United States v. Swan

45 M.J. 672, 1996 CCA LEXIS 405, 1996 WL 776538
CourtNavy-Marine Corps Court of Criminal Appeals
DecidedDecember 31, 1996
DocketNMCM 95 00166
StatusPublished
Cited by4 cases

This text of 45 M.J. 672 (United States v. Swan) 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. Swan, 45 M.J. 672, 1996 CCA LEXIS 405, 1996 WL 776538 (N.M. 1996).

Opinion

CLARK, Senior Judge:

At his general court-martial, a panel of members convicted the appellant, contrary to his pleas, of violations of Articles 81, 112a and 134,10 U.S.C. § 881, 912a and 934 (1994) of the Uniform Code of Military Justice [hereinafter UCMJ].1 *The convening authority approved the adjudged sentence of confinement for 5 years, forfeiture of all pay and allowances, reduction to pay grade E-l, and a dishonorable discharge. We have concluded that the findings and the sentence are correct in law and fact and that no error materially prejudicial to the substantial rights of the appellant was committed. Accordingly, we affirm.

The Assignments of Error are discussed below, seriatim.

I

CHARGES I AND II AND THEIR SPECIFICATIONS SHOULD BE DISMISSED FOR INSUFFICIENT EVIDENCE.

Article 66(c), UCMJ, 10 U.S.C. § 866(c), requires this Court to determine not only the legal sufficiency of the evidence, but also its factual sufficiency. The test for legal sufficiency is “whether, after viewing the evidence in the light most favorable to the prosecution, any rational trier of fact could have found the essential elements of the crime beyond a reasonable doubt.” Jackson v. Virginia, 443 U.S. 307, 319, 99 S.Ct. 2781, 2789, 61 L.Ed.2d 560 (1979)(emphasis in original); see also United States v. Turner, 25 M.J. 324 (C.M.A.1987). Applying this test we must “draw every reasonable inference from the evidence of record in favor of the prosecution.” United States v. McGinty, 38 M.J. 131, 132 (C.M.A.1993); see also United States v. Blocker, 32 M.J. 281 (C.M.A.1991). In doing so, appellate courts acknowledge “the responsibility of the trier of fact fairly to resolve conflicts in the testimony, to weight [sic] the evidence, and to draw reasonable inferences from basic facts to ultimate facts.” United States v. Hart, 25 M.J. 143, 146 (C.M.A.), cert, denied, 488 U.S. 830,109 S.Ct. 85, 102 L.Ed.2d 61 (1988). We find that the evidence was legally sufficient to support the finding of guilty to Charges I and II and their specifications.

The test for factual sufficiency is whether, “after weighing the evidence in the record of trial and making allowances for not having [675]*675personally observed the witnesses, [we] are convinced of the accused’s guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.” Turner, 25 M.J. at 325.

Fireman Recruit Jones, Engineman Second Class Smith, and Radioman Second Class Jefferson testified about Charges I and II, and provided direct evidence of the appellant’s culpability. The military judge correctly instructed the members that they could not convict the appellant on the uncorroborated testimony of an accomplice if that testimony was self-contradictory, uncertain, or improbable. See United States v. Aguinaga, 25 M.J. 6, 7 (C.M.A.1987). He then instructed them that, as a matter of law, the testimony of these witnesses was not corroborated. Although the appellate government counsel takes issue with this holding, we will consider it the law of this case for purposes of determining the factual sufficiency of the evidence. Based upon our de novo review of the testimony of these witnesses, we do not find their testimony to be self-contradictory, uncertain, or improbable.

We are convinced beyond a reasonable doubt of the appellant’s guilt, legally and factually.

II

THE MILITARY JUDGE ABUSED HIS DISCRETION BY DENYING THE DEFENSE MOTION TO SEVERE [SIC] THE ADDITIONAL CHARGE ALLEGING OBSTRUCTION OF JUSTICE AND WRONGFUL COMMUNICATION OF A THREAT.

The appellant requested that the military judge sever the Additional Charge2 from Charges 13 and II,4 claiming that manifest injustice would result from the joint trial of the two sets of charges. Without presenting any evidence on the motion, the appellant claimed that evidence relevant to the Additional Charge would not be relevant to Charges I and II, but that the spillover of this evidence would be prejudicial to him. This court is unpersuaded by the appellant’s unsupported claim.

The evidence of the conspiracy and of the various drug offenses was presented through the testimony of several of the appellant’s accomplices. This evidence was not offered as proof of the offenses alleged in the Additional Charge. The principal evidence relating to the Additional Charge was testimony from Mrs. Jones concerning conversations between her and the appellant, and the recordings of the conversations during which the appellant made the statements which constituted the offenses. Although this evidence was ostensibly offered only to establish that the appellant obstructed justice and wrongfully communicated a threat, it also was offered, inferentially, as evidence of the appellant’s involvement with illicit drugs. The appellant did not offer any proof that this evidence would have been inadmissible on Charges I and II. We will not adopt his unsupported conclusion as to its inadmissibility.

Since the appellant presented no evidence to support essential findings, the military judge summarily denied the motion. This was not an abuse of his discretion. See Rule for Courts-Martial 905(e), Manual for Courts-Martial, United States (1995 ed.)[hereinafter R.C.M](regarding the burden of proof on issues of fact).

Notwithstanding his expressed intention, the military judge failed to give the members a cautionary instruction concerning the matters on the cassette recording to which the appellant had objected. However, his failure to do so was not presented in the context of the motion to sever the offenses, but during an objection based on relevancy, authentication, and cumulativeness. The appellant has not shown that the military judge’s failure to, in fact, give the instruction made it any more [676]*676or less likely that denial of the motion to sever was error.

Ill

THE MILITARY JUDGE ERRED TO THE SUBSTANTIAL PREJUDICE OF APPELLANT BY ADMITTING HEARSAY STATEMENTS OF FA VETTER AND EN3 JONES INTO EVIDENCE IN VIOLATION OF MIL. R. EVID. 801(D)(2)(E).

The appellant challenges three statements which were admitted into evidence at his court-martial. The statements which he has labelled (2) and (3) were not objected to at trial. The appellant makes the novel claim that his objection to statement (1) was a continuing one as to statements (2) and (3). This court finds no basis for adopting this proposition, so we reject it. The appellant claims, alternatively, that admission of statements (2) and (3) was plain error. The appellant presents no evidence or factual assertions to support this conclusion. We are not convinced that the admission of statement (2) and (3) was plain error. Therefore, if the military judge erred in admitting statements (2) and (3), the error was waived by the appellant’s failure to object. Mil. R. Evid. 103(a), Manual for Courts-Martial, United States (1995 ed.).

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Bluebook (online)
45 M.J. 672, 1996 CCA LEXIS 405, 1996 WL 776538, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/united-states-v-swan-nmcca-1996.