State v. Miller

718 So. 2d 960, 1998 WL 568803
Supreme Court of Louisiana·Decided October 20, 1998·No. 98-KK-0301·Published·Cited by 65 cases

Opinion

718 So.2d 960 (1998)

STATE of Louisiana
v.
Bailey MILLER, Jr.

No. 98-KK-0301.

Supreme Court of Louisiana.

September 9, 1998.
Concurring Opinion October 20, 1998.

*961 Marcie S. Dejean, Sean Jackson, Baton Rouge, for Applicant.

Richard P. Ieyoub, Atty. Gen., Douglas P. Moreau, Dist. Atty., Monisa L. Thompson, Jennifer L. Pate, Baton Rouge, for Respondent.

Concurring Opinion of Chief Justice Calogero October 20, 1998.

VICTORY, Justice.[*]

We granted this writ to determine whether evidence of a prurient statement made by the defendant to a young girl is admissible as an "other crime or wrong" in his trial for molestation of a juvenile where the young girl is not the victim of the crimes charged and is not related to the defendant, and where the "wrong" is less serious than the offenses charged.

FACTS AND PROCEDURAL HISTORY

Defendant is charged with two counts of molestation of a juvenile in violation of La. R.S. 14:81.2 C.[1] Specifically, the defendant is accused of molesting his two nieces while he baby-sat them at his residence between November 20, 1994 and December 25, 1994. One niece, who was 11 at the time, told her mother the defendant entered his bedroom where she was watching television, started rubbing her back, and then placed his finger in her vagina. Despite her repeated efforts to get away from him, the molestation continued for ten to fifteen minutes and ended only when the defendant's wife came home. The other niece, who was eight at the time, told her mother she was watching television when the defendant rubbed her back and her buttocks.

A bill of information was filed, and the state notified defendant it intended to introduce evidence that in May of 1996 defendant was overheard telling his neighbor's eight-year-old daughter at a barbeque that he had seen her in his bedroom naked "with her legs open and her arms open."[2] Following a hearing, the trial court ruled the evidence was admissible to show "a predisposition to molest young girls and maybe that's [the defendant's] modus operandi of getting them in there, is to start, start talking to them about it."

The defendant's request for supervisory writs from the First Circuit was denied. State v. Miller, 97-0037 (La.App. 1st Cir. 2/24/97). On June 30, 1997, this court granted the defendant's writ application and remanded the matter to the court of appeal for briefing, argument and opinion. State v. Miller, 97-0772 (La.6/30/97), 696 So.2d 997. The court of appeal affirmed the trial court's ruling, finding the statement may "establish a predisposition to molest young girls" and was admissible "to establish intent, preparation, plan, knowledge, and possibly opportunity and/or absence of mistake or accident." State v. Miller, 97-0037, p. 2 (La.App. 1st Cir. 12/29/97), 704 So.2d 1279, 1281. We granted a writ to consider the corectness of *962 this ruling. State v. Miller, 98-0301 (La.3/27/98), 716 So.2d 366.

DISCUSSION

General Rules for Admissibility

Article 404(B) of the Louisiana Code of Evidence provides the basic rule regarding the use of evidence of "other crimes, wrongs or acts" at trial. It states in pertinent part:

(1) Except as provided in Article 412 [regarding a victim's past sexual behavior in sexual assault cases], evidence of other crimes, wrongs, or acts is not admissible to prove the character of a person in order to show that he acted in conformity therewith. It may, however, be admissible for other purposes, such as proof of motive, opportunity, intent, preparation, plan, knowledge, identity, absence of mistake or accident.

Several other statutory and jurisprudential rules also play a role in determining the admissibility of such evidence. First, one of the factors listed in Article 404(B) "must be at issue, have some independent relevance, or be an element of the crime charged in order for the evidence to be admissible." State v. Jackson, 625 So.2d 146, 149 (La.1993). Second, the state is required to prove the defendant committed these other acts by clear and convincing evidence. Id.; State v. Davis, 449 So.2d 466 (La.1984). Third, even if independently relevant, the evidence may be excluded if its probative value is substantially outweighed by the dangers of unfair prejudice, confusion of the issues, or misleading the jury, or by considerations of undue delay, or waste of time. La. C.E. art. 403. Finally, the requirements set forth in State v. Prieur, 277 So.2d 126 (La.1973) must be met. Thereunder, the state must, within a reasonable time before trial, provide written notice of its intent to use other acts or crimes evidence and describe these acts in sufficient detail. The state must show the evidence is neither repetitive nor cumulative, and is not being introduced to show the defendant is of bad character. Further, the court must, at the request of the defendant, offer a limiting instruction to the jury at the time the evidence is introduced. The court must also charge the jury at the close of the trial that the other crimes evidence serves a limited purpose and that the defendant cannot be convicted for any crime other than the one charged or any offense responsive to it.

Child sexual abuse cases raise special concerns for the judicial system not present in other criminal cases. Frequently, in cases involving the sexual abuse of children, the offense takes place in secret, the victim is young, vulnerable, and reluctant to testify, and there is often no physical or other evidence the abuse took place. As a result, special laws and rules have been passed to address the unique concerns presented in these types of cases.[3] In further recognition of the need to treat child sexual abuse cases specially, some jurisdictions admit evidence of uncharged misconduct to show "lustful disposition" or "depraved sexual instinct" in cases involving sex crimes against children.[4]*963 Other courts have allowed the introduction of such evidence for purposes more traditionally associated with Article 404(B), e.g., to establish a plan, motive, scheme, or design or to show intent.[5] Indeed, Fed.R.Evid. 413 was recently amended to expressly allow the admission of other offenses of sexual assault by the defendant "for its bearing on any matter to which it is relevant."[6]

Louisiana Jurisprudence

Louisiana has followed the national trend towards broader admissibility of other crimes evidence in cases involving alleged sexual abuse of minor children. Pugh, Handbook on Louisiana Evidence Law 1996, 284. This court first recognized the "lustful disposition" exception in State v. Cupit, where the defendant was charged with assault with intent to commit rape of his young niece. 189 La. 509, 179 So. 837 (1938). The state presented evidence the defendant had raped another niece and had been charged with the rape of yet another niece. This court held the evidence was admissible in that the "prior offenses... clearly tended to show the lustful disposition the defendant bore towards his nieces, and his unnatural desire to have sexual intercourse with them; all of his nieces being children of tender age." 189 La. at 516, 179 So. at 839.

In State v. Acliese, this court ruled the introduction of other acts of sexual abuse involving the same victim in order to show the defen

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