Opinion ID: 1217672
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: Analysis of Impact of Prosecutor's Statements in Case Sub Judice

Text: Syllabus point six of Sugg, as referenced above, requires this Court to engage in an analysis of four factors to determine whether the improper prosecutorial comment requires reversal of the conviction. The four factors include: (1) the degree to which the prosecutor's remarks have a tendency to mislead the jury and to prejudice the accused; (2) whether the remarks were isolated or extensive; (3) absent the remarks, the strength of competent proof introduced to establish the guilt of the accused; and (4) whether the comments were deliberately placed before the jury to divert attention to extraneous matters. 193 W.Va. at 393, 456 S.E.2d at 474. The State's substantive evidence at trial, directly addressing the allegations of sexual impropriety, was limited to the testimony of J.G. and the reading of the Appellant's statement of confession. Thus, the prosecutor's statement that no one appeared to assert that the confession was false or mendaciously transcribed by the police was of particular force and effect under these circumstances. Pursuant to this Court's analysis of the prosecutorial comments, this Court finds that the comments in this case constitute prejudicial error, satisfying the first prong of Sugg. While the remarks of the prosecutor were not particularly extensive, they were emphatic enough to produce a pronounced effect upon the jury. On three occasions during the soliloquy, the prosecutor addressed the absence of contradictory testimony with specific language, as follows: (1) You never heard anybody come in here and say[;] (2) no one ever came in here and said[;] and (3) no one ever said.... The State did produce other significant evidence to establish the guilt of the accused, particularly in the form of the testimony of J.G. However, the Appellant's failure to testify at trial carried heightened sensitivity with the jury since only the Appellant could have contradicted the confession that was read to the jury. Sugg also requires this Court to consider whether the comments of the prosecutor were part of a deliberate effort to divert jury attention to extraneous matters. While the Court obviously cannot discern the intentions of the prosecutor as he made the comments, it appears that the prosecutor was attempting to address the voluntariness of the Appellant's confession. In so doing, however, the prosecutor emphasized that no testimony had been presented to counter the confession, and the jury obviously comprehended the fact that only the Appellant could have specifically commented upon the truthfulness of her confession. In Murray, this Court explained that while we consider the intent of the prosecuting attorney in making statements to the jury, a greater concern is whether the statements were of such character that the jury would naturally and necessarily take the prosecuting attorney's statements to be a reminder that the defendant did not testify. 220 W.Va. at 744, 649 S.E.2d at 518. Under these circumstances, we find that the prosecutor's statements were erroneous and prejudicial. [6] The State suggests that any error regarding the prosecutor's comments should be deemed harmless. This Court has succinctly stated that [e]rrors involving deprivation of constitutional rights will be regarded as harmless ... if there is no reasonable possibility that the violation contributed to the conviction. Syl. Pt. 20, State v. Thomas, 157 W.Va. 640, 203 S.E.2d 445 (1974); see also State v. Jenkins, 195 W.Va. 620, 629, 466 S.E.2d 471, 480 (1995). [7] In the attempt to determine whether a constitutional violation is harmless, the United States Supreme Court held in Chapman v. California, 386 U.S. 18, 87 S.Ct. 824, 17 L.Ed.2d 705 (1967), that the burden is on the beneficiary of a constitutional error to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that the error complained of did not contribute to the verdict obtained. 386 U.S. at 24, 87 S.Ct. 824. [8] In State v. DiGuilio, 491 So.2d 1129 (Fla. 1986), the Florida court addressed the requirement that the State must prove beyond a reasonable doubt that the error did not contribute to the verdict in order to establish that a prosecutor's improper comment was harmless. The court explained the rigor of the test as follows: The test is not a sufficiency-of-the-evidence, a correct result, a not clearly wrong, a substantial evidence, a more probable than not, a clear and convincing, or even an overwhelming evidence test. Harmless error is not a device for the appellate court to substitute itself for the trier-of-fact by simply weighing the evidence. The focus is on the effect of the error on the trier-of-fact. The question is whether there is a reasonable possibility that the error affected the verdict. 491 So.2d at 1139. Based upon the evidence before the jury, we cannot pronounce with any degree of certainty that the State has proven beyond a reasonable doubt that the prosecutor's comments did not contribute to the jury's verdict. As discussed above, the State presented essentially two elements tending to prove the Appellant's guilt: the testimony of J.G. and the Appellant's own confession. Only the Appellant could have contradicted the contents of her confession. In three distinct statements, the prosecutor specifically referred to the absence of any individual appearing to offer contrary evidence, drawing attention to the fact that the Appellant had not appeared to testify regarding her actions or her confession. Thus, we find reversible error in the State's impermissible comment on the Appellant's failure to testify. We cannot conclude beyond a reasonable doubt that the improper comment did not contribute to the guilty verdict, and we therefore reverse the Appellant's conviction on this basis.