Opinion ID: 377910
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 7

Heading: Absence of Appellants at Conference Discussing Incident

Text: 42 Appellants claim that their rights were prejudiced by their not being included in the conference regarding marijuana smoking by jurors. They now claim they would have influenced counsel to ask for disqualification of the jurors. 43 It is clear that there is no constitutional right for a defendant to be present at a conference in chambers concerning dismissal of a juror. See United States v. Brown, 571 F.2d 980, 986-87 (6th Cir. 1978); United States v. Howell, 514 F.2d 710, 714 (5th Cir.), cert. denied, 423 U.S. 914, 987, 96 S.Ct. 396, 46 L.Ed.2d 304 (1975); United States v. Baca, 494 F.2d 424, 428-29 (10th Cir. 1974); Ellis v. Oklahoma, 430 F.2d 1352, 1354-56 (10th Cir. 1970) (habeas corpus motion following state trial), cert. denied, 401 U.S. 1010, 91 S.Ct. 1260, 28 L.Ed.2d 546 (1971). What remains is a question of the interpretation of Fed.R.Crim.P. 43. Subdivision (a) states: 44 The defendant shall be present at the arraignment, at the time of the plea, at every stage of the trial including the impaneling of the jury and the return of the verdict, and at the imposition of sentence, except as otherwise provided by this rule. 45 On the other hand, subdivision (c)(3) provides: 46 A defendant need not be present . . . (a)t a conference or argument upon a question of law. 47 We hold that reversal in this case is not required by rule 43 for three reasons. First, any objection to appellants' nonpresence at the conference was waived by counsel's failure to object contemporaneously. See United States v. Brown, 571 F.2d at 987. 17 Second, despite the holdings of that case and United States v. Baca, supra, we believe that the district court correctly held that under rule 43(c)(3) the appellants had no right to be present at the conference. The facts were undisputed, and the conference concerned only a question of law: whether, on the facts, dismissal of the offenders was compelled. We have already held that the district court had discretion to retain or dismiss the jurors. In the exercise of that discretion, he left this decision up to the defense counsel. Counsel themselves made the tactical choice to place their clients' fate in the hands of the jury which included one of the offending jurors, rather than in the hands of the particular alternate who would be called as a replacement. 18 48 Third, even if rule 43(a) required appellants' presence at this stage of the trial, see, e. g., United States v. Brown, 571 F.2d at 986, this rule is subject to the harmless error doctrine, see id. at 987. Examination of the record reveals that counsel vigorously safeguarded appellants' interests, to the extent of insisting on procedures they counsel thought would yield the best chance for acquittal. It is fanciful for appellants to suggest post hoc that they would have demanded replacement of the offending juror had they been present at the conference. Therefore, any error in the district court's failure to dismiss the offenders sua sponte was harmless beyond a reasonable doubt and as such will not warrant reversal.