Court Opinion

ID: 9766500
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-29 04:51:28.622338+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T07:30:23.380482
License: Public Domain

RUDMAN, Justice,
with whom WATHEN, C.J. and CLIFFORD, J. join, dissenting.
I find the prosecutor’s closing argument in the present case, when read (1) in its entirety, (2) in the context of the nature of the charges against Casella, and (3) in light of the defense Casella presented, was fairly based on the evidence introduced at trial. I, therefore, respectfully dissent from the Court’s decision to vacate Casella’s five criminal convictions.
While I certainly agree with the Court that expressions of a prosecutor’s personal opinion on the credibility of a defendant made during a closing argument are clearly improper, see State v. Steen, 623 A.2d 146, 149 (Me.1993), “not all references to the credibility of the defendant or a witness are improper.” State v. Pendexter, 495 A.2d 1241, 1241 (Me.1985). A lawyer is permitted to “argue, on his analysis of the evidence, for any position or conclusion with respect to the matters stated therein.... ” State v. Harnish, 560 A.2d 5, 9 (Me.1989) (quoting M.Bar R. 3.7(e)(2)(v)). Furthermore, that argument may be presented with vigor and zeal. State v. Smith, 456 A.2d 16, 17 (Me.1983). “The central question is whether the comment is fairly based on the facts in evidence,” see Pendexter, 495 A.2d at 1241, or improperly reflects a personal belief that the defendant or a witness is a liar. Each case concerning alleged improper argument must be examined on its own facts, see State v. Hinds, 485 A.2d 231, 237 (Me.1984), and “an attorney making a closing argument is not restricted to the difficult if not impossible task of providing verbatim renditions of all testimony alluded to.” State v. Doughty, 554 A.2d 1189, 1192 (Me.1989). “In closing argument, counsel may comment on testimony and other evidence as long as they stay within the bounds of fairness.” Id.
Unlike the charges brought against the defendants in Steen, 623 A.2d at 147 (gross sexual assault), and Smith, 456 A.2d at 16 (Me.1983) (assault), Casella was charged with theft by unauthorized taking. The central thrust of the State’s case was that Casella cheated the victims out of their money, and that he operated his business on the basic principle that he would say anything, do anything, and tell any lie to get their money. The evidence presented at trial demonstrated Casella’s elaborate scheme of defrauding his customers by making false promises and keeping their money without authorization. Casella himself took the stand, denied lying to the victims, and directly contradicted the State’s witnesses and evidence by stating that the charges brought against him merely involved simple business disputes. By equating the theory of Casella’s defense with the same principles that he exhibited in his business, and inviting the jury’s comparison, the State’s argument taken in full context does not amount to an expression of personal opinion as to Casella’s credibility. Each reference to Casella’s truthfulness, or lack thereof, was specially tied to the evidence introduced at trial. Furthermore, the prosecutor repeatedly reminded the jury that it was their duty to ultimately decide who was telling the truth. Although the prosecutor was zealous and artful, his summation merely analyzed the evidence and stated the principal factual issues before the jury in compelling terms. See Harnish, 560 A.2d at 10; State v. Berkley, 567 A.2d 915, 920 (Me.1989).
The Court’s piecemeal dissection and presentation of the State’s closing argument overemphasizes certain isolated excerpts of the summation, and mischaracterizes the argument as a whole. When read in isolation, the *125comments cited by the Court may appear, at first glance, unduly inflammatory. However, when read in its entirety, and in the context of the nature of the specific charges brought against Casella, the State’s vigorous summation was fairly based on the evidence presented at trial demonstrating Casella’s propensity to intentionally deceive innocent customers and, in the circumstances of this ease, did not amount to an improper injection of personal opinion. Furthermore, by hearing the prosecutor’s voice inflections, and observing his demeanor and body language during the summation, the trial court was in a far better position to judge the potential effects on the jury of the prosecutor’s comments, than this Court is by reading the cold, sterile, and faceless pages of a trial transcript. The trial court, in light of the live presentation, did not abuse its discretion in refusing to declare a mistrial.
Finally, even assuming that the prosecutor did improperly express his personal opinion in his closing argument, I would nevertheless reach the same result. Based on the overwhelming evidence of guilt introduced at trial, and the trial court’s clear curative instruction to the jury that the arguments of counsel are not evidence, it is “highly probable that the jury’s determination ... was unaffected by the prosecutor’s comments.” Steen, 623 A.2d at 149. See State v. Ammerman, 586 A.2d 1244, 1246 (Me.1991); see also State v. Langill, 567 A.2d 440, 442 (Me.1989) (trial court’s instructions “that ‘any statements or comments made by the lawyers in this case [are] not evidence’ and that ‘you are the judges of the facts,’ cured any impropriety caused by the prosecutor’s statements”).
For the foregoing reasons, I would affirm the judgment entered on jury verdicts in the Superior Court.