Court Opinion

ID: 9772522
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-29 17:20:40.876902+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T07:31:45.230950
License: Public Domain

DOUGLAS, Judge,
dissenting.
The majority reverses the conviction because the prosecutor asked a question which the court instructed the jury not to consider. A prior judgment in the incest case was introduced. This was a case used for enhancement. There was no objection that it was an improper question to a reputation witness. Nothing is presented for review.
Evidence that the victim of appellant’s incest was the wife of the deceased would have been admissible in showing the prior relationship between appellant and the deceased under V.T.C.A., Penal Code, Section 19.06.
Appellant raised that relationship by offering testimony that the deceased had abused his own children and that the abuse was know to appellant, the children’s grandfather.
In Keener v. State, 300 S.W.2d 85 (Tex.Cr.App.1957), having reversed the conviction upon other grounds, the Court wrote:
“Upon another trial, the district attorney should be given opportunity to prove, if he can, that appellant threatened to kill another man because of the wife of the deceased, and to show any relationship between the appellant and Mrs. Daley which would shed light on appellant’s motives and intent....”
That holding should be applicable here.
In Ruiz v. State, 523 S.W.2d 691 (Tex.Cr.App.1975), in permitting the introduction of evidence of the unadjudicated rape of the deceased’s daughter by the appellant in that case, we said:
“... The rule applicable to the complained of testimony has been well stated as follows:
“ ‘It is always relevant and admissible for either the State or defendant to show the sexual, illicit, or companiable relationship existing between the defendant or the deceased and a third party, as well as each other, when such fact tends to show motive or shed light on the transaction and issue. When such testimony is gone into by either party in a proper manner, the other party may, where he is able to do so, rebut such testimony.’ [Numerous citations omitted.] 4 Branch’s P.C.2d ed. 558-559, Sec. 2201.”
That appellant had had a sexual relationship with his daughter was not a detail, but the gravamen, of the offense of incest. That the daughter was the wife of the deceased at the time of the murder rendered that prior sexual relationship directly *485relevant to the charge of murder and admissible under Section 19.06.
But even if it could be assumed that it was error to go into the nature of the incest, the error in the prosecutor’s question was harmless.
The jury could not have been surprised to learn that the incest had taken place with a relative. "For this to have been an offense of incest, there must have been sexual relations with a relative. The reference to the daughter was followed by a thorough instruction to disregard:
“THE COURT: Ladies and gentlemen of
the jury, you may or may not recall the exact wording of the last question asked. I don’t think it was ever answered by the witness but I will instruct you not to consider the last question asked for any purpose whatsoever in this trial and I will not restate it for the fact I don’t want to give any emphasis to it. All right. Are you ready to proceed, Mr. Goodwin.”
The statement about incest with a daughter does not show the details of the offense.
Finally, the so-called error could have been cured by the admission of the indictment in the incest case, authorized by Knox v. State, 487 S.W.2d 322 (Tex.Cr.App.1972), and Fairris v. State, 515 S.W.2d 921 (Tex.Cr.App.1974), which contained the same information alluded to by the prosecutor. It is apparent from the record that the court believed it was precluded from admitting that indictment by its previous ruling upon a motion in limine seeking to prohibit its admission:
“MR. GERALD GOODWIN: That is admissible, Judge.
“THE COURT: The only thing that bothers me, I had a motion in limine.
“MR. GERALD GOODWIN: As to details.
“THE COURT: Well—
“MR. GERALD GOODWIN: Let me give them some details if they want details. That is no details, the reading of the indictment. That is not details.
“THE COURT: Well — Details to the extent that I ruled on it and there is a motion in limine in the record with a court order saying to keep it out.
“MR. GERALD GOODWIN: The indictment, and it is not in.
“THE COURT: That’s correct.
“MR. GERALD GOODWIN: It is not in.
“MR. PAUL CLARK: Allegations—
“MR. GERALD GOODWIN: I would ask at this time to be able to put it in. I want it in. I think I am entitled to it.
“MR. ROBERT ARNETT: Judge has a ruling on that.
“MR. GERALD GOODWIN: We can ask the court to reconsider it.
“THE COURT: Well, well the only time I indicated I might would, you know, reconsider that at that time—
“MR. GERALD GOODWIN: Judge, like relationship, you know, the concern for the children that the deceased has committed against the children. I can ask her about the abuse of his own children, that is, you know, compare. Compare the abuse of David Massey committed against his children was it any worse than what this man has committed?
“THE COURT: Of course, we both are operating under the same law. Either side has a right to offer evidence between defendant and deceased. Any evidence as to their relationship, their basically getting along, their relationship. Either side can offer evidence on that basically, right? But what we are talking about here is a motion in limine which really the record indicates I have already ruled.
“MR. GERALD GOODWIN: Well, I will live by the ruling of the court but I feel I am entitled to put the indictment in and show that 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 kids he had incest with.
“THE COURT: Well, I could have let it in. I told you all I think, that I had one authority that said I could and one seemed to indicate that I couldn’t, but I kept it out.
“MR. GERALD GOODWIN: You didn’t have any that indicated you couldn’t.
*486“THE COURT: Well, in a way when you take what he indicated, but the main thing is the order saying keep it out. Let’s take a recess.”
The ruling granting the motion in limine was not binding on the trial court. Norman v. State, 523 S.W.2d 669 (Tex.Cr.App.1975). That ruling did not serve to overrule the prior holdings of this Court. Neither should we permit that ruling to convert otherwise admissible evidence into reversible error.
It is perhaps an unintentional irony of the majority opinion that it finds the error in the reference by the prosecutor to the victim of the incest, which could have been cured by presenting the same information to the jury as fact through the admission of the indictment, could not be cured by strongly admonishing the jury not to consider it.
If it can be said that there was a violation of the trial court’s ruling on the motion in limine, that would not by itself amount to reversible error. Occasionally a trial judge will make an incorrect ruling at the beginning of a trial. This Court does not reverse because such a ruling was violated, but reverses if a rule of law has been violated that harms a defendant.
The judgment should be affirmed.