Court Opinion

ID: 9709449
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-26 03:48:07.483507+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T18:22:49.007793
License: Public Domain

JUSTICE HARRISON, dissenting: I agree with the appellate court that the admission made by Pugh at the suppression hearing was admissible at trial. Generally, a third party’s extrajudicial declarations, not made under oath, that he committed a crime are purely hearsay and are inadmissible, even though they are declarations against interest. (People v. Tate (1981), 87 Ill. 2d 134, 143.) When justice requires, however, such extrajudicial declarations may be admissible under the statement-against-penal-interest exception to the hearsay rule if there are sufficient indicia of trustworthiness. (People v. Bowel (1986), 111 Ill. 2d 58, 66.) The United State Supreme Court so recognized in Chambers v. Mississippi (1973), 410 U.S. 284, 302, 35 L. Ed. 2d 297, 313, 93 S. Ct. 1038, 1049. Under Chambers, the availability of a witness is not an essential element in determining the admissibility of a statement against interest. (See also People v. Morris (1986), 148 Ill. App. 3d 471; M. Graham, Cleary & Graham’s Handbook of Illinois Evidence § 804.7, at 783 (6th ed. 1994).) The critical inquiry is whether the statement was made under circumstances that ensure its trustworthiness. In Chambers, there were sufficient indicia of trustworthiness in that (1) the statement was made spontaneously to a close acquaintance shortly after the crime occurred, (2) the statement was corroborated by other evidence, (3) the statement was self-incriminating and against the declarant’s interest, and (4) there was an adequate opportunity for cross-examination of the declarant. (Chambers, 410 U.S.- at 300-01, 35 L. Ed. 2d at 312, 93 S. Ct. at 1048-49.) We have held, however, that these four indicia are not requirements of admissibility. Accordingly, they need not all be present in order for a declaration to be admissible. The question to be considered in judging the admissibility of a declaration is simply whether the declaration was made under circumstances that provide "considerable assurance” of its reliability by objective indicia of trustworthiness. Bowel, 111 Ill. 2d at 67. Two of the factors enumerated in Chambers are present here. In Chambers, the Supreme Court found that certain confessions were against the declarant’s penal interest where they were, "in a very real sense self-incriminatory and unquestionably against interest.” (Chambers, 410 U.S. at 301, 35 L. Ed. 2d at 312, 93 S. Ct. at 1048.) Pugh’s declaration that he possessed heroin for two hours was both self-incriminating and against his interest. No credible argument could be made that making that declaration was not against his penal interest. See People v. Kokoraleis (1986), 149 Ill. App. 3d 1000. The second factor present here is the State’s opportunity to cross-examine Pugh. This court held in People v. Horton (1976), 65 Ill. 2d 413,416, that an ample opportunity to cross-examine must be decided upon by the circumstances in each case. I disagree with the majority’s conclusion that the State’s opportunity was not adequate in the case at bar. Pugh was in court under oath, and the State plainly had every chance to question Pugh regarding whether he possessed the heroin in his pants for two hours or, alternatively, whether defendant Rice handed it to him as Officer Drozd approached their automobile. The State protests that it would have liked to question Pugh regarding the additional issue of his relationship with the defendant, but had no motive to do so at the suppression hearing. I find this contention unpersuasive. Considering the facts of the crime — Pugh and defendant were arrested while driving around together — and the nature of Pugh’s admission, I believe that the State had every reason to pursue the matter further in order to ascertain why Pugh acted as he did. An additional indicium of reliability to provide "considerable assurance” of trustworthiness in this case is the fact that the statement was made in a courtroom under oath. These circumstances distinguish this case from the court’s decisions in People v. Bowel and People v. Tate which applied the same analysis to declarations against penal interest. In neither of those cases were the declarations at issue made under oath or made in a courtroom, as they were here. The codefendant’s testimony in this case was sufficiently trustworthy, and the trial court should not have prevented the jury from hearing it. Although the admission of evidence is within the sound discretion of the trial court and the court’s ruling should not be reversed absent a clear showing of abuse of that discretion (Bowel, 111 Ill. 2d at 68), I believe that such an abuse occurred in this case. Defendant was denied a fair trial and is entitled to be tried again. I would therefore affirm the judgment of the appellate court. CHIEF JUSTICE BILANDIC and JUSTICE McMORROW join in this dissent.