Opinion ID: 496615
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 4

Heading: randle's statement

Text: 24 Woolbright argues that the district court erred in admitting a statement by Randle, who was not tried with Woolbright, that she and Woolbright were on a honeymoon trip at the time of the arrest. The district court had previously admitted, in response to Woolbright's motion, a statement by Randle identifying as hers one of the bags Woolbright was carrying. The bag that Randle identified contained the vast majority of the methamphetamine pills. Once the honeymoon statement was admitted, the government was able to benefit from a constructive possession instruction. 25 The district court ruled, correctly, that the identification of the bag was a statement against penal interest admissible under Fed.R.Evid. 804(b)(3). Randle had asserted her privilege against self-incrimination under the fifth amendment and therefore was unavailable under Rule 804(a)(1). The district court ruled that the honeymoon statement was admissible because, although the two statements were not made at the same time, it would be prejudicial and unfair, [as well as] incomplete to admit the statement concerning ownership of the bag without admitting the honeymoon statement. We conclude, however, that neither Rule 106, the rule of completeness, which is limited to writings, nor Rule 611, which allows a district judge to control the presentation of evidence as necessary to the ascertainment of the truth, empowers a court to admit unrelated hearsay in the interest of fairness and completeness when that hearsay does not come within a defined hearsay exception. See Fed.R.Evid. 802. 26 The government argues that the honeymoon statement was admissible either under Rule 804(b)(3) or (5). Although the honeymoon statement was made by an unavailable declarant who can be presumed to have had first-hand knowledge of the subject matter of the statement, it is not so far contrary to the declarant's penal interest to imbue it with the requisite reliability under Rule 804(b)(3). First, it is unclear that the honeymoon statement was against Randle's penal interest at all, as mere association with Woolbright would not subject Randle to criminal liability. See Everroad, 704 F.2d at 406. Secondly, there is no evidence that Randle was in any manner aware that the honeymoon statement was against her penal interest. See United States v. Pena, 527 F.2d 1356, 1362 (5th Cir.), cert. denied, 426 U.S. 949, 96 S.Ct. 3168, 49 L.Ed.2d 1185 (1976); Pink Supply Corp. v. Hiebert, Inc., 612 F.Supp. 1334, 1345 (D.Minn.1985), aff'd 788 F.2d 1313 (8th Cir.1986); 4 J. Weinstein & M. Berger, Weinstein's Evidence, p 804(b)(3), at 804-98 (1987) (citations omitted). Awareness of exposure to penal liability can be imputed to Randle with respect to the statement concerning ownership of the bag, but not with respect to the honeymoon statement. 27 We now turn to Rule 804(b)(5), the catchall hearsay exception when the declarant is unavailable. Initially, we note that we have strictly construed the requirements of this rule. See United States v. Love, 592 F.2d 1022, 1026 (8th Cir.1979). The history of Rule 804(b)(5)    indicates that Congress did not intend to create a broad new hearsay exception. The intent of Congress was that Rule 804(b)(5) would be used very rarely, and only in exceptional circumstances. Id. In addition to requiring circumstantial guarantees of trustworthiness equivalent to those delineated in the specific hearsay exceptions under Rule 804, Rule 804(b)(5) also requires that the evidence in question bears on a material fact, is more probative on the point for which it is offered than any other evidence reasonably available, that its admission will serve the general purposes of these rules and the interests of justice, and that the opponent had reasonable notice of the proponent's intent to introduce the statement. Fed.R.Evid. 804(b)(5). 28 The government argues that the reliability of the honeymoon statement is buttressed by the following equivalent circumstantial guarantees of trustworthiness. Randle was from out of town but was carrying no luggage when stopped by the police as she was attempting to leave the hotel. The bag that Randle claimed ownership of, and which Woolbright was carrying, contained women's clothing that most likely could only have belonged to Randle. This evidence, however, only tends to support Randle's claim of ownership. The government also points out that travel arrangements for Randle and Woolbright had been made from Denver, Randle's hometown, to St. Louis, in the name of Mr. and Mrs. M. Frost, and that Woolbright was known to use the alias Marc Frost. Randle and Woolbright were apparently staying together in the same suite of rooms at the hotel, and Woolbright was carrying her bag. Lastly, Woolbright's bags contained airline tickets to and from Denver, none of which, however, were in the names of Mr. and Mrs. Frost. 29 The government offered the honeymoon statement not to prove its literal truth, because Randle and Woolbright were not married, but to establish that they had a more than casual, informal relationship. This evidence was necessary to counter the admission into evidence of Randle's identification of one of the bags as hers and the correlative implication that Woolbright was unaware of the methamphetamines. We find that these facts, necessarily viewed in the light most favorable to the government, United States v. Baswell, 792 F.2d 755, 756 (8th Cir.1986); United States v. Clark, 743 F.2d 1255, 1259 (8th Cir.1984), coupled with the lack of evidence and sheer improbability that Randle was attempting to curry favor, exonerate herself, or implicate Woolbright by making the honeymoon statement, provide sufficient circumstantial guarantees of trustworthiness to warrant admitting that statement for the purpose of illustrating the nature of Randle and Woolbright's relationship. 3 See United States v. Marchini, 797 F.2d 759, 762-64 (9th Cir.1986), cert. denied, --- U.S. ----, 107 S.Ct. 1288, 94 L.Ed.2d 145 (1987) (grand jury testimony of witness who asserted marital privilege deemed trustworthy because uncontroverted, not inculpatory of defendant, concerned facts within witness's personal knowledge, superior to other evidence, and no apparent motive for fabrication); United States v. Van Lufkins, 676 F.2d 1189, 1191-92 (8th Cir.1982) (statement by assault victim to sister shortly after assault and without any evidence of fabrication admissible); United States v. Lyon, 567 F.2d 777, 784 (8th Cir.1977), cert. denied, 435 U.S. 918, 98 S.Ct. 1476, 55 L.Ed.2d 510 (1978) (statement transcribed by F.B.I. agent admissible when no other evidence available and trustworthiness guaranteed by agent's detailed testimony concerning transcription of statement); United States v. Ward, 552 F.2d 1080, 1083 (5th Cir.), cert. denied, 434 U.S. 850, 98 S.Ct. 161, 54 L.Ed.2d 119 (1977) (self-serving statement corresponding factually to testimony of other witnesses and investigator admissible); United States v. Carlson, 547 F.2d 1346, 1354-55 (8th Cir.1976), cert. denied, 431 U.S. 914, 97 S.Ct. 2174, 53 L.Ed.2d 224 (1977) (grand jury testimony admissible at trial because made under oath, never recanted, based on first-hand knowledge, and best evidence available). See also United States v. Bailey, 581 F.2d 341, 350 (3d Cir.1978) (statement made in face-to-face negotiations for reduction of charge against declarant lacked trustworthiness); Pink Supply Corp. v. Hiebert, Inc., 612 F.Supp. 1334, 1345-46 (D.Minn.1985), aff'd 788 F.2d 1313 (8th Cir.1986) (noncontemporaneous statement without any indicia of trustworthiness not admissible). 30 Similarly, the other requirements of Rule 804(b)(5) are also satisfied. It is uncontroverted that the statement bears on a material fact, the element of intent required under 21 U.S.C. Sec. 841(a)(1), possession with intent to distribute. No issue has been raised by Woolbright that he was not given adequate notice of the government's intent to offer the statement. The statement was the most probative direct evidence of the relationship between Randle and Woolbright, because Randle had become unavailable. Finally, its admission served both a purpose of the rules, i.e., the admission of relevant evidence, see Fed.R.Evid. 402, and the interests of justice. Therefore, we hold that the district court did not abuse its discretion in admitting the honeymoon statement under Rule 804(b)(5). 31 We also note that the admissibility of the honeymoon statement is not susceptible to a sixth amendment challenge. 32 [W]hen a hearsay declarant is not present for cross-examination at trial, the Confrontation Clause normally requires a showing that he is unavailable. Even then, his statement is admissible only if it bears adequate indicia of reliability. Reliability can be inferred without more in a case where the evidence falls within a firmly rooted hearsay exception. In other cases, the evidence must be excluded, at least absent a showing of particularized guarantees of trustworthiness. 33 Ohio v. Roberts, 448 U.S. 56, 66, 100 S.Ct. 2531, 2539, 65 L.Ed.2d 597 (1980) (footnote omitted); Parker v. Randolph, 442 U.S. 62, 73, 99 S.Ct. 2132, 2139, 60 L.Ed.2d 713 (1979) ([t]he Confrontation Clause has never been held to bar the admission into evidence of every relevant extrajudicial statement made by a nontestifying declarant simply because it in some way incriminates the defendant) (citations omitted); Mancusi v. Stubbs, 408 U.S. 204, 213, 92 S.Ct. 2308, 2313, 33 L.Ed.2d 293 (1972) (confrontation clause is satisfied by unavailability of declarant and indicia of reliability of statement). 34 Without holding that it would always be necessarily so, we find that the indicia of reliability of the honeymoon statement that passed the Rule 804(b)(5) analysis also satisfy the related but not coextensive requirements of the confrontation clause. See United States v. Barlow, 693 F.2d 954, 964-65 (6th Cir.1982), cert. denied, 461 U.S. 945, 103 S.Ct. 2124, 77 L.Ed.2d 1304 (1983) (citing Dutton v. Evans, 400 U.S. 74, 88-89, 91 S.Ct. 210, 219-20, 27 L.Ed.2d 213 (1970)); United States v. West, 574 F.2d 1131, 1137-38 (4th Cir.1978). In light of the reliability of the statement, Woolbright was not materially prejudiced by the absence of an opportunity to cross-examine Randle, see Ellis v. Black, 732 F.2d 650, 656 (8th Cir.1984), and in light of Woolbright's actual possession, the statement was not  'devastating'  to him. See Dutton, 400 U.S. at 87, 91 S.Ct. at 219. In addition, Woolbright will not now be heard to argue that the admission of this evidence was unfair, because the government offered the honeymoon statement only after Woolbright announced his intent to offer Randle's statement concerning ownership of the bag.