Opinion ID: 1910680
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 10

Heading: Issue of Judicial Partiality

Text: During the cross-examination of Morton by Colomy's counsel, the record discloses these separate episodes: Q And you landed right at Kenneth Colomy's feet, didn't you? A I don't know if I landed right at his feet, but I know he was putting the feet to me. Q Well, you landed right on them, didn't you? A I didn't land right on him. Q Where did you land? A I landed on the floor. Q You don't know where you landed? [MR. PROSECUTOR]: Objection. He isn't letting the witness answer the questions, Your Honor. THE COURT: Let the witness answer the question, [Mr. Defense Counsel]. You ask him a question and before he gets a chance to answer it, you are at him with another question. Give him a chance to answer. [MR. DEFENSE COUNSEL]: Thank you, sir. . . . . . A I just told you, I saw him kicking me. Q Did you see his foot? A Yes. Q Was there a pair of pants? A I saw his face. Q Well, he didn't kick you with his face. [MR. PROSECUTOR]: Objection. Objection, Your Honor. THE COURT: [Mr. Defense Counsel], can't you get on with the trial without badgering the witness. . . . . . Q But you are not on friendly terms with Kenneth Colomy? A No. Q Have you talked this case over with Mike Fisher? A No, I haven't. Q You were downstairs this morning with him, weren't you? A No, I was not. Q And with Joyce Bechard? A I was downstairs. Q Weren't the three of you together? [MR. PROSECUTOR]: Objection. THE COURT: Give him a chance to answer, [Mr. Defense Counsel]. And I am not going to speak to you again about that. Now if you don't give him a chance to answer, I am going to have to do something else. [MR. DEFENSE COUNSEL]: I'm sorry, Your Honor, I thought I was. THE COURT: You are asking him a question and before you give him a chance to answer you are firing another question at him. Now relax and let him answer the questions. [MR. DEFENSE COUNSEL]: Sir, I stand corrected, but I really thought  THE COURT: I don't want any arguments, either. The jury instructions were clear, complete and impartial. The justice stated: I have no opinion as to what your findings should be. The law does not permit me to take sides. You are not to draw any inferences by reason of any rulings that I may have made on any motions, and there have been many in this case. At a later point the justice continued: Now there is just one other thing that I would like to call to your attention. The attorneys have worked hard and diligently in this particular case, and as I have indicated, it has been a difficult trial, and I am sure you are aware of that, and during the course of the trial, it is easy for someone to get wrapped up in their cause and become a little zealous, and under the law it is the duty of the Court to admonish an attorney who out of zeal for his cause does something which is not in keeping with the rules of evidence or procedure. You are to draw no inferences against the side to whom an admonition of the Court may have been addressed during the trial of the case. You are not to hold anything against an individual, the attorney's client, by reason of any admonition that may be made by the Court. It is the Court's obligation to make sure that the trial runs in an orderly fashion. It is not unusual for an individual to become zealous, as I have said, and to get carried away, and we might think a lot less of them if they didn't take their client's cause in good stead, and do everything they possibly could, but I do admonish you that you are not to hold it against any individual defendant by reason of any comment that may have been made by the Court. We have included the above excerpts from the record not only to focus with precision on Colomy's assertion of judicial misconduct but also to depict, as well as one can from a cold record, the trial atmosphere prevailing at the time. In that context we must construe the rulings above quoted, which the appellant urges demonstrate judicial partiality. The justice presiding at a criminal trial occupies a place of great responsibility. He must maintain an even balance between a defendant's right to a constitutionally fair trial and the state's right to protection from crime. We have said: A justice who presides over a jury trial. . . must . . . see that dignified order is maintained . . . and that the procedure is according to rule. . . . [I]t is his duty to participate directly in the trial to facilitate its orderly progress . . . [and] [h]e must admonish counsel if occasion demands. . . but he must do so in a manner not to create a prejudice. . . . State v. Dipietrantonio, 152 Me. 41, 48-49, 122 A.2d 414, 419 (1956). Our review of the record demonstrates a faithful adherence to the foregoing mandate. We find no merit in Colomy's final point of appeal. The entries are: Appeals denied. Judgments affirmed. GLASSMAN, J., did not sit.