Opinion ID: 1998774
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: Coleman's Appeal.

Text: Defendant Coleman seeks reversal on the basis that (1) the district court abused its discretion in failing to sever the trial of the charges against him from the trial of the charges against defendant Williams, and (2) he was unduly prejudiced by an improper argument made by the prosecutor in summation. A. The severance issue. In urging that his trial should have been severed from that of Williams, defendant Coleman relies on the criteria set forth in State v. Clark, 464 N.W.2d 861 (Iowa 1991). Those criteria suggest that severance may be warranted by any of the following factors: (1) if admission of evidence in a joint trial would have been inadmissible and prejudicial if a defendant was tried alone, (2) if a joint trial prevents one defendant from presenting exculpatory testimony of a codefendant, (3) if consolidation will produce a trial of such complexity and length that the jury will be unable to effectively compartmentalize the evidence against each defendant, and (4) if defenses presented by different defendants conflict to the point of being irreconcilable and mutually exclusive. Id. at 863-64. Defendant Coleman bases his entitlement to a separate trial on the first element listed in the four Clark factors. He argues that evidence was admitted concerning several statements made by Kevin Williams outside the mobile home where the killing took place. Coleman asserts that the statements would have been inadmissible hearsay if he had been tried by himself. We disagree. The statements upon which defendant Coleman relies were not offered for the truth of the matters asserted but rather for the light these conversations by and between joint criminal participants would shed on the nature of the crime. With respect to Coleman, there was no issue concerning the fact that he was the party who had fired the fatal shot. He testified to that fact at trial but claimed self-defense and lack of intent to injure Wagehoft. The conversations of other participants at the crime scene were relevant to the issue of how and why Coleman obtained the gun and his intentions concerning its use. They also bear on the issue of premeditation, deliberation, and malice on Coleman's part. They would have been admissible if he had been tried alone. See State v. Baker, 293 N.W.2d 568, 574-75 (Iowa 1980) (coparties' declarations relating to purpose of joint criminal activity admissible as nonhearsay against joint participant). We find that defendant Coleman's argument for granting separate trials is without merit. B. The claim of improper summation. When replying to defendant Coleman's summation to the jury, the assistant county attorney who prosecuted the case invited the jury to try out the alleged murder weapon, which was an exhibit placed in evidence, for purposes of ascertaining that it took a great deal of pressure on the trigger to fire the weapon. Defendant Coleman asserts, consistent with the bill of particulars approved by the trial court, that the prosecutor in issuing this invitation pointed a gun in the direction of the jury and pulled the trigger, causing the hammer to fall. The degree of difficulty in pulling the trigger on the alleged murder weapon had been made an issue in the case and was highlighted by matters stated in the summation by Coleman's counsel. Consequently, we believe the prosecutor's invitation to the jury to test the exhibit was not improper. Nor would it have been improper for the prosecutor to provide a simple demonstration of the working mechanism of the gun. See State v. Pepples, 250 N.W.2d 390, 396 (Iowa 1977) (counsel may make reasonable display of exhibits in evidence to illustrate issues in contention). Unfortunately, as confirmed by the bill of particulars approved by the trial court, the weapon with which the prosecutor made this demonstration was not the one that Coleman had allegedly fired. There were two handguns admitted as trial exhibits, and the prosecutor simply picked up the wrong one. Although the prosecutor's confusion over the guns was unfortunate, it does not warrant a reversal of Coleman's conviction. It appears that it was unintentional. Because both guns had been placed in evidence and were available to the jury under proper identification as to which gun was which, we conclude that it was highly unlikely this miscue by the prosecutor served to prejudice the defendant in any material manner. We separately consider the propriety of the prosecutor's action in pointing a gun in the direction of the jurors. Although the bill of particulars is not precise on the details of this alleged occurrence, the State does not deny the defendants' assertions concerning what took place. We strongly condemn the pointing of a firearm in the direction of any living person for purposes of carrying out a demonstration in a civil or criminal proceeding. It is a manifest departure from basic gun safety requirements as well as breach of common etiquette. Notwithstanding our view concerning the prosecutor's ill-advised demonstration, it is not a prosecutor's misconduct that entitles a defendant to a new trial. It is the resulting prejudice, if any, that prevents the trial from being a fair one. State v. Anderson, 448 N.W.2d 32, 33 (Iowa 1989); State v. Webb, 244 N.W.2d 332, 333 (Iowa 1976). The party claiming prejudice bears the burden of establishing that the act complained of deprived the defendant of a fair trial. State v. Bishop, 387 N.W.2d 554, 561 (Iowa 1986). The incident of which Coleman now complains, although clearly improper, does not, in our opinion, warrant a reversal of his conviction. It was a less serious breach of professional standards than the firearm demonstration that was considered by this court in Anderson, 448 N.W.2d at 33. We determined in that decision that within the context of the entire trial the prosecutor's actions were unlikely to have had a prejudicial effect on the jury's decision. We reach a similar conclusion concerning Coleman's conviction.