Opinion ID: 1237936
Heading Depth: 4
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: Cross-examination of Defendant's Sister

Text: Sheila Yates, defendant's sister, testified as a defense witness. On direct examination, she said she did not want defendant to be given the death penalty because she believed his life was worth saving. Asked to explain, she said, among other things, that she loved him, that she did not believe he was guilty, and that he could provide valuable counselling for younger prison inmates. On cross-examination, the prosecution began to ask about a statement the witness had made to Sergeant Fredrickson in March 1983 after defendant's arrest. The defense objected and the court held a hearing outside the jury's presence. At the hearing, the witness testified that after defendant was arrested she became concerned, as a result of conversations with her sister-in-law, that her mother might get into trouble for attempting to conceal or move certain evidence at defendant's direction. She contacted the police and was referred to Sergeant Fredrickson, who came to her house. Fredrickson told her that defendant had killed Hickey and had been involved in a number of other illegal activities. The witness believed these statements and was badly frightened by them. A few days later she gave a statement that was taken by a court reporter. In this statement, she said, among other things, that she believed defendant was up to no good, that she did not trust him, and that she had heard he had bragged to her sister-in-law about killing six people. The witness said she had since formed the opinion that much of what Sergeant Fredrickson told her about her brother was untrue. The trial court ruled that the prosecution could ask questions designed to show that in March 1983 the witness's opinion of defendant was different from the one she had given on direct examination. The trial court did not rule on specific questions but said it would proceed question by question and rule on objections as they were raised. In the jury's presence, the witness testified that she had contacted the police and had discussed with Sergeant Fredrickson her concern that defendant was attempting to involve family members in the destruction or concealment of evidence. She admitted she then had been of the opinion that her brother was up to no good and that before she contacted the police she had received some information about defendant that had caused her concern. (106) Defendant contends that the court erred in ruling that Yates could be asked about her opinion of defendant in 1983 as reflected in her statement to Sergeant Fredrickson. He argues that the ruling was error because the prosecution could have attacked Yates's credibility by other means. He also argues that the record does not sufficiently establish that the trial court weighed the probative value of the evidence against the risk of undue prejudice to defendant. These arguments are unpersuasive. The credibility of a witness may be challenged with evidence of prior statements by the witness that are inconsistent with the witness's testimony at the trial. (Evid. Code, § 780, subd. (h).) Here, Yates's testimony on direct examination implied an opinion of defendant that was inconsistent with the opinion she had expressed to Sergeant Fredrickson in 1983. Evidence of the 1983 statement was therefore admissible for impeachment. This was all that the trial court ruled. The court deferred other issues, including objections on hearsay grounds and on the ground of undue prejudice (Evid. Code, § 352), for resolution question by question. After this ruling, the defense made a number of objections, particularly on hearsay grounds, and the trial court sustained many of these objections. The defense did not object on the ground of undue prejudice, however, so the question whether the trial court conducted the required weighing process is not presented. (Evid. Code, § 353.)