Opinion ID: 689891
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: Restriction on cross-examination and presentation of evidence

Text: 48 Scotti claims that the district court improperly curtailed his cross-examination of government witnesses and presentation of evidence. Our review of such questions is limited. As we said in United States v. Concepcion, 983 F.2d 369, 391-92 (2d Cir.1992): 49 The scope and extent of cross-examination lies within the discretion of the trial judge. The trial court may, in its discretion, preclude questions for which the questioner cannot show a good faith basis. So long as the jury has before it sufficient information to make a discriminating appraisal of the witness's possible motives for testifying falsely in favor of the government, we will uphold the trial court's exercise of its discretion. 50 (quotations and citations omitted), cert. denied, --- U.S. ----, 114 S.Ct. 163, 126 L.Ed.2d 124 (1993); see also United States v. Scarpa, 913 F.2d 993, 1018 (2d Cir.1990); United States v. Tillem, 906 F.2d 814, 827 (2d Cir.1990). 51 Scotti alleges first that the district court improperly restricted him from eliciting testimony about Gary Gough's HIV (Human Immunodeficiency Virus) infection and presenting testimony about Scotti's awareness of it. He argues that this evidence cumulatively would have made it seem improbable that Scotti would have risked infection by drawing blood when he punched Gough in the face, as Gough testified Scotti did. Scotti's counsel summed up the defense's theory succinctly at oral argument: I would think a reasonably intelligent person in today's society would not go around bloodying people's faces if they had AIDS. I think maybe they'd take a bat. 52 Whatever the tactics of the reasonably intelligent extortionist, Scotti's beliefs as to Gough's HIV infection and the factual basis for those beliefs were in fact relevant evidence. See Fed.R.Evid. 401. As Scotti contends, such evidence is at least somewhat probative of the occurrence (or, more precisely, the non-occurrence) of material facts: namely, the acts of violence that supplied in part the predicate for Scotti's conviction on Count Four of using extortion against Gough to collect an extension of credit. Of course, the district court could still have excluded this evidence on the grounds of prejudice, confusion, or waste of time. Fed.R.Evid. 403. 53 The chief problem with Scotti's relevance argument regarding Gough's HIV infection is that he never made it until both the prosecution and defense had rested. When the issue arose at trial, Scotti's claim for admissibility focused solely on Gough's credibility. In response to the government's objection about his inquiry into Gough's HIV infection, Scotti simply framed the issue as whether Gough g[o]t it sexually, or [is he] someone who took heroin, the needle? Since Gough's drug habits and sexual proclivities were already in evidence, examination into the source of Gough's malady was at best cumulative and at worst highly prejudicial. On those grounds, the district court was justified in excluding the evidence, especially given the risk that a juror might impermissibly discredit Gough solely because of his HIV status. If Scotti had an alternative theory of relevance, it was his burden to alert the court to it. See United States v. Pugliese, 712 F.2d 1574, 1580 (2d Cir.1983); United States v. Kelly, 556 F.2d 257, 265 (5th Cir.1977) (finding no error in excluding evidence where offeror failed to argue relevance to the court), cert. denied, 434 U.S. 1017, 98 S.Ct. 737, 54 L.Ed.2d 763 (1978); 22 Charles A. Wright & Kenneth W. Graham, Jr., Federal Practice and Procedure Sec. 5166, at 69 & n. 20. Since counsel waited until both sides had rested to unveil his theory that evidence of Gough's HIV status was probative as to whether Scotti punched him in the face, it was not an abuse of discretion for the district court to deny Scotti's request to recall witnesses to explore this issue after the close of evidence. 54 Scotti also complains that the district court restricted his questioning of defense witness Al Schwendeman, a former employee of the Staten Car Service, about the drug habits and financial dealings of its principals. The relevance of the excluded testimony is not apparent to us, and such testimony, if intended for impeachment purposes, runs afoul of the rule against introduction of extrinsic evidence of prior bad acts. Fed.R.Evid. 608(b). Thus, we find that this claim lacks merit.