Court Opinion

ID: 9475065
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-05 05:16:30.054451+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T17:44:29.672083
License: Public Domain

HEANEY, Circuit Judge,
dissenting.
I respectfully dissent. Sutton’s defense was substantially prejudiced by the introduction of the edited statement in the joint trial.
As the majority recognizes, when the government introduces a portion of a confession, the general rule is that the defendant has the right to have the entire statement introduced. This rule of completeness is violated, and severance required, “where admission of the statement in its edited form distorts the meaning of the statement or excludes information substantially exculpatory of the declarant.” United States v. Kaminski, 692 F.2d 505, 522 (8th Cir.1982). The government’s careful deletion of the sections exculpatory of Sutton, leaving only that small portion which could be used to bolster the government’s theory, clearly distorted the meaning of Sutton’s statement.
The district court allowed the government’s witness, special agent Ronnie Ware, to testify that Sutton had observed Smith’s arrest. This buttressed the testimony of *1338Lee,1 the government’s chief witness against Sutton, that Sutton had been patrolling the area. The district court, however, would not allow Sutton to cross-examine Ware regarding the rest of Sutton’s statement, which exculpated Sutton but implicated Smith.2 In these portions, Sutton not only denied participation in the theft and sale of the certificates, but explained the appearance of his fingerprint on one of the certificates, the only “hard” evidence of his involvement. Sutton, in effect, would have been forced to take the stand in order to introduce the omitted exculpatory portions, in violation of his right against self-incrimination. See United States v. Walker, 652 F.2d 708, 713 (7th Cir.1981).
During trial, the government found itself on the horns of a dilemma. Under the Bruton rule, it was required to edit out of Sutton’s statement any references to Smith; under the rule of completeness, it was required to admit those same portions as exculpatory of Sutton. It created this dilemma, however, by resisting severance, despite the fact that it had Sutton’s statement in its possession, intended to use it at trial, and knew that this issue would arise. I would hold the government, not Sutton, responsible for its stratagem.
The insistence on fairness to criminal defendants has led to a number of rules that may permit guilty persons to go free rather than risk injustice to an innocent person. It seems strange that one presumably innocent may be made to undergo something less than a fair trial, or that he may be prejudiced in his defense if the prejudice is not “substantial,” merely to serve the convenience of the prosecution and the efficiency of the judicial system.
1 C. Wright, Federal Practice and Procedure § 141 (1982).
Although Sutton did not move for severance either at the beginning of the trial or during trial when it became clear that the government intended to use an edited version of his statement, he nonetheless vigorously and, in my judgment, appropriately objected to the introduction of the edited statement. In light of that objection, I believe that the district court had two alternatives, neither of which would have required the entire trial to be aborted: it could have refused to admit the statement in any form and allowed the trial to proceed with respect to both defendants, or it could have admitted the statement in its entirety and allowed the trial to proceed with respect to Sutton alone. Its decision to admit the edited statement and continue with the joint trial constituted plain error pursuant to Fed.R.Evid. 103(d).
Accordingly, I would reverse Sutton’s conviction and order his retrial.

. Lee, an admitted "fence," had been fired from his job with Federal Express on the suspicion of theft a few weeks before the theft of the securities from the Federal Express van. He agreed to cooperate with the authorities after they informed him that his fingerprints appeared on twenty-two of the recovered certificates and offered him $1,800 and immunity from prosecution.

. These portions read as follows:
SUTTON stated he knows NORRIS SMITH and met him on Hamilton Street about two months ago at the residence of JAMES CARTER. They frequently drank beer and played chess at Carter’s house.
About five weeks ago while standing in front of CARTER’S residence with SMITH, SMITH asked him if he knew where he (SMITH) could get rid of some ANHEUSÉR-BUSCH stock certificates. SUTTON stated he told him that he had never dealt with any stocks before and that stocks were a "white boy’s game.”
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SUTTON advised that he was with SMITH on Hodiamont Street the day before SMITH was arrested. They purchased beer at C & H LIQUOR STORE, 1344 Hodiamont Street, and SMITH made two calls from a pay phone outside the liquor store. SMITH told SUTTON that he was trying to call a guy to get rid of the stocks. SUTTON advised he knew that he would get a cut of the money if he helped SMITH sell the stocks, but he did not know what to do with them.

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SUTTON denied any direct involvement in the theft of any ANHEUSER-BUSCH stock certificates or in any attempts to sell them to CENTERRE TRUST COMPANY.