Court Opinion

ID: 9863020
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-09-25 02:49:56.557668+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T11:46:05.044092
License: Public Domain

On Petition to Rehear
Counsel have filed herein a very courteous, dignified and forceful petition to rehear. This petition is bottomed on the proposition that, if jurors are allowed to read their notes taken in the course of the trial in their deliberations, this is a violation of Article I, Section 9, of the Constitution of Tennessee.
The argument in support of this petition is based around the fact that, if a juror is allowed to read his notes taken in the course of the trial while that body is deliberating, this violates the language of Article I, Sec*564tion 9, of onr Constitution in that “the accused hath the right to be heard by himself and his counsel; * * * (and) to meet the witnesses face to face, # # It is argued, and authorities cited in support thereof, that the right to be heard by himself includes the right to be present at every stage of the trial, and in all felony cases affecting his life or liberty, the defendant must be present during the entire trial, and when the verdict is given. Andrews v. State, 34 Tenn. 550; Witt v. State, 45 Tenn. 11. After the case has been given to the jury, the accused cannot waive his presence. Hopkins v. State, 78 Tenn. 204.
As we see it though, the simple answer to this proposition is that, if this argument is carried to its logical conclusion, then there could never be any conviction in a criminal case without violating Article I, Section 9, of our Constitution, because in every jury trial it goes without saying that the jurors in their deliberations debate the different factual situations that have been presented to them and argue the matter pro and con. One juror may have a more retentive mind than others, and naturally in his deliberations with the other jurors he better states his conclusion and the evidence as he saw and heard it even if done from memory. We can’t see why the taking of notes to refresh the recollection of the juror who takes them, and who may refer to these notes that he took in the course of the trial, can have any more effect upon the rights of the accused than the mere argument of one juror who has a more retentive mind than the others would have. This constitutional provision certainly and obviously does not mean that after the jury goes into its deliberations that the accused has the right to be present and argue with the jurors as they state the evidence as they view it. Such a conclusion in our judgment would be *565farcical because it would mean that no jury trial could stand because tbe defendant is never present in tbe jury room while the jury is debating the case that has been heard.
In support of the petitioners’ argument, the case of Wade v. State, 12 Ga. 25, is cited, and it is said that the holding of that case makes it logical to hold that notes taken by a juror and read in the jury room violates the constitutional rights of the accused. In the Wade case the jury returned from its deliberations while the defendant was absent, and asked the court to read certain testimony to them, which testimony was taken by the court and not by a court reporter. Such was done, and the Supreme Court of Georgia held that the defendant’s rights had been violated and that by the court reading this testimony back to the jury this constituted reversible error. This is an extreme minority view.
The Supreme Court of Georgia in later cases, Green v. State, 122 Ga. 169, 50 S.E. 53, and Dozier v. State, 26 Ga. 156, did not follow this rule. It is easy for us to see what probably constituted the conclusion by the Georgia court in the Wade case. There the court read its notes to the jury which had not been taken by a court reporter; it is probable under such circumstances the court might have emphasized one part of the evidence over another or things of the kind. This argument fails when based on what one juror says to another with reference to the weight he gives to certain evidence while another juror may give it a different weight, and this certainly does not give the accused the right to be present in the jury room and hear what the different jurors say and the conclusions that they have drawn from the evidence heard. Such a right is purely for those within the four walls of *566the jury room, and there is absolutely no right of the accused to be present therein and hear such a debate. If we reached such a conclusion, we would do away with jury trials entirely.
The question of whether or not the court may order the court reporter to read certain portions of the transcript hack to the jury, or read part of his notes to them, is not an issue herein.
We have very thoughtfully and carefully considered this matter and feel that there is no error herein, and, consequently, the petition to rehear must he denied.