Opinion ID: 2159195
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 11

Heading: Cross-Examination of Dr. Lapidus Concerning Statement of Nicholas Silva

Text: As previously noted, during the guilt phase of the case the prosecutor attempted to introduce into evidence, through the testimony of Paul Palermo, defendant's actions and statements in the course of the schoolyard incident. After defense counsel objected, the trial court requested an offer of proof. The prosecutor described the incident, which apparently concluded with defendant pointing his shotgun at three or four black youths in the schoolyard and stating I should blow their fucking heads off. The trial court excluded the evidence, ruling that its relevance was substantially outweighed by a prejudicial effect. Subsequently, during direct examination of Nicholas Silva in the guilt phase, when the prosecutor attempted and was permitted to elicit evidence concerning an earlier portion of the schoolyard incident, the prosecutor requested and received explicit confirmation from the trial court of its ruling to exclude evidence of the statement previously described by the prosecutor. See supra at 495 n. 10. Nevertheless, during the cross-examination of Dr. Lapidus, at a point when the prosecutor was questioning the witness about defendant's propensity for violent behavior, the prosecutor ascertained from Dr. Lapidus that she had read Nicholas Silva's statement before formulating an opinion about defendant's mental and emotional condition. The prosecutor then asked Dr. Lapidus to read to the jury the second page of Nicholas Silva's statement to the Irvington police. Without objection by defense counsel, Dr. Lapidus read the statement aloud, exposing the jury to the very testimony the trial court had ruled inadmissible on two occasions during the guilt phase. See supra at 495-496. When she had finished reading the statement to the jury, the prosecutor asked Dr. Lapidus to confirm that she had considered Silva's statement in forming her opinion about defendant. Based on our review of the record, it appears that the prosecutor's sole purpose in requesting Dr. Lapidus to read the Silva statement to the jury was to expose the jury to evidence previously ruled to be inadmissible under Evidence Rule 4. This was highly improper and constitutes misconduct on the part of the prosecutor. The prosecutor's conduct violated Standard 3-5.6(b) of the ABA Standards, supra, which provides: It is unprofessional conduct for a prosecutor knowingly and for the purpose of bringing inadmissible matter to the attention of the judge or jury to offer inadmissible evidence, ask legally objectionable questions, or make other impermissible comments or arguments in the presence of the judge or jury. Not only did the jury hear and consider the evidence of defendant's statement, the prosecutor referred to defendant's statement on two occasions during his closing argument to the jury. We cannot conclude that the prosecutor's misconduct in this instance, weighed cumulatively with the other instances of improper conduct that occurred during the penalty phase, did not prejudice defendant's right to a fair trial.