United States v. Graham

54 M.J. 605, 2000 CCA LEXIS 246, 2000 WL 1775280
CourtNavy-Marine Corps Court of Criminal Appeals
DecidedNovember 30, 2000
DocketNMCM 99 00630
StatusPublished
Cited by2 cases

This text of 54 M.J. 605 (United States v. Graham) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Navy-Marine Corps Court of Criminal Appeals primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
United States v. Graham, 54 M.J. 605, 2000 CCA LEXIS 246, 2000 WL 1775280 (N.M. 2000).

Opinion

DeCICCO, Chief Judge:

A special court-martial composed of enlisted members convicted Corporal Graham, contrary to his pleas, of attempted indecent assault and indecent exposure in violation of Articles 80 and 134, Uniform Code of Military Justice, 10 U.S.C. §§ 880 and 934. The members sentenced him to a bad-conduct discharge and reduction to pay grade E-3. The convening authority approved the sen[607]*607tence and applied the automatic reduction to pay grade E-1. Arts. 58a and 60, UCMJ, 10 U.S.C. §§ 858a and 860.

In this appeal under Article 66, UCMJ, the appellant raises five assignments of error. After carefully examining his brief, the Government’s reply, and the record of trial, we conclude that the findings and sentence are correct in law and fact and that no error materially prejudicial to the appellant’s substantial rights was committed. Arts. 59(a) and 66(c), UCMJ, 10 U.S.C. §§ 859(a) and 866(c).1

The Mil.R.Evid. 412 Issue

The appellant was charged with committing an indecent assault upon his babysitter [JF] and with indecent exposure during the same alleged incident. At trial, the defense moved, pursuant to Military Rule of Evidence 412, Manual for Courts-Martial, United States (1995 ed.) to introduce evidence of a sexual relationship between JF and her boyfriend [DA]. The appellant’s defense was that JF’s allegations were fabricated because the appellant caught JF and DA in the appellant’s home when he returned home from work. Both a state court order and JF’s parents had prohibited JF from having any contact with DA. The defense’s theory was that such evidence was appropriate to show that JF had used her allegations as a “preemptive strike” against the appellant because she was concerned that the appellant would inform her parents or the court about her contact with DA. Record at 7. The military judge denied the defense motion, stating:

while it is certainly relevant, in an attempt on the part of the defense to show a motive on the part of [JF] to fabricate, to offer evidence that the accused “caught” [DA] and [JF] in his bedroom on 3 June 1997, and that [DA] and [JF] were legally required to remain apart, that they may have had a past, or even present, sexual relationship, adds nothing to the analysis, particularly since the court order precluded any — not just sexual — contact between [DA] and [JF], and since [JF]’s parents knew of the quality of her past relationship with [DA]. In short, that [JF] and [DA] had a sexual relationship does not make it any more likely, under the circumstances, that she would fabricate complaints against the accused.

Appellate Exhibit XIII. Although he ruled that evidence of the sexual relationship would not be admitted, the military judge nonetheless permitted the defense to advance its theory at trial that JF had fabricated the allegations to cover up her relationship with DA.

Military Rule of Evidence 412 provides that evidence of other sexual behavior by the alleged victim of a sexual offense is generally inadmissible. One of the exceptions to the rule, and the one argued by the appellant, is that “evidence the exclusion of which would violate the constitutional rights of the accused” is admissible. Mil.R.Evid. 412(b)(1)(C). Whether or not certain evidence is constitutionally required is reviewed on a case-by-case basis, and a military judge’s decision on the matter is reviewed on an abuse of discretion standard. United States v. Buenaventura, 45 M.J. 72, 79 (1996). Relevance is the key factor in determining when the evidence is constitutionally required to be admitted. United States v. Carter, 47 M.J. 395, 396 (1998). The test for relevance is whether the evidence has “any [608]*608tendency to make the existence of any fact ... more probable or less probable than it would be without the evidence.” Mil.R.Evid. 401. The defense has the burden of showing why the general prohibition should be lifted to admit evidence of other sexual behavior of the victim. Carter, 47 M.J. at 396 (citing United States v. Moulton, 47 M.J. 227, 229 (1997)).

The defense argued that a sexual relationship between JF and DA would show the strength of their emotional bond. The military judge disagreed. He found that the sexual element of the relationship would not have added to JF’s motive to fabricate because the mere fact that she was even together with DA would have violated the court order and her parents’ desires. This alone would have given her a motive to fabricate the allegation.

Under the facts of this case, we conclude that the military judge did not abuse his discretion in excluding evidence of a sexual relationship. We agree with his conclusion that the existence of such a relationship would not have made it more probable that JF would have fabricated her accusations. The fact that she may have been caught in the appellant’s residence with DA was sufficient by itself to show a motive to fabricate. Thus, the defense did not carry its burden in establishing an exception to the general rule of inadmissibility. The fact that DA and JF may have had sexual relations would have added nothing to the defense theory. We therefore find no merit in this assignment of error.

Admissibility of Incriminating Statements

The appellant also contends that his pretrial statements to a Criminal Investigation Division (CID) official were not voluntary. At trial, the defense moved to suppress the appellant’s statements. The prosecution called Staff Sergeant (SSgt) Lamonzs of CID to testify. He stated that on 2 July 1997, or about a month after the incident, he interviewed the appellant at the CID office at Henderson Hall in Arlington, Virginia. He said the interview began at about 1100 and ended around 1730. He read the appellant his rights from the standard rights advisement form, and the appellant initialed them and signed the waiver of his rights. Appellate Exhibit VII. The appellant never requested to speak with an attorney or to terminate the interview at any time. SSgt Lamonzs related that he used no threats or promises of any kind and that he allowed the appellant three or four breaks over the course of the interview.

SSgt Lamonzs testified that initially the appellant related the story that he had found DA in his home with JF. But during a cigarette break, he noted that the appellant seemed bothered, and he asked the appellant what was wrong. The appellant then told him, “This is embarrassing, can we go back inside?” At that point, SSgt Lamonzs said that the appellant admitted making up the story that DA had been in his bedroom because he was worried what his wife would think. The appellant expressly admitted exposing himself to JF.

The last few hours of the interview were spent typing the final statement that the appellant signed under oath at 1732. Prosecution Exhibit 2. In this statement, the appellant said he arrived at home from work at around 1800 on 3 June 1997. JF was there with the appellant’s children and JF’s niece.

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Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
54 M.J. 605, 2000 CCA LEXIS 246, 2000 WL 1775280, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/united-states-v-graham-nmcca-2000.