesh had “always” been in “communication” on a daily basis, including in 2003 (App. at 1051), and that some of their conversations took place over the phone. Furthermore, Pugman testified that, starting sometime in 2004, he and Kolodesh began having meetings after business hours in Kolodesh’s home, though “rarely” in Pugman’s home because Kolodesh “was more comfortable” in his own house. (App. at 967.) While Pugman also testified that he and Kolodesh “[s]ometimes, [but] not that often,” met 13 Yakobashvili’s attempt to identify the particular illness that her husband had may be another matter. But the District Court could have limited that testimony without excluding all reference to Kolodesh’s health. 16 at Community Home Health during 2004 (App. at 968), that testimony comports with Yakobashvili’s testimony that in 2004 – in the midst of the period that she testified her husband was ill – Kolodesh had a meeting with Pugman, Ganetsky, and Yakobashvili at Community Home Health.14 Because Yakobashvili’s proffered testimony did not demonstrate that Kolodesh was not involved in the operation of Home Care Hospice during 2003 to 2005, it failed to contradict Pugman’s testimony or to materially weaken his credibility. The decision to exclude Yakobashvili’s testimony about Kolodesh’s illness was, therefore, harmless.