State v. Crotty

553 A.2d 620, 17 Conn. App. 395, 1989 Conn. App. LEXIS 33
CourtConnecticut Appellate Court
DecidedJanuary 31, 1989
Docket6166
StatusPublished
Cited by2 cases

This text of 553 A.2d 620 (State v. Crotty) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Connecticut Appellate Court primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
State v. Crotty, 553 A.2d 620, 17 Conn. App. 395, 1989 Conn. App. LEXIS 33 (Colo. Ct. App. 1989).

Opinion

Spallone, J.

The defendant appeals from the judgment of conviction, after a jury trial, of the crime of perjury in violation of General Statutes § SSa-lbb.1

The defendant claims that the trial court erred (1) in finding that there was sufficient evidence.presented at trial to establish the falsity of his statement to a grand jury, and (2) in failing to provide him with a complete transcript of the testimony of the grand jury witnesses who testified against him and in ordering the nondisclosed material sealed. We find no error.

The jury could reasonably have found the following facts. For approximately eighteen years, the defendant was a member of the police department of the borough of Naugatuck. From 1982 until March 1985, he served as union steward of the department. As part of his duties, the defendant was involved in fundraising activities sponsored by the Naugatuck Police Union, [397]*397including a music show featuring entertainer Bobby Rydell. Representing the union, the defendant worked in conjunction with Joseph Taglia, who was the sales manager for WRG Enterprises, the producer of the show. The defendant and Taglia opened a joint checking account for use in connection with the Rydell fund-raising effort. On March 22,1982, the defendant wrote out check number 115 in the amount of $192, made payable to cash. He and Taglia both signed the check, with Taglia entering the notation “mayor campaign donation” in the checkbook register for check number 115. The defendant and Taglia met with William Rado, Sr., the mayor of Naugatuck, on the same day, at which time the defendant gave the check to Rado. The check was cashed at the Elks Club where Rado was a member.

In 1985, during a grand jury investigation into alleged municipal corruption involving Rado, the defendant turned over the checkbook and cancelled checks relating to the Rydell show to Norman Hardacker, the new union steward, the day before Hardacker was to testify before the grand jury.

Thereafter, the defendant was summoned to testify before the grand jury. On June 13, 1985, the defendant was asked, “Do you know whether or not any payments were made to Mayor Rado for any show or fundraising activities put on by the police union?” The defendant replied, “No.” Later, on July 1, 1985, the defendant testified that he had never discussed cash payments to Rado with anyone and that he had no knowledge of what happened to check number 115 after he wrote it. On the basis of his testimony given on June 13 and July 1, 1985, the defendant was arrested and charged with two counts of perjury. A jury found the defendant guilty on the first count and not guilty on the second count.

[398]*398Prior to trial, the defendant moved for the disclosure of transcripts of the testimony of all the witnesses who had appeared before the grand jury. He also requested disclosure of any statements made by the witnesses to state agents, investigators and attorneys. The trial court, Nigro, J., ordered production of relevant portions of the transcripts of the testimony of the grand jury witnesses the state intended to call as witnesses at trial. The state complied by providing excerpts of the transcripts.

On the first day of the trial, dissatisfied with what the state had produced, the defendant renewed his request for full disclosure of the grand jury testimony of all the witnesses the state intended to call. Alternatively, he moved, pursuant to Practice Book § 753, that the court conduct an in camera inspection of undisclosed portions of the transcript and order disclosure of any exculpatory evidence contained therein, including evidence that could be used for impeachment. The trial court, Thim, J., ruled that a review of relevant transcripts and other statements would be made upon the defendant’s request following each witness’s testimony.

The state called Hardacker, Taglia, and Officer James Fortin of the Naugatuck police department as witnesses at trial. When they had finished testifying, the defendant moved for an in camera inspection of the transcripts of their grand jury testimony and of any police reports relating to them. After conducting a review of the designated material, the trial court ruled that, except for one paragraph of a police report containing information regarding Taglia, nothing contained therein had to be disclosed. The court ordered that the documents be marked for identification and sealed, not to be opened by anyone except a reviewing court unless [399]*399ordered otherwise. Defense counsel agreed to these procedures and took no exception to the trial court’s rulings.

The defendant moved for judgment of acquittal at the close of the state’s case and again at the close of his own case, arguing that the state had presented insufficient evidence to meet the requirements of the corroboration rule applicable to proof of the falsity element of perjury. The court denied these motions.

In his first claim of error, the defendant contends that there was insufficient evidence introduced on the element of falsity to support his conviction for perjury.2 This claim is without merit.

Ordinarily, the test for determining whether the evidence is sufficient to support a conviction is whether the trier reasonably could have concluded, upon the facts established and the reasonable inferences drawn therefrom, that the cumulative effect of the evidence was sufficient to justify the verdict of guilty beyond a reasonable doubt. State v. Scielzo, 190 Conn. 191, 196, 460 A.2d 951 (1983). “Each essential element of the crime charged must be established by proof beyond a reasonable doubt.” Id. In reviewing the sufficiency of the evidence in a case involving a conviction for perjury, however, there is an additional inquiry: whether the evidence is sufficient to satisfy the requirements of the so-called “one-witness-plus-corroboration” rule. Under the “one-witness-plus-corroboration” rule, a perjury conviction cannot be based upon the testimony of [400]*400a single witness without corroborative evidence to establish the falsity of the statement. State v. Sanchez, 204 Conn. 472, 477, 528 A.2d 373 (1987); State v. Campbell, 93 Conn. 3, 12, 104 A.2d 653 (1918). “ ‘[T]he corroborative evidence must be inconsistent with the innocence of the accused and must tend to show the perjury independently of the testimony which it is intended to corroborate.’ ” State v. Sanchez, supra, 482, quoting United States v. Forrest, 639 F.2d 1224, 1226 (5th Cir. 1981).

A review of the record reveals that there was sufficient evidence to satisfy the requirements of the rule. To prove the element of falsity, the state presented the testimony of Officer Fortin. Fortin testified that, in a conversation he had with the defendant in May, 1985, the defendant had told him that he had to pay Rado $100 to $200 every time he had a fundraising show. This testimony contradicted the defendant’s grand jury assertion that he had no knowledge of whether any payments were made to Rado for any show or fundraising activities sponsored by the police union.

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Related

State v. Iassogna
898 A.2d 237 (Connecticut Appellate Court, 2006)
State v. Crotty
559 A.2d 1137 (Supreme Court of Connecticut, 1989)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
553 A.2d 620, 17 Conn. App. 395, 1989 Conn. App. LEXIS 33, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/state-v-crotty-connappct-1989.