Court Opinion

ID: 9548348
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-07 18:02:05.019815+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T15:18:50.118042
License: Public Domain

THOMAS, Chief Justice,
concurring and dissenting, with whom BROWN, Justice, joins.
I am constrained to dissent from the conclusion of the majority of the court that Story’s conviction for assault and battery with intent to rape H.F. is reversed. That reversal is premised upon the refusal of the trial court to permit inquiry of H.F. with respect to how long her brother had been working for the Lovell Police Department. The fact that H.F.’s brother worked for the Lovell Police Department was brought out and the critical and material information was established. I cannot perceive how Story was inhibited from making the point with the jury that H.F. had testified that she did not report this offense to the Lovell police because she feared that they would *1047not believe her and yet that she did have a brother who worked as a radio operator for the Lovell Police Department. It is my view that the impeachment which Story complains he was foreclosed from accomplishing in fact had occurred. I am not persuaded that it was necessary for defense counsel then to show the exact dates when the brother worked at the police department.
The majority opinion goes on to rely upon a statement that Story should have been permitted to establish H.F.’s relationship with her brother, that she trusted him, confided in him, and that he helped and counseled her if that were true, but the difficulty with this statement is that it does not appear that Story ever made that offer of proof. Furthermore, no apparent attempt was made even to ask questions about these latter matters.
Because I am not persuaded that there was any error with respect to limitation of cross-examination upon which the majority relies to reverse this conviction, I cannot agree with that portion of the majority opinion discussing the concept of harmless error with respect to limitations upon cross-examination.
I would affirm Story’s conviction on all six charges.