Opinion ID: 2161403
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: Was Consolidation Proper?

Text: Through his separate counsel, Mr. Cullen objected to the cases of the three defendants being consolidated for trial. No objection was made by the other two defendants. After a hearing, the trial court ordered consolidation. The charges against the three defendants were identical and arose out of the same events. The same witnesses were to be called in the case of each man. No apparent antagonism was shown in connection with the defenses of the three accused parties.  The trial court did not abuse its discretion in ordering consolidation. State v. Nutley (1964), 24 Wis. (2d) 527, 129 N. W. (2d) 155; Mandella v. State (1947), 251 Wis. 502, 29 N. W. (2d) 723; Kluck v. State (1937), 223 Wis. 381, 269 N. W. 683; Pollack v. State (1934), 215 Wis. 200, 253 N. W. 560, 254 N. W. 471. Cf. Flamme v. State (1920), 171 Wis. 501, 177 N. W. 596. Specifically, it is now urged on behalf of Mr. Cullen that there was adverse testimony offered by one of the witnesses, Barbara Babler, which it is claimed was hearsay with reference to Mr. Cullen because it related to statements made out of his presence. Mr. Cullen's counsel at the trial made no objection to the receipt of this testimony, nor did he make any request to have the trial court limit the applicability of the evidence by a special instruction to the jury. No request for a severance was made at the trial after this testimony was admitted. At the time it ordered the consolidation, the trial court may well have anticipated the possibility that there would be some minor incompatibility in the evidence and, nevertheless, properly ordered consolidation. In the Nutley Case, at page 543, we observed that there might be prejudice to one of several defendants in a consolidated case when there would be presented at the trial an entire line of evidence relevant to the liability of only one defendant. The evidence in the case at bar which is claimed to have been improper is surely less than the entire line of evidence which would warrant a finding of prejudicial error.