Court Opinion

ID: 9846274
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-09-24 03:38:29.513085+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T09:16:41.368209
License: Public Domain

WYNN, Judge
concurring.
I agree with the majority’s holding that no prejudicial error occurred in the proceedings below; however, I write separately *197because I believe the trial court abused its discretion in admitting evidence regarding the presence of semen on a rag.
Under N.C. Gen. Stat. § 8C-1, Rule 403, Defendant objected to the admittance of any evidence regarding the semen and its DNA analysis and to the mentioning of said evidence in the opening and closing statements. Rule 403 allows discretionary exclusion of relevant evidence “if its probative value is substantially outweighed by the danger of unfair prejudice, confusion of the issues, or misleading the jury, or by considerations of undue delay, waste of time, or needless presentation of cumulative evidence.”
Defendant contends the probative value of the rag and the analysis indicating the presence of Defendant’s semen was minimal, was substantially outweighed by unfair prejudice, and constituted duplicative evidence of his presence in the car. The majority opinion holds that even though Defendant stipulated to his presence in the vehicle, the presence of semen on the rag tended to indicate that Defendant was the person who used the rag to wipe down the backseat and was therefore an active participant in the kidnapping and murder. Therefore, according to the majority, the admittance of this evidence was not an abuse of discretion. I respectfully disagree.
The pertinent facts indicate Christopher Bell, Chad Williams, and Defendant kidnapped Ms. Kennedy, stole her car, drove the car to a place designated by Bell, caused Ms. Kennedy to bleed by pistol-whipping her, and placed her in the trunk. Sometime thereafter, the State’s evidence also tended to show Defendant drove to his brother’s home, obtained a rag, and wiped Ms. Kennedy’s blood from the back seat.
Scientific analysis revealed the rag contained Ms. Kennedy’s blood and semen belonging to either Defendant or Defendant’s brother, who was not a party to this crime. The tests did not indicate how long the semen had been present on the rag. No evidence of semen was located on Ms. Kennedy’s clothing or her person and there was no evidence of a sexual assault.
The State argued that the presence of Defendant’s semen on the rag indicated Defendant wiped up the blood and was therefore an active participant in the kidnapping and murder. However, under these facts, the presentation of any semen evidence was unnecessary as there was more than sufficient evidence of Defendant’s presence and active participation in this crime. Indeed, Defendant stipulated to *198his presence in the car. Moreover, other evidence indicates that Defendant drove the car, chose the abandonment location near his brother’s home, obtained the rag used to wipe up the blood, and returned to the scene of the crime in order to cover up his fingerprints. The evidence also indicates the three men spent the night of the kidnapping and murder and several days thereafter at Defendant’s brother’s home. The day after the murder, the three men returned to the abandoned car in order to cover up any evidence of their crime. Under the facts of this case, the probative value of the semen evidence was minimal.
On the other hand, the prejudicial effect of the semen evidence was significant. The presence of semen on the rag indicates sexual activity occurred at some point. However, when such activity, by whom such activity, and with whom such activity occurred is uncertain. No semen was found on Ms. Kennedy’s person or clothing and there was no other evidence of sexual assault. The rag belonged to Defendant’s brother and was obtained from Defendant’s brother’s home. The DNA analysis could not exclude Defendant’s brother as the source of the semen and the analysis could not indicate how long the semen had been present on the rag. Nevertheless, the State argued several times to the Court that the jury should be allowed to infer the men kidnapped Ms. Kennedy for the purpose of sexual gratification. In the absence of any evidence of sexual assault and given the overwhelming evidence of Defendant’s presence in the car and active participation in this crime, the probative value of the semen evidence was substantially outweighed by unfair prejudice and constituted duplicative evidence. Accordingly, I conclude the trial court abused its discretion in admitting the semen evidence and allowing the State to mention said evidence in its opening and closing arguments.
However, the overwhelming evidence of Defendant’s presence in the car and active participation in the crime renders the trial court’s abuse of discretion non-prejudicial. See State v. Patterson, 103 N.C. App. 195, 205-06, 405 S.E.2d 200, 207 (1991) (stating that “under G.S. 15A-1443(a) a defendant must demonstrate that there is a reasonable possibility that had the error in question not been committed, a different result would have been reached at the trial out of which the appeal arises). Moreover, the trial court gave a curative instruction limiting jury consideration of the evidence to that of identification of the perpetrator and corroboration of the State’s evidence and specifically prohibited the use of such evidence as proof of sexual assault *199of the victim. Accordingly, I would hold the trial court committed non-prejudicial error.