Court Opinion

ID: 9668130
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-24 02:03:23.454927+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T18:15:43.217762
License: Public Domain

John I. Purtle, Justice, dissenting. The defense sought from the beginning of appellant’s three trials on this incident to bring out evidence that appellant was subjected to physical violence by the interrogating officers prior to his one paragraph confession. We reversed the first conviction. A mistrial because of a hung jury was declared in the second. The first two trials allowed questioning of an accomplice who received a suspended sentence (after cooperating with the officers in implicating the appellant). During the third jury trial the defense was again trying to prove force had been used to obtain the confession. It was undisputed that appellant was taken to the doctor the day after his confession. The officers explained that appellant’s arthritis acted up and he was treated for that but not for any head injury. While cross examining the chief investigating officer, the defense counsel asked the officer: “But yet it took an hour to get this paragraph from him: is that right?” The court upheld the state’s objection to the question on the ground it was possibly argumentative and that the matter had been covered several times before. The record does not reveal this question to have been asked prior to this time. During a bench conference the state’s attorney stated: “They took him there, Tom, because he had made complaints about his head injuries.” Appellant explained that the officers beat and injured him and that Gatewood stated she heard some banging around in the area where appellant was being questioned. The court stopped this line of defense questioning on the grounds that there was a lack of good faith in such attempt. I cannot think of a more good faith effort than is presented here. Had appellant been allowed to prove his confession was the result of physical force he may not have been convicted. What error could have been more prejudicial? The court further stated: “For a witness to get up and say that he had stitches in his mouth would permit the jury to infer that he was beaten by law officers and requiring stitches when there is no evidence that that is the way he got them. ’ ’ Exactly! The court then in a series of rulings held the only way to get this evidence in was to have the appellant take the stand. Of course he cannot be required to take the stand. The series of rulings appear to me to be designed to force appellant to appear as a witness and be subject to consequential cross examination by the state, in violation of his 5th Amendment rights. These rulings not only stopped proper cross examination of the officer but precluded the calling of defense witnesses who might testify to the effect that appellant appeared to have been beaten. This same officer had admitted at an earlier trial that he took appellant to the doctor because he was complaining about head injuries. Evidence of good faith is abundant. The cross examination should have been allowed to continue.