(DOWNLOAD) "State v. Fields" by Supreme Court of Montana * eBook PDF Kindle ePub Free
eBook details
- Title: State v. Fields
- Author : Supreme Court of Montana
- Release Date : January 03, 2007
- Genre: Law,Books,Professional & Technical,
- Pages : * pages
- Size : 60 KB
Description
In 2004, a jury in Otter Tail County convicted respondent William Leroy Fields of criminal sexual conduct for raping K.W. in the summer of 1997. In an unpublished decision, a divided panel of the court of appeals held that the prosecutors inquiry into a theft by Fields, an incident unrelated to the rape and not resulting in a conviction, constituted error because the prosecutor did not comply with the procedures for the use of Spreigl evidence. State v. Fields, No. A04-2474, 2006 WL 463524, at *4 (Minn. App. Feb. 28, 2006). The court of appeals failed to consider whether the inquiry was admissible under Minn. R. Evid. 608(b). Fields, 2006 WL 463524, at *4. The court further held that a jury instruction regarding victim testimony corroboration was improper. Id. at *5. The court also indicated that parts of the prosecutors closing argument were "arguably" improper. Id. at *7. The court of appeals reversed and remanded based on the cumulative prejudicial effect of the claimed errors. Id. at *7-8. We reverse the decision of the court of appeals.