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Atlanta Criminal Defense Lawyers > Blog > Drug Crimes > Are a Lawyer’s Comments Admissible as “Character” Evidence?

Are a Lawyer’s Comments Admissible as “Character” Evidence?

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One of the basic rules of criminal trials in Georgia is that the prosecution cannot present evidence about the defendant’s “character” unless the defendant chooses to make it an issue. In other words, if the defendant presents evidence that they possess a particular character trait–e.g., they are an honest person who would never steal from anyone–the prosecution can introduce rebuttal witnesses to contradict or disprove that testimony. But the district attorney cannot normally introduce witnesses whose only purpose is to paint the defendant as a bad person.

Court of Appeals Throws Out Racketeering Conviction

The Georgia Court of Appeals recently overturned a criminal conviction because the prosecution crossed that line. This case, Frady v. State, involved a defendant accused of leading a “criminal RICO organization and conspiracy” to illegally distribute methamphetamine. A grand jury also indicted the defendant’s wife, son, and nine other co-defendants as alleged members of the conspiracy.

The defendant was tried separately from his co-defendants. The defendant’s son testified for the defense. The son previously pleaded guilty to several charges arising from the indictment. At his father’s trial, the son again admitted to committing a number of crimes, including burglary and theft, but insisted his father had nothing to do with those offenses.

During cross-examination, the prosecution introduced the transcript of the son’s allocution hearing where he entered his guilty plea. The transcript included comments from the son’s criminal defense lawyer. The lawyer described the defendant as an “absolute scumbag” who was responsible for raising a son who committed the charged offenses. The lawyer went on to say the defendant was a “criminal menace” and a “piece of garbage who I hope he’s going to lose his upcoming trial and get locked up for a significant amount of time.”

The jury convicted the defendant on multiple counts. On appeal, the defendant argued the introduction of the transcript with the lawyer’s comments was inadmissible character evidence. The Court of Appeals agreed and reversed the defendant’s conviction. The appellate court noted that nothing in the son’s trial testimony placed his father’s character at issue. (Indeed, the government conceded that point.) So there was no justification for allowing the jury to hear the comments from the son’s attorney attacking the defendant’s character.

More to the point, this was not a “harmless error” that the Court of Appeals could overlook. There was a “strong likelihood that the trial court’s error affected the outcome” of the defendant’s trial, especially since the son was the last witness to testify. In other words, the final evidence the jury received prior to deliberations were the inadmissible comments of the son’s defense lawyer in another proceeding.

Contact The Spizman Firm Trial Lawyers Today

When you are on trial and facing the possibility of serious prison time, you have every right to demand that prosecutors and judges follow the law. Our Atlanta drug crimes lawyer can help ensure that you receive fair treatment. Call The Spizman Firm Trial Lawyers today. We serve clients throughout Georgia including Atlanta, Dunwoody, Alpharetta, Cobb County, Fulton County, Gwinnett County, Johns Creek and Sandy Springs.

Source:

scholar.google.com/scholar_case?case=4514054544797379246

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