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State v. Hamilton4/12/2002
l courts have rejected the notion that the Sixth Amendment right to counsel attaches on the issuance of an arrest warrant. See Holmes and Reynolds. There were no hearings held involving appellant between the time he gave his third statement and the time he gave his fourth statement the following day. Therefore, as there had not yet been any adversarial judicial proceedings, appellant's Sixth Amendment right to counsel did not attach prior to his fourth statement.
Appellant's first assignment of error is without merit.
Appellant's fourth assignment of error is also related to the statements given to the police by appellant:
"The trial court abused its discretion by allowing the withdrawal of appellant's written statements to the police after such had already been admitted, to the prejudice of appellant."
As mentioned in our analysis for the previous assignment of error, the trial court denied appellant's motion to suppress his statements given to the police. Because of this, the state's witnesses were permitted to extensively testify before the jury to the contents of his statements. The state moved for the admission of the two written statements given by appellant on May 11, 1999 and May 12, 1999. The court admitted these statements. The following Monday, the state requested these statements be withdrawn from evidence. The court granted this request.
The admission of evidence is within the sound discretion of the trial court. State v. Kinley (1995), 72 Ohio St.3d 491, 497. That decision may not be overturned by a reviewing court absent a showing of an abuse of that discretion. Peters v. Ohio State Lottery Comm. (1992), 63 Ohio St.3d 296, 299.
Appellant objected to the withdrawal of these statements. Appellant argued then, as he does today, that the jury should have been allowed to have the statements before it, so it could see the exact language of the statements.
The state was able to present witnesses to testify regarding appellant's statements. The state was also permitted, if it met the additional evidentiary hurdles, to introduce the actual statements into evidence. These statements, when offered by the state, were admissions by a party-opponent, which are definitionally not hearsay pursuant to Evid.R. 801(D)(2).
However, when appellant attempted to have his own statements admitted, the statements to police are hearsay. Evid.R. 801(C). The statements were no longer of a "party-opponent," rather, they were statements made by the party offering them. These statements were out of court, and they were being offered to prove the truth of the matter asserted, i.e. where appellant was at certain times on the night of his grandfather's death.
Appellant did not testify at trial. To allow statements to the police to be admitted into evidence, without the person who gave the statement testifying, would, in effect, allow witnesses to testify to the police. Although they may be signed, statements given to the police are not under oath and are not subject to cross-examination. Finally, they are not made before a jury, so the jury does not have the opportunity to read the mannerisms of the witness to determine his or her credibility.
The trial court did not abuse its discretion by excluding appellant's statements. Appellant's fourth assignment of error is overruled.
Appellant's second assignment of error is:
"The trial court erred by admitting fingerprint evidence."
The police found a single latent fingerprint on the gun that was used to kill the victim. A motion in limine was filed to prohibit the fingerprint evidence, and a hearing was held on the
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