Court Opinion

ID: 9860506
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-09-24 23:24:04.499315+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T11:16:00.811607
License: Public Domain

Chief Justice ZAZZALI
dissenting.
The majority presents a comprehensive and viscerally appealing rationale supporting the introduction of defendant Jayson Williams’ post-shooting criminal conduct. Because of the proposed evidence’s lack of relevancy, the substantial prejudice that the majority’s ruling will visit on this defendant, and the deference owed to the trial court’s evidentiary determinations, I respectfully dissent.
The majority concludes that the evidence is admissible under N.J.R.E. 404(b) because it satisfies the “other crimes” admissibility test this Court set forth in State v. Cofield, 127 N.J. 328, 605 A.2d 230 (1992). Specifically, the majority finds that defendant’s *135post-shooting criminal conduct is “relevant” because it “can support inferences having a logical tendency to prove that defendant was aware that the victim's fatal injuries were not the product of an accident, but were caused by defendant’s criminal recklessness.” Ante at 129, 919 A.2d at 99. Further, the majority concludes that the evidence’s “probative value is not outweighed by undue prejudice.” Ante at 133, 919 A.2d at 101.
I instead would affirm the trial court’s exclusion of the post-shooting conduct under N.J.R.E. 404(b) because the evidence in question is not “relevant to a material issue,” Cofield, supra, 127 N.J. at 338, 605 A.2d 230, and, more important, because the prejudice of such evidence is overwhelming. Indeed, not only is the “probative value ... outweighed by its apparent prejudice,” ibid., I believe that the prejudice eclipses any relevance. In any event, I would afford appropriate deference to the trial court’s evidentiary ruling under the applicable abuse of discretion standard.
I.
Preliminarily, I consider the post-shooting evidence in question that of other crimes and therefore subject to the strictures of N.J.R.E. 404(b). Because N.J.R.E. 404(b) is a character rule premised on exclusion, State v. Reddish, 181 N.J. 553, 609, 859 A.2d 1173 (2004), we begin with the principle that other-crimes evidence generally should be kept from the jury to prevent the factfinder from deciding the mens rea element of a crime based on presumptions about defendant’s character. As a result, other-crimes evidence “is handled with particular caution” and “necessitates a more searching inquiry” than other prejudice analyses. Id. at 608, 859 A.2d 1173. Other-crimes evidence is recognized as having “ ‘a unique tendency to turn a jury against the defendant,’ ” ibid, (quoting State v. Stevens, 115 N.J. 289, 302, 558 A.2d 833 (1989)), and “poses a distinct risk that it will distract a jury from an independent consideration of the evidence that bears directly on guilt itself,” State v. G.S., 145 N.J. 460, 468, 678 A.2d *1361092 (1996). Thus, “the primary focus of [N.J.R.E. 404(b) ] ... is to view it as a rule of exclusion rather than a rule of inclusion.” State v. Darby, 174 N.J. 509, 520, 809 A.2d 138 (2002) (quoting State v. Marrero, 148 N.J. 469, 482-83, 691 A.2d 293 (1997)) (alteration in original).
II.
Other-crimes evidence under N.J.R.E. 404(b) must pass an established test for admissibility to “avoid [its] over-use.” Cofield, supra, 127 N.J. at 338, 605 A.2d 230. As the majority observes, other-crimes evidence must satisfy a four-prong test to be admitted into evidence under N.J.R.E. 404(b):
1. The evidence of the other crime must be admissible as relevant to a material issue;
2. It must be similar in kind and reasonably close in time to the offense charged;
3. The evidence of the other crime must be clear and convincing; and
4. The probative value of the evidence must not be outweighed by its apparent prejudice.
[Cofield, supra, 127 N.J. at 338, 605 A.2d 230.]
Because the Cofield prongs are in the conjunctive, the evidence is inadmissible if it fails any of the prongs.
The first prong of the Cofield test evaluates the evidence’s relevance. Ibid. The relevancy of evidence denotes its “logical connection between the proffered evidence and a fact in issue.” Darby, supra, 174 N.J. at 519, 809 A.2d 138 (quotation omitted). Here, the State seeks to introduce the post-shooting evidence to establish defendant’s recklessness, namely, that defendant was aware, after the shooting, that he had “consciously disregarded] a substantial and unjustifiable risk.” N.J.S.A 2C:l-l(b)(3). Recklessness connotes “an awareness of a risk,” State v. Simon, 161 N.J. 416, 464, 737 A.2d 1 (1999), and pre-incident awareness is material to the determination of culpability, State v. Sewell, 127 N.J. 133, 148-49, 603 A.2d 21 (1992). The State theorizes that defendant’s attempted cover-up of the killing reveals that he knew he had “consciously disregarded] a substantial and unjustifiable risk.” The State alleges that defendant’s post-shooting conduct *137implies that he knew he had committed a criminal, “reckless” homicide as opposed to a non-criminal, “accidental” killing.
In advance of defendant’s pending retrial for reckless manslaughter, the trial court evaluated the evidence’s relevancy as part of its Cofield analysis. During the hearing, the court noted that the post-shooting conduct had to be relevant to the jury’s choice between recklessness and a criminally-blameless accident, the argument advanced by defendant. The trial court explained that it was “trying to probe with regard to consciousness ... what the post[-]shooting conduct demonstrates.” Recognizing that, from the beginning, defendant has argued that he “tragically caused the death of Mr. Christofi but did so accidentally,” the court inquired whether defendant merely exhibited “consciousness of accidentally causing the death.” The trial court concluded that defendant’s post-shooting conduct was not relevant to the reckless manslaughter charge because “post-shooting conduct is really not probative of [defendant’s] guilt or his consciousness of guilt as to reckless conduct.”
The Appellate Division affirmed, noting that it was “unable to locate any reported decisions allowing ‘consciousness of guilt’ evidence when the requisite culpable mental state is less than ‘knowing.’ ”1 The panel concluded that the trial court “reasonably determined, in this case, that the confidence with which one could attribute the post-shooting conduct to a consciousness of guilt is so minimal as to require exclusion.” State v. Williams, No. A-2724-04T5 2005 WL 3968822, *6 (App.Div. Apr. 21, 2006).
*138I agree with the courts below and find that defendant’s post-shooting conduct is not relevant to whether there was criminal recklessness at the time of the shooting. Defendant’s post-shooting acts are indicative only of his awareness that he just killed Christofi, not whether the act was reckless or accidental. Indeed, as the majority observes, defendant had much to lose from causing even an accidental death, including harming his public reputation as a television broadcaster and former • professional basketball player, and exposing himself to potential civil liability. Thus, defendant’s deplorable post-shooting conduct is at least as consistent with a recognition that he made a tragic and stupid mistake— but one that was an accident nonetheless — as it is with criminal recklessness. Because the post-shooting conduct is not relevant to determining defendant’s “state of mind at the time Christofi was shot,” ante at 122, 919 A.2d at 95,1 find that the evidence fails the first prong of the Cofield test and is thus inadmissible.
III.
Quite apart from my conclusion that evidence of defendant’s post-shooting conduct is not relevant under the first Cofield prong, I also find that the evidence is inadmissible under the fourth Cofield prong — comparing the evidence’s probative, value to its apparent prejudice — because of its undue, and, I believe, extraordinary prejudicial effect.2
To begin, probative value “is the tendency of the evidence to establish the proposition that it is offered to prove.” State v. Wilson, 135 N.J. 4, 13, 637 A.2d 1237 (1994). Prejudice, in the context of N.J.R.E. 404(b), arises from the “risk that the jury would conclude that defendant had a propensity to commit bad acts and, thus, [committed the crime].” Reddish, supra, 181 N.J. at 608, 859 A.2d 1173. Under N.J.R.E. 404(b), “the party seeking *139to admit other-crimes evidence bears the burden of establishing that the probative value of the evidence is not outweighed by its apparent prejudice.” Id. at 608-09, 859 A.2d 1173 (citing State v. Long, 173 N.J. 138, 162, 801 A.2d 221 (2002)). Further, because N.J.R.E. 404(b) simply requires that the prejudice “outweigh” the probative value, Cofield, supra, 127 N.J. at 338, 605 A.2d 230, we need only find that the scale tips slightly towards the evidence’s apparent prejudice and away from its probative value to bar its admission.
Importantly, “[i]n weighing the probative worth of other-crime[s] evidence, a court should consider not only its relevance but whether its proffered use in the case can adequately be served by other evidence.” Stevens, supra, 115 N.J. at 303, 558 A.2d 833 (emphasis added). Thus, when “more important, less prejudicial evidence exists to prove [the same point],” the probative value of other-crimes evidence diminishes. State v. Jenkins, 178 N.J. 347, 366, 840 A.2d 242 (2004); accord Long, supra, 173 N.J. at 164-65, 801 A.2d 221. At the first trial, the State offered myriad other evidence, through witnesses and experts, to prove defendant’s recklessness. Defendant drank numerous alcoholic beverages earlier that evening and then sped home, driving erratically, under the influence of alcohol. Once home, defendant retrieved an already-loaded shotgun from his gun case. When defendant grabbed the shotgun, he swung left, facing Christofi, and pointed the gun at the victim. Then, after defendant unlatched the double-barrel, “break open” shotgun, exposed the breech, looked down at the barrels, and saw that the gun was loaded, he snapped the weapon together directly in front of the victim, with the muzzle six to thirty-six inches from the victim’s chest. The gun immediately discharged, killing Christofi. Those events, none of which involve the post-shooting evidence at issue here, are highly probative of defendant’s recklessness.
In comparison, defendant’s conduct after the shooting — tampering with evidence, changing his clothing, and telling witnesses to lie to authorities — is significantly less probative of his pre-shooting *140state of mind. That post-shooting conduct instead reveals defendant’s post-shooting state of mind: his immediate shock at the gun’s firing, his recognition that he had just killed Christofi, and his subsequent distress over his role as the triggerman. Accordingly, because “more important, less prejudicial evidence exists to prove [recklessness],” the probative value of the post-shooting evidence diminishes. Jenkins, supra, 178 N.J. at 366, 840 A.2d 242.3
In any event, the prejudice to defendant is substantial because the jury could wrongly rely on such evidence to prove that defendant knew he had committed reckless manslaughter as opposed to accidentally killed Christofi. In its own analysis of relevancy, the majority states that “[defendant’s conduct suggests an immediate awareness that the shooting of Christofi was more than a mere accident, and that his actions were reckless of the risk involved and wrongful,” which “could support a jury finding [of recklessness].” Ante at 129-30, 919 A.2d at 99. However, as both the dissent and the majority here recognize, defendant’s conduct could also demonstrate concern for civil liability and damage to his reputation. See supra at 138, 919 A.2d at 104; ante at 133, 919 A.2d at 101. Because the jury will be called on to render judgment on one narrow criminal charge — for there are no other accusations of misconduct remaining — the jury has but one avenue to channel defendant’s wrongful conduct, that is, reckless manslaughter, even though his post-shooting conduct may well find its genesis in other motivations. Importantly, the State “bears the burden of establishing that the probative value of the evidence is not outweighed by its apparent prejudice.” Reddish, supra, 181 N.J. at 608-09, 859 A.2d 1173 (citation omitted). Yet, the majority effectively places the onus on defendant to defeat the prejudice of *141the evidence by “providfing] the jury with alternative explanations for his post-shooting acts,” ante at 133, 919 A.2d at 101.
Prejudice also arises from the very real risk that the jury may conclude that defendant has a propensity to commit the crime merely because he subsequently committed other crimes and is thus the “type of person” who commits manslaughter. Even if it was appropriate for the lower court to admit evidence of the post-shooting conduct to show intent during the first trial, the admission of the evidence at the retrial of the lone reckless manslaughter charge is not. During the first trial, the evidence could arguably be probative of whether defendant possessed the higher level of intent associated with the other shooting-related charges — purposeful or knowing. Now, conversely, with only the reckless manslaughter charge remaining, the jury is not charged with finding a higher level of intent. Rather, the effect of the evidence is to prejudice defendant by tacitly indicating that he “acted in conformity with” his post-shooting conduct. By keeping this evidence from the jury, defendant would be protected from the jury’s instinctive tendency to find convicted felons guilty of additional charged crimes.
The majority recognizes that the admission of the post-shooting evidence will have a “prejudicial effect,” ante at 133, 919 A.2d at 101, but would rely on a limiting instruction to cure undue prejudice, id. at 134, 919 A.2d at 102 (“[The jury] should not draw any inference of consciousness of guilt ... unless it believes that defendant acted to cover up a crime.”). In underscoring the importance of well-crafted limiting instructions, this Court recently observed in State v. Blakney that “other-crimes evidence may indelibly brand the defendant a bad person and blind the jury from a careful consideration of the elements of the charged offense.” 189 N.J. 88, 93, 912 A.2d 140. A unanimous Court recognized that “ ‘the inherently prejudicial nature of such evidence easts doubt on a jury’s ability to follow even the most precise limiting instruction.’ ” Ibid, (quoting Stevens, supra, 115 N.J. at 309, 558 A.2d 833). In light of Blakney, and recognizing *142that “more important, less prejudicial evidence exists to prove [recklessness],” Jenkins, supra, 178 N.J. at 366, 840 A.2d 242, I cannot support the majority’s reliance on a limiting instruction to curb the prejudicial effect of the post-shooting evidence and ensure the fair administration of justice.
In sum, the risk of prejudice inherent in the post-shooting conduct reflects the intended purpose of N.J.R.E. 404. That evidence does more than simply portray defendant in an “unfavorable light” or “unflattering position.” Ante at 133, 919 A.2d at 106. In my view, its prejudice may well devastate the defense, notwithstanding limiting instructions. I therefore agree with the trial court, which has the “best feel” of the case, that the prejudice outweighs the evidence’s probative value. I believe the prejudice is so severe that it greatly surpasses the N.J.R.E. 404(b) inadmissibility standard set forth in Cofield. Accordingly, I find that the post-shooting evidence fails two of the Cofield prongs, and that either one of those findings would render the evidence inadmissible.
IV.
I add only this. Because the majority relies on N.J.R.E. 404(b), the same legal framework applied by the trial court, I submit that the majority should have reviewed the trial court’s conclusions for an abuse of discretion instead of de novo. Put differently, the trial court’s determinations in applying N.J.R.E. 404(b) deserve deference.
A trial court’s decision regarding the admissibility of other-crimes evidence is reviewed under an abuse of discretion standard because of the trial court’s “intimate knowledge of the case.” Marrero, supra, 148 N.J. at 483, 691 A.2d 293 (quoting State v. Ramseur, 106 N.J. 128, 266, 524 A.2d 188 (1987)). Moreover, such determinations pursuant to N.J.R.E. 404(b) entail decisions regarding relevancy and undue prejudice. Id. at 483, 691 A.2d 293 (citing Cofield, supra, 127 N.J. at 338, 605 A.2d 230). Those trial court decisions can be overturned only if there is “a clear error of *143judgment” which led to a ruling “so wide of the mark that a manifest denial of justice resulted.” Id. at 483-84, 691 A.2d 293 (quoting State v. DiFrisco, 137 N.J. 434, 496-97, 645 A.2d 734 (1994)).
Here, the majority engages in a plenary review of the trial court’s decision to analyze the evidence under N.J.R.E. 404(b) and concludes that the evidence is admissible. In doing so, however, the majority does not reach the conclusion that N.J.R.E. 404(b) is inapplicable, a determination that I believe is a prerequisite to setting aside the trial court’s 404(b) conclusions absent an abuse of discretion. That approach undermines the majority’s clean-slate evaluation of the evidence because de novo review is premised on an appellate court’s finding that the trial court’s initial legal conclusion was in error — a finding that the majority does not make here.
Because the trial court applied an appropriate evidentiary framework, and because the trial court’s conclusion is a reasonable interpretation of defendant’s conduct, the trial court did not commit “a clear error of judgment” or abuse its discretion by finding the evidence inadmissible. Marrero, supra, 148 N.J. at 483-84, 691 A.2d 293 (quoting DiFrisco, supra, 137 N.J. at 496-97, 645 A.2d 734). I would thus afford deference to the trial court’s judgment under N.J.R.E. 404(b).
Y.
In conclusion, I would apply N.J.R.E. 404(b) and uphold the trial court’s exclusion of the evidence on the merits because of its lack of relevancy and because its apparent prejudice outweighs its probative value. I would defer to the trial court’s evidentiary determinations because of the absence of any indication of an abuse of discretion. For the foregoing reasons, I respectfully dissent.
Justice LONG and Justice WALLACE join in this opinion.
*144For reversal and remandment — Justices LaVECCHIA, ALBIN, RIVERA-SOTO and HOENS — 4.
For affirmance — Chief Justice ZAZZÁLI and Justices LONG and WALLACE — 3.

The majority cites numerous out-of-state cases that hold that evidence of post-conduct flight or tampering is relevant to consciousness of guilt of reckless crimes. See ante at 127-30, 919 A.2d at 98-99. I am unconvinced by the rationale of those cases and, in any event, their holdings are not binding on this Court. The majority also cites this Court’s holding in Jones v. Strelecki, 49 N.J. 513, 231 A.2d 558 (1967), to support the proposition that flight is relevant to mental state. However, that civil negligence case has no bearing on the criminal recklessness case now before the Court.

 I do not need to address the second and third Cofield prongs here, except to note my general agreement with the majority that the second prong "need not receive universal application in Rule 404(b) disputes," ante at 131, 919 A.2d at 100.

 The majority identifies other, undisputed evidence that is probative of defendant’s recklessness, see ante at 119, 919 A.2d at 93, and recognizes that the post-shooting conduct in question has "a prejudicial effect," ante at 133, 919 A.2d at 101. Those observations underscore the applicability of Jenkins in this case.