Opinion ID: 704024
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 3

Heading: Refusal to Grant a New Trial

Text: 44 Five months after McKenna's conviction and sentence, attorney Ken McKenna obtained a handwritten statement from Rossi, who was then incarcerated in Idaho, recanting his testimony and contending that he was pressured into giving it. The trial court heard argument and then denied the motion. In evaluating Rossi's recantation, a court obviously considers the strength of that assertion in light of the impeachment that would result from any such testimony. In this case, the impeaching evidence would be very strong. Rossi would had to have committed perjury on three separate occasions: the preliminary hearing, the first trial, and the second trial. In light of this history, it is questionable what Rossi's testimony might actually be when the time came down to a new trial. Furthermore, the other evidence of McKenna's guilt was very strong. Under the Brecht standard, the denial of the new trial was not error and did not result in prejudice to McKenna.