Opinion ID: 2069963
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 3

Heading: The Admission of Evidence of Defendant's Prior Police Contacts

Text: The defendant assigns as error the admission of testimony by Det. Calonduono surrounding the circumstances under which his true identity was uncovered. It is undisputed that upon his arrest defendant falsely identified himself as Gerall Francois, and it was Det. Calonduono who, in connection with a separate two-month narcotic investigation, exposed his chicanery and revealed his true appellation. Upon his arrival at police headquarters, Det. Calonduono informed the officers that defendant's name was Hervey Momplaisir and that he discovered his identity in connection with a separate investigation that had resulted in an undercover purchase of cocaine. According to Det. Calonduono, a search warrant for defendant's apartment already had been prepared. The defendant argues to this Court that this evidence should have been excluded, that its probative value was substantially outweighed by its prejudicial effect, and that the trial justice abused his discretion in allowing its introduction. The trial justice determined that this testimony was not offered for the forbidden purpose of proving defendant's guilt by evidence of bad character. Rather, he determined that evidence that defendant had identified himself as Gerall Francois and had been the target of a separate two-month drug investigation was appropriately admitted to establish the circumstances under which defendant was arrested and that he had intentionally provided the police with a false name. The trial justice found that this testimony goes directly to the identity of the defendant, goes to the defendant's knowledge and intent with regard to the charge in this case and was relevant and admissible for the jury to determine whether this defendant knowingly and intentionally engaged in criminal behavior. The trial justice observed that the defense posture was that Momplaisir was merely a passenger in the Pathfinder  an innocent bystander to this narcotics trafficking  such that it was appropriate under Rule 404(b) for the jury to be informed that, although he maintained at trial that he was not connected with the sale of crack cocaine, defendant nonetheless found it necessary to lie about his true identity and deceive the arresting officers. The trial justice allowed the testimony into evidence and, following its introduction, gave an appropriate limiting instruction to the jury. Rule 404(b) of the Rhode Island Rules of Evidence,  Other crimes, wrongs or acts  provides: Evidence of other crimes, wrongs, or acts is not admissible to prove the character of a person in order to show that the person acted in conformity therewith. It may, however, be admissible for other purposes, such as proof of motive, opportunity, intent, preparation, plan, knowledge, identity, absence of mistake or accident, or to prove that defendant feared imminent bodily harm and that the fear was reasonable. On appeal, the state argues that the trial justice did not abuse his discretion in determining that both the challenged statements were relevant to the jury's determination of defendant's intent to engage in the illicit distribution of cocaine. We concur and are satisfied that the trial justice was not clearly wrong in finding that evidence of defendant's sale of cocaine to an undercover officer before his arrest was relevant and that its relevancy was not outweighed by the risk of unfairly prejudicing defendant, a risk significantly reduced by a timely cautionary instruction. Finally, we conclude that defendant provided the police with a false identification with the intent to avoid detection and prosecution; such an affront to law enforcement and the judicial process demonstrates guilty knowledge of the crime, the identity of the offender, a lack ofaccident or mistake, and amounts to consciousness of guilt. See State v. Collins, 543 A.2d 641, 647 (R.I.1988) (use of false identity to avoid detection is inconsistent with an innocent intent and may be considered as circumstantial evidence of guilt). An offender who intentionally attempts to suppress his true identity in an effort to avoid prosecution should not expect to be shielded from the facts under which his perfidy is disclosed and will not find a safe harbor in the Rules of Evidence.