Opinion ID: 1426884
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: Restraint at trial

Text: McGervey argues that the district court abused its discretion in allowing McGervey to be shackled during the trial, thereby violating his right to be clothed in an appearance of an innocent person. During the trial, McGervey's ankles were shackled to brackets on the floor beneath the table at which he and his counsel sat. An apron hung from the table's perimeter, obstructing the jury's view of the shackles. McGervey also claims that a deputy sheriff was seated near him during the trial, and stood near him during his testimony. McGervey was escorted to and from the courtroom with his hands cuffed to a belt around his waist. The jurors were not present when McGervey was escorted to and from the courtroom. McGervey provides no evidence suggesting that any member of the jury saw his shackles or was otherwise aware that he was shackled during the trial. McGervey relies on NRS 178.394, which prohibits any more restraint than is necessary for [the defendant's] detention to answer the charge. Prior to the penalty phase, NRS 178.394 requires that the court must find some immediate necessity to justify an order that the defendant be shackled during trial. Grooms v. State, 96 Nev. 142, 605 P.2d 1145 (1980); Sefton v. State, 72 Nev. 106, 295 P.2d 385 (1956); State v. McKay, 63 Nev. 118, 165 P.2d 389 (1946); cf. Canape v. State, 109 Nev. 864, 859 P.2d 1023 (1993). [B]arring exceptional circumstances, a criminal defendant has the right to appear before his jurors clad in the apparel of an innocent person. Grooms, 96 Nev. at 144, 605 P.2d at 1146 (citation omitted). In considering whether a defendant should be shackled during trial, the district court has the right to take into consideration knowledge acquired outside of formal evidence offered and admitted at trial. McKay, 63 Nev. at 158, 165 P.2d at 406-07. Immediately prior to commencement of the trial, the parties met with the district court judge to discuss the State's proposal to shackle McGervey during the trial. The prosecutor recounted an incident in which, on the date of McGervey's last court appearance, he violently pounded the walls and yelled profanities until officers used an entire can of pepper spray to subdue him. The district court also heard testimony from the jail sergeant who supervised McGervey in jail pending trial for the present offense. The sergeant testified that McGervey was difficult to control and had incited other inmates, making it necessary to transfer him to the state prison for safe keeping pending commencement of the trial. In addition, a police detective testified that McGervey, mistakenly believing the detective to be another officer, threatened him at the jail, shouting, Woods, I'm going to get you! Fuck you! Finally, the district court was aware that McGervey had recently absconded from parole in California, suggesting that he was a flight risk, that he had been charged with assaulting another inmate at a facility in Soledad, California, and that a fifteen-day disciplinary lockdown had been imposed on him while he was in safe keeping at the Nevada State Prison. In addition to establishing a basis for the conclusion that the shackles were necessary, the district court received assurances from the State that aprons would be affixed to the counsel tables to prevent the jury from seeing McGervey's restraints and that the jury would not be present when McGervey was escorted to and from the courtroom. The district court judge also inspected the counsel tables himself, and concluded that the jurors would be unable to see McGervey's ankle restraints. We conclude that, based on the foregoing considerations, the district court did not abuse its discretion in deciding that the ankle restraints were necessary to detain McGervey and to protect the people present in the courtroom. The officers involved had been unable to control McGervey in the jail, and it was reasonable to assume that they might encounter similar difficulties in the courtroom. Even if the district court had abused its discretion in allowing McGervey to be shackled during the trial, we conclude that the error would have been harmless. McGervey provides no evidence suggesting that any juror knew that he was physically restrained, and the record indicates that the district court took measures to assure that the jurors would not be able to see the shackles. Hence, we conclude that McGervey was not prejudiced under the circumstances.