State v. Knoke

512 P.2d 1353, 14 Or. App. 187, 1973 Ore. App. LEXIS 885
CourtCourt of Appeals of Oregon
DecidedAugust 6, 1973
DocketNo. 72-87-C
StatusPublished
Cited by2 cases

This text of 512 P.2d 1353 (State v. Knoke) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals of Oregon primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
State v. Knoke, 512 P.2d 1353, 14 Or. App. 187, 1973 Ore. App. LEXIS 885 (Or. Ct. App. 1973).

Opinion

LANGTRY, J.

Defendant appeals from conviction of criminally negligent homicide, ORS 163.145, a lesser included offense of manslaughter, ORS 163.125, which was charged in the indictment.

The homicide occurred at a parking lot in Kla-math Falls shortly before midnight on June 15, 1972. The deceased and two young ladies were sitting in a parked automobile, the ladies in the front seat and deceased in the rear seat, and a witness was crouched at a front window talking with the car’s occupants [189]*189when the defendant drove np in another vehicle, got ont of it and approaehd the vehicle in which deceased was sitting. Deceased had in his possession a loaded handgun which he had been displaying. Defendant was a friend of the deceased and, as he approached, the deceased apparently pointed the gun at defendant, which caused some interchange of remarks. As defendant conversed with the occupants of the car the gun was further displayed by deceased, which resulted in defendant’s asking for it and deceased’s handing it to him. Immediately following this, the gun was discharged, striking deceased in the chest, resulting in his almost immediate death. Defendant, deceased and the two women had all had some beer to drink during the evening but evidence of extent of intoxication was meager.

Defendant alleges error on trial (1) in allowing the prosecution to present evidence of a prior written statement of a prosecution witness during redirect examination after the witness had been impeached during cross-examination by other of her pretrial statements, and (2) in allowing the prosecution to argue concerning whether the gun was shot from inside or outside the car in which deceased was sitting, in view of a stipulation which had been made by counsel. In this respect the defense also argues that the court improperly instructed the jury as to what weight as evidence it should afford the stipulation.

The woman who was sitting on the passenger side of the front seat of the vehicle had testified concerning events leading up to tire shooting. She testified that, while she did not see the gun as it went off, the explosion occurred two or three inches from her head. She also testified extensively about the amount [190]*190of time involved and things that were said before the shot was fired. In cross-examination she was interrogated concerning three statements which she made, two on June 16 and one on June 20, the details of which were sharply inconsistent with her present testimony. On redirect examination the prosecution produced a statement, which was consistent with her trial testimony, made on September 26 to the district attorney. The court allowed this evidence to be received over the defendant’s objections. She testified the latter statement had been made when she voluntarily went to the district attorney for the purpose of making it. It had been developed in the cross-examination of the witness that she was emotionally upset, to the extent of having contemplated taking her own life, during the days following the homicide. The witness testified, in summary, that she could not think of the details of what had happened during that time, but that she had been better able to recollect- afterward.

Defendant relies upon cases such as The People v. DePoy, 40 Ill 2d 433, 240 NE2d 616 (1968), which holds that, when a 'witness is impeached in cross-examination with contradictory statements made before trial, admission in redirect examination of evidence of other statements consistent with his testimony is not competent. Apparently a variety of views can be found in various jurisdictions on this subject. In IY Wdgmore, Evidence 258, § 1126 (Chadbourn rev 1972), the subject is discussed as follows:

“The field in which the judicial divergence of views is most vigorous and the opposing reasons most plausible is that of impeachment by prior inconsistent statements [citing authority].
“On behalf of the admission of the supporting evidence [after the impeaching evidence has been [191]*191produced], the earlier and conventional argument is that if a contradictory statement counts against the witness, a consistent one should count for him —a bit of loose logic which is natural and plausible * * *. The answer to this argument is simply that, since the self-contradiction ¡is conceded, it remains as a damaging fact, and is in no sense explained away by the consistent statement * * *.
“But this answer, forceful as it seems at first sight, is itself in one respect based on a fallacy. * * * [M] ay not the consistency of his other statements help with the jury to controvert the testimony that he did utter the contradiction? The jury have still to determine * * * and if his consistency at other times can assist them in reaching a conclusion upon this fundamental point, it is relevant * * IY Wigmore, supra, at 258-60.

Wigmore then quotes Mr. Justice Cooley in Stewart v. The People, 23 Mich 63, 76, 9 Am R 78 (1871):

* * It is impossible to lay down any arbitrary rule which could be properly applied to every case * * * but we think that there are some cases in which the peculiar circumstances would render this species of evidence important and forcible. * * * We think the circuit judge ought to be allowed a reasonable discretion in such cases, and that though such evidence should not generally be received, yet that his discretion in receiving it ought not to be set aside except in a clear case of abuse.’ ” IY Wigmore, supra, at 260-61.

The explanations given by the witness as to her reasons for the contradiction between the various statements she had made appear to be “peculiar circumstances” of the nature Mr. Justice Cooley was referring to. We think that in view of such circumstances all of the statements including that to which the defendant objects were relevant and properly laid before the jury for it to determine as-well as it could

[192]*192wliat part, if any, of the witness’ testimony was entitled to credibility. Cf. State v. Herrera, 236 Or 1, 8-9, 386 P2d 448 (1963).

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Related

State v. Clark
551 P.2d 1313 (Court of Appeals of Oregon, 1976)
State v. Ward
517 P.2d 1069 (Court of Appeals of Oregon, 1974)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
512 P.2d 1353, 14 Or. App. 187, 1973 Ore. App. LEXIS 885, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/state-v-knoke-orctapp-1973.