Opinion ID: 1869128
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 5

Heading: Trial Court's Communications with the Jury

Text: In the fifth claim, Hurd argues that he is entitled to a new trial because the judge communicated with the deliberating jury without notifying Hurd or allowing him to be present. During the afternoon of the first full day of deliberations, the jury sent four questions to the trial court judge. The judge responded by recalling the jury into the courtroom and re-reading several instructions, including the instruction on the presumption of innocence. While speaking to the jury, the judge noted that the jury seemed to be struggling to fulfill its function and commented that the jurors needed to get organized. The judge said: I know you are having a problem. I went by the jury room several times today and I could hear you talking. One thing it sounds to me like is that you probably all ought to calm down a little, get a little more organized, and don't let everybody speak at once. Get some kind of organizational pattern and try to analyze the case in an analytical manner. Remember, jurors have been deciding cases for hundreds of years. There are thousands and thousands of jury cases every year in this country which get to reach a verdict. I know it appears difficult to you. It's difficult but it is your task as jurors. This proceeding was electronically recorded, and a transcript was created from this recording. But the attorneys and Hurd were not present for this proceeding. Hurd argues that the judge's communication with the jury violated his right to be present at every critical stage of his trial, and that the judge's statements telling the jury to calm down and to get organized constituted prejudicial error requiring a new trial. The State responds that the error was not prejudicial because the proceeding was recorded and transcribed and the judge did not tell a hung jury that it must deliberate until the jury reached a verdict. The State also argues that the court's election to re-read the presumption of innocence instruction alongside the instructions that were responsive to the jury's specific questions demonstrates that the court took care so as not to prejudice the defendant. We first examine whether the communication constitutes error. The Minnesota Rules of Criminal Procedure require a defendant to be present at every stage of the trial. Minn. R.Crim. P. 26.03, subd. 1(1). We have interpreted this rule to require the defendant's presence when a court responds to questions posed by a deliberating jury. State v. Kelley, 517 N.W.2d 905, 908 (Minn.1994). We therefore agree with Hurd and the first postconviction court that the trial court erred when it did not provide Hurd with the opportunity to be present when the court responded to the jury's questions. But a defendant is not entitled to a new trial on these grounds unless the error was prejudicial. Kelley, 517 N.W.2d at 908. Hurd has the burden to demonstrate that he was prejudiced by the error. Leake v. State, 737 N.W.2d 531, 537 (Minn. 2007) (noting that it is appellant's burden to demonstrate that he was prejudiced by the court's erroneous communication with the jury). Hurd does not contend that he suffered any prejudice when the trial court simply re-read instructions it had already given. Rather, he relies on Kelley and argues that he was prejudiced because the trial court, in essence, instructed the jury that it had to reach a verdict. In Kelley, we held that the trial court abused its discretion by sending the jury back to deliberate after the court was specifically informed that the jury remained deadlocked for at least five hours. 517 N.W.2d at 910. The court knew the count of the deadlock, 10 to 2 in favor of guilt, and declined to give the jury any instruction beyond keep deliberating. Id. at 909-10. Given the posture of that case, we reasoned that the simple instruction constituted coercion by the court to make the jurors think that they must deliberate until they reached a verdict, and we granted a new trial. Id. at 909, 911. In State v. Buggs, however, we applied the Kelley analysis and concluded that a trial courts communications with the jury did not warrant a new trial. 581 N.W.2d 329, 338-39 (Minn.1998). In that case, we determined that the trial courts note to the jury in response to the jurys request that testimony be re-read to them did not coerce a deadlocked jury to reach a verdict. Id. at 338. The trial courts note read, try to resolve these issues yourselves, if you can do so, without my answering the questions for you or rereading the testimony. Id. at 337. After receiving a second note that the jury had reached an impasse, the court instructed the jury to continue deliberating. Id. The court notified the attorneys about the jurys request and the courts response, though it did not ask for the attorneys approval. Id. at 338. On appeal, we did not grant a new trial because we concluded that the instruction to the jury merely informed the jurors of their role and did not coerce a unanimous verdict. Id. at 338-39. In this case, the jury did not indicate that it was deadlocked. Instead, the jury posed four questions relating to previously read instructions. The trial court, apparently sua sponte, stated to the jury during the recorded proceeding, [Y]ou obviously are having problems making a decision. The trial court told the jury to calm down and suggested that they approach their task in an analytical manner. These instructions do not rise to the level of instructing a deadlocked jury that the jury must continue to deliberate until a verdict is achieved. The trial courts comments in this case are akin to those in Buggs, where the judge encouraged further deliberations despite the fact that he knew the jury was in deadlock. Buggs, 581 N.W.2d at 338. Because the trial court merely repeated instructions previously given, reminded the jury of its role, and encouraged orderly cooperation among jurors, Hurd has not demonstrated that he was prejudiced by the error, and his fifth claim therefore fails on the merits.