Court Opinion

ID: 9752666
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-28 18:27:59.006106+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T07:27:20.780230
License: Public Domain

SCHWELB, Associate Judge,
concurring:
I think it somewhat harsh to apply a “plain error” standard of review after the trial judge has assured defense counsel, in the dialogue summarized at pages 309-310 of the majority opinion, that acquittal of the predicate offense of ADW would take the compound offense of PFCV out of the case. The judge’s assurance more or less eliminated any motive for counsel to request a reinstruction and arguably lulled her into withholding such a request. Moreover, the legal predicate for the judge’s stated approach, while questionable, was not so obviously wrong that counsel’s reliance on the judge’s words could fairly be viewed as unreasonable. See Whitaker v. United States, 617 A.2d 499, 506 (D.C.1992); Mack v. State, 300 Md. 583, 479 A.2d 1344, 1349 (1984).
I agree that the conviction should be affirmed, however, for even if counsel had asked for a reinstruction, the evidence of jury confusion was insufficient to require the judge to comply with her request.