Opinion ID: 2630185
Heading Depth: 5
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: Exclusion of Dalton's statement about pinning the murder on Mercurio

Text: During Dalton's cross-examination by the defense, the prosecutor requested a recess when defense counsel began asking Dalton about a statement Dalton had made to defense investigator Thomas Crompton to the effect that Mercurio had admitted killing Gitmed. The prosecutor requested a foundational hearing outside the presence of the jury under Evidence Code section 402 to determine whether Dalton was going to admit or deny making that statement. At the Evidence Code section 402 hearing, defense counsel asked Dalton whether he had told Crompton that Mercurio committed the murder. Dalton denied saying it and explained, rather, that he had threatened to pin it all on Tony [Mercurio] if he were forced to come testify. Dalton explained he did not want to come to court, then or now, and he was present only because he had been subpoenaed. On cross-examination, Dalton specifically denied Mercurio had ever told him he was the one who committed the murder. The prosecutor moved to exclude Dalton's statement to Crompton under Evidence Code section 352. After hearing argument from defense counsel that the statement should be admitted to show Dalton was willing to lie, the trial court granted the prosecutor's motion, holding the statement was substantially more prejudicial than probative, and that Dalton appear[ed] to be a reluctant witness making statements that he was going to pin this offense on somebody else without any foundation in fact for those assertions because he was angry about possibly having to come to court. Later, defense counsel asked the court to include Crompton's report in the record and asked for permission to call Crompton to testify about what defense counsel argued was Dalton's prior inconsistent statement contained in the report. The court read the report and ruled that Dalton's statement as reported was the same as his testimony about his statement to Crompton at the Evidence Code section 402 hearing; Dalton simply did not want to come to court, and he had no factual basis for pinning the crime on Mercurio. Consequently, the court denied defendant's motion to call Crompton or include his report in the record. The trial court did not abuse its discretion under Evidence Code section 352 in excluding Dalton's remarks to Crompton. As the trial court ruled, Dalton's statements were the angry expressions of a reluctant witness who, to avoid being called to testify, threatened to falsely blame Mercurio for Gitmed's murder. It was within the trial court's discretion to find Dalton's statements more prejudicial than probative. Defendant contests the court's understanding of Dalton's remarks, arguing it makes no sense that Dalton would threaten to pin it all on Mercurio if Dalton was mad at Crompton, because Crompton was a defense investigator. Defendant argues that if Dalton wanted to be uncooperative with Crompton, he would have threatened to pin the murder on defendant, not Mercurio. Defendant therefore contends the trial court erred in denying the defense motion to introduce Crompton's report as a prior inconsistent statement. We disagree for two reasons. First, the trial court's task was to determine the legal relevance of what Dalton had said; it was not required to find logical consistency in Dalton's angry threats. Second, Crompton's report indicates Dalton was angry at the possibility that the district attorney's office would subpoena him. Given that context, Dalton's anger and (false) threat make sense as being directed toward the district attorney. As respondent points out, whether Dalton understood that Crompton was a defense investigator is unclear. But even assuming Dalton understood Crompton worked for defendant, a reasonable reading of the report is that Dalton was angry at being subpoenaed by the district attorney. Crompton was simply the bearer of bad news. The trial court therefore did not abuse its discretion in excluding Dalton's remarks as substantially more prejudicial than probative, and we need not address whether the report should have been admitted as a prior inconsistent statement.