Opinion ID: 2622136
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 4

Heading: Athan's Brother's Out-of-Court Statements

Text: ś 55 Sometime shortly after the victim's body was discovered, Athan's brother, James Athan (James), told Officer McGee, a Seattle Police Officer, that he saw Athan the evening before the body was discovered in the area pushing a cart with a large box on it. VRP (Jan. 13, 2004) at 126. In a 2003 interview, James clarified his statement by saying he saw Athan several nights before the body was discovered, not the night before. CP at 108. Neither James nor Officer McGee testified at Athan's trial. However, James' statement to Officer McGee was referenced in the testimony of two witnesses. First, Detective Mixsell, in describing the questioning of Athan before he was arrested in New Jersey, testified to asking Athan about James' statement and Athan's response. VRP (Jan. 13, 2004) at 126. Second, Detective Wallock testified that he was asked to interview Athan the day after the body was discovered based on information received from James. VRP (Jan. 13, 2004) at 148-49. Detective Wallock did not testify to the content of the information received from James though he did testify that Athan, during this interview, admitted he had been in the neighborhood on the evening prior to the body being discovered with a cart for the purpose of collecting firewood. VRP (Jan. 13, 2004) at 149. No one directly testified to seeing Athan the night before the body was found pushing a cart with a large box on it.
ś 56 Athan argues testimonial hearsay statements against a defendant are not admissible unless the witness is no longer available and the defendant had a prior opportunity to examine the witness. Crawford, 541 U.S. at 59, 124 S.Ct. 1354. Athan contends James' statement was testimonial for several reasons. First, it was reasonable for an objective witness to believe the statement would be available for use at a later trial. Second, it was a pretrial statement that the declarant could reasonably believe would be used prosecutorially. Finally, it was a statement made to a police officer in the course of an investigation. See Crawford, 541 U.S. at 51-52, 124 S.Ct. 1354 (explaining what kind of statements should qualify as `testimonial'). Athan concludes that because the statement was testimonial and James was available at trial, the evidence was not admissible. Under Crawford, Athan argues, his Sixth Amendment right to confront any witness against him was violated. ś 57 The State first argues the statements were not testimonial because they were not made pursuant to a formal interrogation. Rather, James happened to encounter Officer McGee at around 4:00 a.m. and was still emotional from hearing the news of Kristen's death. CP at 268, 270. Second, the State argues that even testimonial evidence may be admitted if it is not being used to prove the truth of the matter asserted. Crawford, 541 U.S. at 60 n. 9, 124 S.Ct. 1354. The State contends Detective Wollack did not testify as to the contents of James' statements and was merely explaining why he questioned Athan at that time. Testimony that does not disclose the contents of the hearsay and is used to provide background does not violate the Sixth Amendment. See United States v. Cromer, 389 F.3d 662, 675-76 (6th Cir.2004). The State contends Detective Mixsell's testimony also did not violate the Sixth Amendment because, although he disclosed the contents of James' statement, he did so to provide context to Athan's answer to the question. Athan's answer would be admissible under ER 801(d)(2) and without the context of James' statements, Athan's response would not make sense. Statements not used to prove the truth of the matter asserted, but instead used to provide context to a defendant's otherwise admissible statement do not violate the Sixth Amendment. See State v. Smith, 162 Ohio App.3d 208, 832 N.E.2d 1286, 1291 (2005). ś 58 Because our analysis here does not turn on whether the statement is testimonial, we assume without deciding that it is. Detective Wollack testified he was asked to question Athan the day after the body was discovered based on information the police had received from James. VRP (Jan. 13, 2004) at 148. Wollack also confirmed he asked Athan if he had been in the area of the television store the night before the body was discovered. VRP (Jan. 13, 2004) at 149. Wollack testified Athan said he had been in the area collecting firewood. VRP (Jan. 13, 2004) at 149. We find no violation of Athan's Sixth Amendment rights during this exchange. The content of James' statement was not revealed to the jury during this exchange so arguably, the testimony does not even qualify as hearsay. The reference to James' statement was made in passing as an explanation of why Detective Wollack was questioning Athan. See Cromer, 389 F.3d at 675-76. We agree with the Cromer court's holding that testimony which does not disclose the content of hearsay and is referenced only to provide context or background to the testimony is not a Crawford violation. ś 59 Unlike Detective Wollack, Detective Mixsell was revealing the content of James' statement to the jury. In a narrative answer, Mixsell testified to the following: I told him thatâ I'm sorry, I told John Athan his brother saw him with a large box on a grocery cart, that his brother had told detectives he saw him with the cart and box the night before. John Athan said: That's ridiculous, and no way, never. VRP (Jan. 13, 2004) at 126. In this context, the statement comes closer to being used to prove the truth of the matter asserted and, therefore, improper. The State gives two alternative reasons for the statement: to give context to the defendant's response and to show how the defendant's story changed from 1982 to this interview in 2003. The fact that the statement may serve more than one purpose does not negate its use to prove the truth of the matter asserted. However, at most, the effect of the statement is to place Athan in the area where the body was found, with a cart and a box, something Athan admitted to. Athan's initial statements to the police in 1982 are entirely consistent with this testimony. The testimony, in context, does not go to prove any material fact in dispute. Under these circumstances, Crawford is not implicated.