State v. McClain
State v. McClain
Opinion
**804
The principal issue in this certified appeal is whether an implied waiver of a claim of instructional error pursuant to
State
v.
Kitchens
,
The record and the Appellate Court opinion reveal the following facts and procedural history. The state charged the defendant with, inter alia, murder with a firearm in violation of §§ 53a-54a and 53-202k, 2 in connection with the shooting *212 death of Eldwin Barrios. 3 On the first day of his jury trial, "the court provided counsel with a copy of the proposed jury instructions, indicated it received requests to charge from both parties, and stated it would review each accordingly. On the sixth day of trial, the court and counsel discussed the upcoming charge conference and issues relating to the jury instructions. The state reminded the court that it had requested a consciousness of guilt instruction.... Defense counsel did not object to the state's arguments, and responded, 'No, Your Honor,' when the court asked if there was anything further from either side relating to the instructions.
"On the next day of trial, the court stated that it would not give the state's requested instruction, provided counsel with a copy of the proposed instructions, and asked if counsel were ready to proceed. Defense counsel did not take exception to the court's decision not to charge on consciousness of guilt.
**806
"During its rebuttal case, the state introduced the [defendant's] uniform arrest report into evidence and elicited testimony related thereto. Defense counsel did not object. The state also elicited testimony that, three months before the murder, the defendant stated he was living on Wood Avenue in Bridgeport. Defense counsel did not object. After the state rested its rebuttal case, the court held a charge conference on the record. There was no further discussion about the consciousness of guilt instruction, and, when the court asked if there was '[a]nything further on the instructions,' defense counsel responded, 'No, Your Honor.' " (Footnote omitted.) Id., at 289-91,
The parties then gave closing arguments, during which the prosecutor argued that a discrepancy between two statements made by the defendant demonstrated his consciousness of guilt. Specifically, the prosecutor contrasted the information that the defendant provided for the uniform arrest report that he was homeless, with a statement that he gave to the police with respect to an unrelated incident, that he had a residential address on Wood Avenue. Defense counsel did not object to this argument. After closing arguments, the court instructed the jury, but did not include an instruction on consciousness of guilt. The court then asked the parties if they had any issues with the charge, and both stated that they did not.
The jury found the defendant guilty of all charges. The trial court then rendered a judgment of conviction in accordance with the jury's verdict and sentenced the defendant to a total effective sentence of sixty-five years incarceration. Id., at 284,
The defendant then appealed from the judgment of conviction claiming, inter alia, that the trial court's failure to instruct on consciousness of guilt was manifestly unjust, and that the judgment of conviction should be
**807
reversed under the plain error doctrine. Id., at 288-89,
I
The first issue before us is whether a Kitchens waiver forecloses plain error reversal. On appeal, the defendant **808 makes the policy argument that if a fundamental, manifest injustice amounting to plain error exists in a case, it does so regardless of whether counsel remained silent, failed to object, or affirmatively stated that he had no objection to the proposed jury instruction and, as such, a defendant's claim of plain error should not fail on the basis of counsel's implied acquiescence to the instructional error.
In response, the state argues that a
Kitchens
waiver should foreclose relief under the plain error doctrine because a
Kitchens
waiver encompasses an inference that the defendant knowingly and voluntarily relinquished the right in question and, as such, that waiver precludes a claim of plain error. The state then makes the policy argument that permitting appellate review of waived claims under the plain error doctrine would invite an ambuscade of the trial courts, and would encourage sandbagging by counsel at trial. Finally, the state claims that it would be inconsistent with our recent decision in
State
v.
Bellamy
,
The question of whether a
Kitchens
waiver precludes plain error review is one of law; thus, this court's review is plenary.
Moye
v.
Commissioner of Correction
,
The court then analyzed whether the defendant's claim had been waived under the third prong of
Golding
. Id., at 468-73,
**810
In determining whether counsel could impliedly waive a claim of instructional error for purposes of
Golding
, we considered the presumption of competent counsel, in that an implied waiver may well signify a strategic decision on the part of the attorney. Id., at 489-92,
**811
*215
More recently, in
State
v.
Bellamy , supra,
We note that it is undisputed that defense counsel's actions in the present case constituted a
Kitchens
**812
waiver. See
State
v.
McClain
, supra,
It is axiomatic that, "[t]he plain error doctrine ... is not ... a rule of reviewability. It is a rule of reversibility.
**814
That is, it is a doctrine that this court invokes in order to rectify a trial court ruling that, although either not properly preserved or never raised at all in the trial court, nonetheless requires reversal of the trial court's judgment ... for reasons of policy." (Internal quotation marks omitted.)
State
v.
Ruocco
,
In contrast, however,
Golding
review is a rule of reviewability, focused not on the magnitude of the error,
**815
but rather, on the type of error alleged, with the ultimate goal of determining whether the court may review such error.
9
State
v.
Golding , supra,
We next consider whether the trial court's decision not to give a consciousness of guilt instruction in the present case constitutes plain error requiring reversal. 11 The defendant contends that it was plain error for the trial court not to instruct the jury on consciousness of guilt, when there was a factual basis for applicability of that doctrine. The defendant argues that, because the state offered evidence on consciousness of guilt and argued that concept to the jury to discredit the defendant's sole defense of alibi, the jury needed **816 instruction on the doctrine in order to apply it to the facts of the case. Relying on the complexities of the doctrine of consciousness of guilt, the defendant claims that without the instruction, the jury heard an incomplete and inaccurate discussion of the doctrine. Finally, the defendant contends that there is no assurance that the trial court's error was harmless in light of the weakness of the state's case.
In response, the state relies on Appellate Court authority holding that a claim of error in a consciousness of guilt instruction does not warrant plain error review. See, e.g.,
State
v.
Houle
,
We turn to the first prong of the plain error doctrine, namely, whether the trial court's decision not to give
**817
a consciousness of guilt instruction, is so clear an error that a failure to reverse the judgment would result in manifest injustice. See, e.g.,
State
v.
Jamison
, supra,
On the following day of trial, the trial court held a charge conference on the record. Id., at 290,
During the state's rebuttal case, it introduced into evidence the defendant's uniform arrest report, in which the defendant had stated that he was homeless when he was arrested three days after the murder.
During closing arguments, with respect to consciousness of guilt, the state argued the following: "The defendant is arrested for a crime, and you'll see [in] the [uniform arrest report] that you have, what he was arrested for; it was a murder. And at the time that he's arrested, he tells the police that he was homeless. Now, why would he tell the police he was homeless; you have a right to consider that. Can you use that as circumstantial evidence of a consciousness of guilt. Think about it. If I tell them I'm living at 430 Ogden Street, they're gonna be able to go over and find out the truth in this case. If you're thinking about this yourself; just yourself thinking about things. [The defendant] gets shot at on [March 4, 2010] ... [a]nd he says, I live [on] Wood Avenue .... What's the import of that; well, [the defendant's sister said] that the defendant lived at [430] Ogden Street." After closing arguments, the trial court instructed the jury on the applicable law, but did not include an instruction on consciousness of guilt.
State
v.
McClain
, supra,
The defendant's claim asserts, somewhat paradoxically, that he suffered manifest injustice because the trial court omitted an instruction that ordinarily is
**819
sought by the state and opposed by the defendant. A consciousness of guilt instruction is intended to draw the jury's attention to indirect evidence of the defendant's guilt, including, for example, false statements made to the police.
12
See Connecticut Criminal Jury Instructions
*220
(4th Ed. 2008) § 2.6-3, available at http://www.jud.ct.gov/ji/criminal/Criminal.pdf (last visited March 1, 2017) (pattern instruction). The instruction then permits the jury to infer from the evidence that the defendant was acting from a guilty conscience.
Contrary to the defendant's position that the trial court's decision not to instruct on consciousness of guilt was manifestly unjust, in challenging a trial court's consciousness of guilt instruction, defendants often contend that the instruction is improper because it improperly shifts the burden of proof from the state to the defendant;
State
v.
Banks
,
Additionally, "[t]he decision to give a consciousness of guilt instruction is left to the sound discretion of the trial court."
State
v.
Hinds
,
The judgment of the Appellate Court is affirmed.
In this opinion the other justices concurred.
I agree with and join in the conclusions of the majority opinion that an implied waiver of
Golding
review
1
pursuant to
State
v.
Kitchens
,
We initially granted the defendant's petition for certification to appeal limited to the following question: "Did the Appellate Court properly determine that an implied waiver of a claim of instructional error that satisfies
State
v.
Kitchens , [supra,
We note that the Appellate Court did not reach the merits of this issue, however, because it affirmed the judgment of the trial court on the ground that an implied waiver of a claim of instructional error under Kitchens also forecloses plain error review. We granted the defendant's motion to modify the certified question in the interest of judicial economy in order to avoid an unnecessary remand of a single issue appeal to the Appellate Court.
The state also charged the defendant with assault in the first degree with a firearm in violation of General Statutes §§ 53a-59 (a) (5) and 53-202k, and carrying a pistol without a permit in violation of General Statutes § 29-35 (a). See
State
v.
McClain
, supra,
For a detailed recitation of the facts underlying this murder charge, see
State
v.
McClain
, supra,
The defendant's appeal from the trial court's judgment of conviction was originally filed in this court.
State
v.
McClain
, supra,
Under
Golding
, it is well settled that a defendant may prevail on an unpreserved claim when: "(1) the record is adequate to review the alleged claim of error; (2) the claim is of constitutional magnitude alleging the violation of a fundamental right; (3) the alleged constitutional violation ... exists and ... deprived the defendant of a fair trial; and (4) if subject to harmless error analysis, the state has failed to demonstrate harmlessness of the alleged constitutional violation beyond a reasonable doubt." (Footnote omitted.)
State
v.
Golding , supra,
In adopting the standard set forth in
Kitchens
, we relied on, inter alia, "the widely recognized presumption that counsel is competent and capable of acting on behalf of the defendant in matters concerning trial management, including waiver of the defendant's right to challenge a jury instruction ...."
State
v.
Kitchens , supra,
Although the main question before us in
Bellamy
was whether to overrule
Kitchens
, justices in the majority and concurring opinions noted the uncertainty in the law as to whether a
Kitchens
waiver precludes plain error review, but left that question for another day. See
State
v.
Bellamy , supra,
The defendant also argues that, because Connecticut modeled the plain error doctrine codified in Practice Book § 60-5 on the federal plain error rule, federal cases are persuasive in this context. According to the defendant, the rule embraced by the Appellate Court-that trial counsel's acquiescence waives review for plain error-is followed by only a minority of jurisdictions. He explains that most federal courts of appeal refuse to find waiver of instructional plain error on the basis of a defendant's failure to object to a court's proposed jury instruction, or even on the basis of counsel's affirmative statement of no objection to the proposed instruction. Additionally, the defendant relies on the United States Supreme Court decision in
United States
v.
Olano
,
In response, the state claims that
United States
v.
Olano , supra,
As we explain subsequently, federal case law is inapposite and unpersuasive on the basis of the fundamental differences between the federal and state plain error and waiver doctrines. Specifically, although we acknowledge the federal case law cited by both parties, we find it unpersuasive because of the fundamental differences between federal case law and post-
Kitchens
case law in the context of reviewing unpreserved claims. Under federal law, "an appellate court may,
in its discretion
, correct an error not raised at trial only where the appellant demonstrates that (1) there is an error; (2) the error is clear or obvious, rather than subject to reasonable dispute; (3) the error affected the appellant's substantial rights, which in the ordinary case means it affected the outcome of the district court proceedings; and (4) the error seriously affect[s] the fairness, integrity or public reputation of judicial proceedings." (Emphasis added; internal quotation marks omitted.)
United States
v.
Marcus
,
Additionally, federal courts do not recognize the concept of implied waiver, in that counsel's acquiescence cannot constitute a waiver. See, e.g.,
United States
v.
Ramirez-Castillo
,
Because plain error review is fundamentally different from Golding review, we are unpersuaded by the state's argument that it would be inconsistent for this court to conclude that a Kitchens waiver precludes Golding review, but permits claims of plain error.
In its decision in the present case, the Appellate Court extensively relied on
State
v.
Rosado , supra,
See footnote 1 of this opinion.
Few instances have arisen before this court in which it was the
defendant
challenging the trial court's failure to give a consciousness of guilt instruction. See, e.g.,
State
v.
Shannon
,
This is in stark contrast to
State
v.
Ruocco , supra,
Here, because the decision whether to give the consciousness of guilt instruction is discretionary, it follows that the trial court's decision not to give the instruction was not so obvious an error that it was not debatable, resulting in plain error necessitating reversal. We leave for another day the question of whether a trial court's exercise of its discretion to give that charge ever can amount to plain error-that is, an error so obvious on its face that it is undebatable.
Although the defendant claims that without the pattern instruction, the jury heard an incomplete and inaccurate discussion of the doctrine, we disagree. As noted previously in this opinion, it is within the discretion of the trial court to determine whether to instruct the jury on consciousness of guilt, and given the likely potential benefits to the defendant from the court declining to give this instruction requested by the state, we find this argument to be unavailing.
See
State
v.
Golding
,
Reference
- Full Case Name
- STATE of Connecticut v. Tajah MCCLAIN
- Cited By
- 85 cases
- Status
- Published