Opinion ID: 729205
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 3

Heading: officer mainprize's testimony

Text: 8 At trial, Michigan state police officer Richard Mainprize testified that Steven Sanchez had told him that he had on occasion purchased cocaine from Murillo. This testimony was excludable as hearsay. The government's argument that it was admissible under FED.R.EVID. 801(d)(1)(B) to rebut an express or implied charge against the declarant of recent fabrication fails, for the simple reason that there was no predicate charge of fabrication. United States v. Smith, 746 F.2d 1183, 1185 (6th Cir.1984). Although the government suggested that the defendant's opening statements had implicitly attacked Sanchez's credibility, J.A. at 327-28, there was never any suggestion that Officer Mainprize, the declarant, had recently fabricated anything, and thus no reason to apply Rule 801(d)(1)(B). 9 The defendant did not object to this hearsay until essentially the conclusion of the testimony. At that time the district judge sustained the objection. After excusing the jury, the court evaluated whether to instruct the jury to disregard the hearsay testimony and concluded that on balance it was preferable to do nothing further. The district judge asked defense counsel whether he wished to comment, and counsel declined to do so. J.A. at 324-32. We conclude that the district judge acted properly. An instruction to the jury to disregard the hearsay might have highlighted the testimony, and the defense failed to object in any way to this resolution. 10 In any event, introduction of the testimony was harmless. Officer Mainprize's testimony regarding Sanchez's statements did nothing more than repeat what Sanchez had already told the jury. Mr. Sanchez testified that he had bought cocaine from Murillo five or six times, each time purchasing quarter- or half-ounces. Id. at 282. Mainprize testified that Sanchez had admitted buying one-half ounce of cocaine from Murillo a few days before he was arrested and also purchasing cocaine from Murillo a few ounces at a time for approximately eight months. Id. at 323. The only discrepancy between the accounts is in the amount of cocaine, which is irrelevant to the question of Murillo's guilt. Murillo's counsel never suggested, either during cross examination or in his closing argument, that Sanchez's testimony was false. Thus, the hearsay testimony was merely cumulative, and its introduction was harmless under FED.R.CRIM.P. 52(a).