Opinion ID: 1439460
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: Kathy Elliott Hart

Text: The first testimony Appellant claims was improperly allowed is Kathy Elliott Hart's. Kathy testified that her brother, Carl, and her nephew, Shane Martin, stole Appellant's marijuana plants. Kathy also testified that she was afraid for her brother to be around the Greens because her nephew had died mysteriously after the theft. Appellant immediately objected to this statement and moved for a mistrial. The trial court overruled the mistrial motion, but offered a limiting instruction. Appellant accepted the offer, but a limiting instruction was not given at that time. Kathy further testified that she did not want her brother around the Greens because she knew Carl was involved with stealing Appellant's marijuana plants. After further testimony and an objection on a hearsay issue, Appellant renewed his objection to the testimony about Martin's death and also renewed his motion for mistrial. The trial court again asked if Appellant wanted a limiting instruction, but this time he responded, I don't know yet. The court again revisited this issue after the testimony of John Hart. At that time, the trial court offered a limiting instruction that there's been absolutely nothing to prove a link between Appellant and Martin's disappearance, and that it was only elicited for the fact to show fear on behalf of Mrs. Hart. Appellant declined the offer on the basis that he feared it would be more prejudicial. Upon reviewing this testimony, it is clear that the trial court abused its discretion in admitting Mrs. Hart's testimony. First, Mrs. Hart's statement was clearly prejudicial and alluded to her belief that Appellant played a role in Martin's murder and disappearance. Second, no admonition could have cured this statement, even if the trial court had intervened and attempted to curb the statement's effect on the jury. This statement was not only prejudicial but also irrelevant to the issue of whether Appellant committed the Elliott murders. In fact, it was nothing more than an attempt to prove that Appellant was a bad person. A mistrial is a drastic remedy to be used only when an error is so prejudicial that justice cannot be served by continuing the trial and when the prejudicial statement cannot be cured by an instruction. Jones v. State, 340 Ark. 390, 10 S.W.3d 449 (2000). The trial court has the sound discretion to decide whether to grant a mistrial, and this decision will not be overturned absent a showing of abuse or upon manifest prejudice to the complaining party. Id. Additionally, even if a remark is improper, the trial court may deny the mistrial motion and cure any prejudice by issuing a jury admonishment to disregard the remark. Smith, 351 Ark. 468, 95 S.W.3d 801; Dandridge v. State, 292 Ark. 40, 727 S.W.2d 851 (1987). Moreover, where the possible prejudice could have been cured by admonition by the trial court, this court has found no abuse of discretion when defense counsel has refused the trial court's offer of such a curative instruction. Ferguson v. State, 343 Ark. 159, 177, 33 S.W.3d 115, 126 (2000). Nevertheless, there are instances where a statement is so prejudicial that an admonishment could never cure. See Moore v. State, 323 Ark. 529, 537, 915 S.W.2d 284, 289 (1996) (holding that the unresponsive testimony that appellant had admitted he killed another woman was so prejudicial that it could not be cured by an admonition to the jury and the trial court abused its discretion in its denial of a motion for mistrial in the face of such a patently inflammatory and prejudicial statement.) Because of the nature and prejudice attached to Mrs. Hart's statement, we find that the trial court abused its discretion when it failed to grant the motion for mistrial. Having determined that a mistrial was warranted, we now turn to the admissibility of other statements that are likely to be an issue during Appellant's retrial.