Court Opinion

ID: 9695124
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-25 18:07:51.451418+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T18:20:08.634892
License: Public Domain

SCHUDSON, J.
¶ 27. (concurring in part; dissenting in part.) For the most part, the majority has offered a thoughtful analysis with which I agree. In particular, I join in emphasizing that, although a supplemental lesser-included instruction " 'would be a rare event, only done in exceptional circumstances,'" majority at ¶ 14, we accept " '[t]he weight of state authority holding] that it would not be appropriate to adopt a per se rule which would declare the belated giving of any [lesser included offense] instruction to be prejudicial error,'" id. Here, however, I depart from the majority's application of the principles it adopts.
¶ 28. In this case, the devil may indeed be in the details and, unfortunately, some of those details are yet unknown. Let us begin, therefore, by identifying two points where the majority's factual summary may be significantly misleading.
1. The Trial Court's "Response"
¶ 29. The majority writes:
*498In the present case, the jury's request for lesser-included offense instructions was originally rebuffed by the trial court, and was only resurrected when the State requested them. We must conclude that this change of heart by the trial court would lead a reasonable jury to believe that the trial court was now endorsing the new instructions. A juror might reasonably ask: why else would they be improper earlier, but proper now?
Majority at ¶ 19 (emphasis added). Based on the record, however, we need not conclude that at all.
¶ 30. As the majority acknowledges, the factual foundation for its speculation is the trial court's comment: "I'll indicate that as they've been deliberating for about 14 hours, there was a question with respect to the — the jury had a question with respect to the lesser included. My response at that time was that it is not a proper instruction . . . ." But the record does not establish that the trial court's "response" was ever communicated to the jury; what the court wrote to the jury is unknown. The trial court's "response" may well have been its feeling or conclusion, never directly conveyed to the jury.
¶ 31. But, of course, now I am speculating. And while my surmise seems sound, given the absence of anything in the record reflecting any communication to the jury on this point, my view remains blurred. And, for the reasons the majority explains, exactly what occurred may be very important. So, I would ask: What exactly was the jury's question? Did the trial court answer it? If so, did the trial court state (to the jury in the courtroom or in written reply to its question) that it would he improper to consider lesser-included offenses?
¶ 32. The answers are out there; the trial judge may have most of them. So much is at stake in this very *499close case; resolution may depend on a more certain understanding for which an evidentiary hearing would be needed. I suggest we take the time, remand for that hearing, carefully consider exactly what took place, and get it right.1
2. The Victim's Credibility
¶ 33. The majority also writes: "The note sent by the jury indicated that three jurors questioned the 'credibility of the victim.' This note did not state that three jurors were unsure of whether a knife was used in the attack, but rather, that they did not believe the victim." Majority at ¶ 22 (emphasis added). No, that is not what the note said. Reading the note as written, we do not know: (1) what those three jurors were thinking; (2) whether their questioning of the victim's credibility related to whether a knife was used; (3) whether their questioning related to something else; and (4) whether their questioning ultimately would have resulted in their disbelief of the victim and, if so, about *500what. Thus, the majority sets another significant point of speculation on a very shaky pedestal.
3. Conclusion
¶ 34. I conclude, therefore, that remand for further factual development may be essential to the fair resolution of this appeal. If, however, I must decide based on the present record, I would affirm, consistent with the reasoning of United States v. Welbeck, 145 F.3d 493 (2d Cir. 1998).
¶ 35. Here, as in Welbeck: (1) the jury's question may have provided the initial impetus for the trial court's consideration of the supplemental instruction; (2) Thurmond was not prejudiced, given that his consent defense, if believed, would have defeated an allegation of either first or second-degree sexual assault; (3) the trial court allowed defense counsel the chance to offer additional closing argument; and (4) a failure to offer the supplemental instruction could have defeated the ends of justice — a verdict resolving the case for both parties.
¶ 36. To gain a new trial, Thurmond was required to establish that, by providing the supplemental instruction, the trial court erroneously exercised discretion or erred as a matter of law and, as a result, that he was prejudiced by the instruction. See State v. Randall, 222 Wis. 2d 53, 59-60, 586 N.W.2d 318 (Ct. App. 1998) (Our review is limited to whether the trial court acted within its discretion and we will reverse only if the instructions, taken as a whole, communicated an incorrect statement of the law or otherwise probably misled the jury.); see also State v. Simplot, 180 Wis. 2d 383, 404, 509 N.W.2d 338 (Ct. App. 1993) (Just as the initial jury instructions are within the trial courts discretion, so, *501too, is the necessity for, the extent of, and form of re-instruction in response to requests or questions from the jury.) (quoted source omitted). Thurmond has failed to establish either an erroneous exercise of discretion, an error as a matter of law, or prejudice.
¶ 37. Accordingly, I conclude, the trial court's decision to provide the lesser-included instruction was consistent with its authority, under Wis. Stat. § 805.13(5): "After the jury retires, the court may reinstruct the jury as to all or any part of the instructions previously given, or may give supplemental instructions as it deems appropriate." Thus, while in some respects I concur, in others I respectfully dissent.

 Regretfully, once again, we find it necessary to implore a trial court to conduct its proceedings on the record. See Coston v. Joseph P., 222 Wis. 2d 1, 7 n.5, 586 N.W.2d 52 (Ct. App. 1998) ("Here, as in all too many cases, the record is seriously deficient and a circuit court's off-the-record informality has undermined the process of appellate review. While we recognize the many temptations to indulge in off-the-record proceedings, we again urge resistance to temptation."). And, in doing so, I emphasize that we understand the real world of the trial courts. The four judges of this district have more than fifty years' experience as trial court judges. We know the logistical challenges of the courtroom — whether positioning court reporters so they can record bench conferences, or calling attorneys back to court to consider jury questions. We know it "ain't easy," but we also know it can and must be done.