Opinion ID: 1179776
Heading Depth: 5
Heading Rank: 4

Heading: Question About Waltrip's Lost Chance for Marriage and Family.

Text: During cross-examination, the prosecutor asked Garcia whether defendant ever indicated that he feels it's unfair that Mr. Waltrip will never be able to get married and enjoy a family, like he can, even though he's in prison? (Italics added.) This question was deliberately misleading, defendant insists, because the prosecutor knew, and had succeeded in keeping from the jury, that Waltrip was a homosexual who was HIV positive at the time of his death. The claim is waived for failure to object, and it lacks merit in any event. The question sought only to learn whether defendant regretted depriving a young person of the opportunities of life in general, which defendant himself might continue to enjoy in some measure even while incarcerated. The prosecutor asked no further questions and made no argument stressing Waltrip's lost chance for marriage and fatherhood. To the extent the jurors noticed the brief reference of which defendant complains, they would necessarily have assumed the question was rhetorical, intended only to pursue the obvious and general theme of injustice as between murderer and victim. No misconduct appears.