Court Opinion

ID: 9732672
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-26 16:30:56.370624+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T18:26:31.559177
License: Public Domain

JACK CARTER, Justice,
concurring.
I agree with the majority opinion except with regard to the discussion of invited error.
As shown in the majority opinion, this case involved a great deal of pretrial media coverage. Counsel for Russell properly was attempting to inquire of the venire-members if this publicity had caused them to have an opinion as to the defendant’s guilt. He began by asking if anyone had heard anything or read newspapers about the case and then asked one of the jury panelists, “[W]hat information did you hear or see with regard to this case?” Following that answer, he then asked, “Did you form any opinion whatsoever after seeing that information on the news?” He then began to examine each row of jurors asking, “Did you form an opinion based on what you read or saw on television with regard to Mr. Russell’s guilt or innocence?” “Same question to Ms. Thompson and Mr. Campbell? Did you form any opinion about what you saw or heard?” The reporter’s record reflects that Russell’s counsel then asked a question nine additional times as to whether the members had formed any opinion on what they had seen or heard before asking Juror Bates, “Anything that you saw or heard and formed any opinion about Mr. Russell’s case?” The response was, “I understand that he had 24 criminal priors.”
*718The majority concludes that, since counsel’s question could have led the juror to reasonably believe his answer was responsive, the question invited error. I disagree. Invited error normally occurs when a party takes some action that leads a court into error. Therefore, the party cannot complain of the court’s action. This is illustrated by several cases. In Prystash v. State, 3 S.W.3d 522 (Tex.Crim.App.1999), the defendant requested the court omit a jury instruction concerning the requirement for holding one criminally responsible as a party for capital murder when he did not personally kill the victim and on appeal complained of such omission. Similarly, in Ex parte Guerrero, 521 S.W.2d 613 (Tex.Crim.App.1975), a defendant requested the trial court to assess his sentences consecutively and then later complained of it. Likewise, in Santellan v. State, 939 S.W.2d 155 (Tex.Crim.App.1997), the defendant requested the trial court to instruct the jury concerning the law of parole and then complained of the instruction. In each of these instances, the defendant was barred or estopped from such complaint as his actions induced the court to commit an error. Here, there is no contention defense counsel caused the trial court to err.
I do not believe that counsel’s question can be considered as an invitation to create error. It is true counsel had asked one juror what he had seen or heard, but by far the preponderance of the questions and the general tenor inquired about was whether the jurors had formed an opinion of Russell’s guilt from what they had seen or heard.
The cases cited in the majority opinion correctly state the general rule that an invited error estops a party from asserting error based on an action that party induced, but do not support the conclusion that the action in this case constitutes invited error. As mentioned, the Prystash case involved the defendant requesting the omission of an instruction and later complaining of it. In Century 21 Real Estate Corp. v. Hometown Real Estate Co., 890 S.W.2d 118 (Tex.App.—Texarkana 1994, pet. denied), the court held that the trial court has discretion to deny a mistrial and that a party complaining of it must show that the court’s action was an abuse of discretion and reasonably calculated to cause and probably did cause the rendition of an improper judgment. Since the defendant did not show it was prejudiced or that the court abused its discretion and the jury was properly instructed, this Court affirmed the judgment. Even though the trial court stated that comment was invited, this Court did not rely on or mention the doctrine of invited error in affirming the judgment.
A party may be estopped from complaining if the party’s conduct during the course of a trial is so egregious as to constitute a deliberate attempt to cause a mistrial. In Franks v. State, 961 S.W.2d 253 (Tex.App.—Houston [1st Dist.] 1997, pet. ref' d), the defendant personally initiated conversations with members of the jury and later complained about the jury having improper contacts with him. The court invoked the doctrine of invited error and stated that otherwise the defendant could “deliberately cause a mistrial by engaging in such unauthorized conversation with jurors.” Id. at 255.
I do not believe this case involved the doctrine of invited error. Clearly, the defense attorney did not induce the trial court to commit an error for which he is now complaining. Furthermore, I do not believe that this case represents such egregious conduct to “deliberately cause a mistrial” such as in Franks. The questions defense counsel posed were legitimate attempts to inquire of the venire-*719members if they had already formed an opinion as to whether Russell was guilty. I believe that the answer by Juror Bates was nonresponsive. Even if the answer can be construed as responsive to a poorly framed question, I do not believe counsel’s action indicated a deliberate attempt to cause a mistrial. Since defense counsel’s conduct neither (1) caused the court to commit error, or (2) was an attempt to deliberately cause a mistrial, the doctrine of invited error is not applicable.
In all other respects, I agree with the majority opinion and therefore concur in the judgment.