Court Opinion

ID: 9467980
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-05 02:01:01.785977+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T17:40:37.126507
License: Public Domain

BARRETT, Circuit Judge,
concurring in the result:
I concur in the result because I conclude, as does the panel opinion, that it is prejudicial error for the prosecution, in the course of cross-examination of defense character witnesses, to inquire of their opinion of the defendant’s reputation based on an assumption of his guilt to the charges for which he is then on trial. Such a predicate truly places the witnesses in an untenable predicament. Obviously, the witnesses would not be present unless they had close personal feelings for the defendant. I would go further and suggest that they would not be present if they truly believed that the defendant was guilty, or, perhaps more fairly, if they believed that he was in fact guilty but should not suffer punishment because of his past good record and reputation. That is why it is so difficult to cross-examine such character witnesses. It is difficult to assess the impact of their testimony on the jurors. Certainly, their testimony carries considerable weight in terms of sympathy and compassion which may in some instances result in a not guilty verdict out of fear of a court sentence if the verdict were returned otherwise.
I cannot attribute any significant distinction between the testimony given by the priest and family friend of Polsinelli in the sense of “community reputation” for “honesty, truthfulness, veracity and integrity” on the one hand and their “personal” opinion of his character, on the other hand. In truth, they are one and the same. Thus, it is a matter of serious concern to me whether the evidence is proper in the context of the inquiry of the guilt or innocence of a defendant to a specific criminal charge for which he stands trial.