Court Opinion

ID: 9456549
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-04 19:56:27.497357+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T17:35:01.441374
License: Public Domain

GERALD McLAUGHLIN, Circuit Judge (dissenting).
On June 15, 1964, appellant was convicted by a Superior Court, Camden County jury of rape, kidnapping, atrocious assault and battery, and possession of a concealed weapon. His conviction was affirmed by the Appellate Division of the New Jersey Superior Court by opinion dated April 26, 1966; the New Jersey Supreme Court denied certification on November 15, 1966.
An outline of certain of the facts is essential to an understanding of the issue raised by appellant. Seven defendants were accused of attacking a young couple parked in an automobile in a relatively out-of-the-way location. The boy, allegedly, was beaten, and the girl dragged off to another vehicle, driven to a dark-secluded area, and raped three times. Five of the defendants were immediately arrested, and convicted. Appellant Mitchell and one other defendant (with whom we are not here concerned) were apprehended some months later, tried together and convicted subsequent to the conviction of the five.
At trial, although his co-defendant testified and called as a witness one of the previously convicted defendants (Raymond Forchion), appellant did not testify or call any witnesses. However, in cross-examining Forchion, appellant’s attorney asked both Forchion and appellant to stand side-by-side before the jury to demonstrate their similar appearances. (Trial Tr. 151-152).
On summation, defendant’s counsel contended that the victim was mistaken in identifying Mitchell as one of those who dragged her to the car of the defendants (Tr. 87) and raped her (Tr. 5); he argued that the scene of the rape was very dark, and that the victim, having been beaten and raped just prior to the alleged Mitchell rape, was greatly overwrought. Defense counsel suggested that the victim had mistaken Mitchell for one of the other defendants since Mitchell resembled the co-defendant being then tried with Mitchell (Tr. 268-269), and further, looked like Forchion (Tr. 266) with whom Mitchell had been compared, side-by-side, before the jury. (Tr. 152).1 (Forchion testified that Mitchell had left the group prior to the rape). — Defense counsel also, in summing up, called the jury’s attention to the fact that he, defense counsel, had decided not to call appellant Mitchell as a witness in order to in effect forestall an anticipated attack by the State on Mitchell’s credibility.
*822The prosecutor, in summation, did comment on the failure of Mitchell to take the stand, and his failure to deny the charge. (Tr. 305, 306, 307, 312). The court, in charging the jury, used the then standard phrase that “ * * * by his silence the jury may infer that he (Mitchell) could not truthfully deny the charge.” (Tr. 349).
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The rule of Griffin v. California, 380 U.S. 609, 85 S.Ct. 1229 (1965), barring comment on a defendant’s failure to take the stand, would govern our issue but for the exceptional trial circumstances. In those circumstances the comments of the State and trial court on appellant’s failure to take the stand were justified. Although Mitchell was not sworn, his testimonial act of standing next to Forchion for comparison purposes was indisputedly intended to refute the State’s evidence identifying Mitchell as one of the perpetrators of the crimes charged. Defense counsel reminded the jury in his summation that all of his questions to the rape victim “ * * * were directed to whether or not she could actually identify Esaw Mitchell as one of her attackers. * * *” (Tr. 258). He argued at length the question of whether the victim correctly identified Mitchell (Tr. 258-269), and reminded the jury:
“Now, when, * * * Forchion was produced by the (co-) defendant * * *, just before he (Forchion) left the stand and you may recall also that I asked him to come down and stand beside Esaw Mitchell, I hope some of you recall that. Now, if there was any difference between the height of these two men, I wasn’t able to see it. ' Of course, the Prosecutor asked * * * Forchion if he had grown in height since the night of the attack, and he answered that he didn’t know * * * I don’t know whether * * Forchion has grown in height since the night of the attack. I don’t know whether * * * Mitchell has grown in height * * * But, certainly, I say to you * * * that there visibly * * * there wasn’t enough difference between the height of * * * Forchion and the height of * * * Mitchell for us to say that was significant, or that * * * Mitchell was taller, even, than * * * Forchion, and, of course, all of the co-defendants mentioned in the indictments weren’t even here for comparison.” (Tr. 266-7).
Counsel continued to press the identification issue, and concluded: “Now, ladies and gentlemen, that, I think is really the crux of the case.” (Tr. 269). From the foregoing, it is clear that the alleged faulty identification of Mitchell by the victim and the comparison of Mitchell and Forchion before the jury were without doubt the key defense strategy. By that testimonial act in demonstrating to the jury the similarities in appearance of Forchion and Mitchell to each other the latter was attempting to refute at least part of the State’s identification evidence.
The situation is essentially comparable to the circumstances of United States ex rel. Fioravanti v. Yeager, 404 F.2d 675 (3 Cir. 1968), cert. denied 396 U.S. 860, 90 S.Ct. 131, 24 L.Ed.2d 112 (1969). There, the identity of the defendant was also strongly contested. Although Fioravanti did not take the stand, defense counsel — after getting a police officer to admit on the stand that defendant Fioravanti appeared to be the same size as he was at the time of his arrest — had Fioravanti retire to the jury room, and put on a pair of trousers which the police took from the alleged thief at the time of the arrest. (Those trousers had paint particles on them which were, according to the evidence, identical to the paint on the safe in question, and were marked in evidence). Fioravanti then returned to the courtroom, stood before the jury, removed his sweater, and as counsel summed up “ * * * you could have put two Fioravantis in the waistband of the trousers when he stood before * * * (the jury) with the drooping drawers * * * ” Fioravanti, supra, at 676. *823Just as in the instant appeal, the question of the identity of the defendant was vitally important to the defense theory in Fioravanti. We held regarding the courtroom demonstration by defendant Fioravanti that:
“The net result of the carefully planned action of appellant was substantial proof in his favor which at the same time eliminated the very real danger of * * * (the defendant) taking the witness stand and exposing himself to ruinous cross-examination.” At 677.
Our ultimate conclusion in Fioravanti was that under the trial circumstances, comment on the failure of the defendant to deny or explain the State’s evidence did not violate the Griffin rule. As Judge Weinstein recently said in United States ex rel. Miller v. Follette, 278 F.Supp. 1003 (E.D.N.Y.), aff’d, 397 F.2d 363 (2 Cir. 1968), cert. denied, 393 U.S. 1039, 89 S.Ct. 660, 21 L.Ed.2d 585 (1969):
“ * * * [T]he privilege against self-incrimination — important as it is —is not absolute. It must yield to some practical considerations and be subject to compromise where other important interests conflict.
-K * * * * «•
“* * * [W]ere (a) defendant allowed to give, what is for all practical purposes, testimony without being subject to some, check, the jury might be misled.” At 1007.
While in the Miller trial defendant appeared pro se and used his position as advocate to orally testify directly to the jury, without taking the stand, the principle enunciated by Judge Wein-stein completely applies to our situation. He correctly pointed out the need to, balance, in each particular set of trial circumstances, the Fifth Amendment' privilege against self-incrimination, and the State’s rights when faced with a defendant’s unsworn testimonial evidence or demonstration. In short, a defendant cannot and should not have it both ways. Hence the comments by the prosecutor and court, viewed in the context of appellant Mitchell’s testimonial demonstration to the jury, were not improper.
II.
Even more persuasive is the State’s contention that after defense counsel commented in his summation on Mitchell’s failure to take the stand, and tried to explain to the jury why he elected not to call Mitchell as a witness, the State had a right to refute the argument of defense counsel. The latter said:
“I am sure also that the Prosecutor is going to make a point of the fact that Esaw Mitchell didn’t take the stand to testify in his own defense. I am sure that he is going to say that, because any good prosecutor would say that.
“The decision for Esaw Mitchell not to take the stand was my decision, rightly or wrongly. If he took the stand I believed he would be accused of lying. The Prosecutors almost always do accuse a defendant of lying in a criminal trial. So, I decided that, rather than have to divide my comment between whether or not Esaw Mitchell was lying and the loose ends and weaknesses in the State’s case, I would rather just concentrate on the fact that the State has not proved this case against Esaw Mitchell beyond a reasonable doubt. That was my decision. * * *” (Tr. 273-4).
In response to defense counsel’s statement, the Prosecutor answered this as follows:
“And what about the failure of Esaw Mitchell to take the stand ?
“Well, it’s nice for his lawyer to come up and say, ‘Well, this was my decision,’ as smart as I am, and I think the purpose of it was exactly what I outlined to you, and this is that you wouldn’t judge Esaw Mitchell, you would be judging what you heard from * * * (defense counsel), and there is the mark of an excellent advocate, but, I don’t think he has fooled you.” (Tr. 306-7).
*824As Judge Learned Hand said long ago, when defense counsel in summation stated “ * * * that the jury had heard all the testimony ‘and the defendants, if they took the stand, could not add anything * * * ’; * * * surely he surrendered any privilege they had not to testify. He could not in justice ask that the prosecutor must accept his version unchallenged.” United States v. Feinberg, 140 F.2d 592, 595 (2 Cir.), cert. denied, 322 U.S. 726, 64 S.Ct. 943, 88 L.Ed. 1562 (1944)2. The opinion in Baker v. United States, 115 F.2d 533 (8 Cir. 1940); cert. denied, 312 U.S. 692, 61 S.Ct. 711, 85 L.Ed. 1128 (1941) sharply defines the same sound, fundamental principle at page 544 3:
“Counsel may make any argument which is based upon evidence or reasonable inferences therefrom and may reply to argument of opposing counsel, and in doing so may make statements which might otherwise be improper. * * * The Fifth Amendment and the statute, 28 U.S.C.A. § 632 (now, 18 U.S.C. § 3481), protect the defendant in a criminal prosecution in the right to remain off the witness stand, and prosecuting attorneys may not comment on the fact that the accused may have availed himself of that right * * *, but fair response to argument of counsel for the accused does not violate the Constitution nor the statute.” (Citations omitted).
And finally, an analogous situation arose in Babb v. United States, 351 F.2d 863 (8 Cir. 1965). There defense counsel told the jury that the failure of the defendant to take the stand was counsel’s decision, and if counsel made a mistake in not calling the defendant, the jury should blame counsel, but not hold it against the defendant. The Court in ruling on this proposition said:
“In explanation of this failure to testify, defense counsel implied that the defendant could satisfactorily explain his involvement but such was unnecessary in view of the infirmity of the government’s case. Defense counsel concluded his comment by admonishing the jury not to condemn defendant but instead blame his attorney for the selection of a purely legal tactic. The direct reference to defendant’s failure to testify with the accompanying explanation was an invitation to the prosecutor to comment upon the subject and does not demand reversed.” At 867-868. (Emphasis supplied).
Similarly in this action, the State, after defense counsel first broached the subject of defendant Mitchell’s not taking the stand and attempting to explain why he did not call Mitchell as a witness, could, and did, properly reply thereto.
The theory for reversal here must, not only rely on the proposition that Griffin governs the trial situation before us but also nullify Fioravanti, an even stronger factual case in the same area as this appeal. The net result is to permit a totally vulnerable, concocted defense maneuver to avoid having the defendant sworn as a witness and thus subject himself to a proper and devastating cross-examination. In its stead, as was done in this trial and in Fioravanti, the defendant visually and orally through his attorney, projects his sole affirmative defense to the jury, untouched and, according to the court opinion, untouchable by the prosecutor. I venture to suggest that this is a giant step backward *825in the administration of justice in the federal courts. I think it very clear that Mitchell’s Fifth Amendment rights were not violated at his trial. I would affirm the judgment of the district court.

. Counsel for appellant at trial in addition argued that another co-defendant, a female convicted at the earlier trial, testified for the State that Mitchell was at the scene of rape only because she hoped to receive a pardon or other leniency.

. In a federal prosecution, the prohibition against comment on a defendant’s failure to waive his Fifth Amendment rights by taking the stand goes back to the Act of March 16, 1878, 20 Stat. 30, e. 37 (18 U.S.C. § 3481). Wilson v. United States, 149 U.S. 60, 13 S.Ct. 765, 37 L.Ed. 650 (1893); Griffin v. California, 380 U.S. 609, 612, 85 S.Ct. 1229 (1965). And it pertains equally to comment on behalf of the prosecution and comment on behalf of the defense.

. See also, Edwards v. Patterson, 249 F.Supp. 311, 314 (D.Col.1965).