Michael Alamia v. The State of Texas

Summary

The Texas Court of Appeals, Third District, affirmed Michael Alamia’s conviction for sexual assault of a child. The court held that the trial court did not abuse its discretion by giving an Allen charge after the jury expressed concern about bias and indicated difficulty reaching a verdict. The court concluded that the supplemental instruction was not coercive and overruled Alamia’s sole issue on appeal.

Holdings

1. The trial court did not abuse its discretion by overruling Alamia's objection to the supplemental Allen charge because the charge, viewed in context and under all the circumstances, was noncoercive.
2. The trial court did not give a coercive instruction by telling jurors that they could not allow their verdict to be determined by bias or prejudice and then giving the Allen charge.

Questions Presented

1. Whether the trial court abused its discretion by giving an allegedly prejudicial and coercive Allen charge over Alamia's objection.
2. Whether the trial court's statement reminding jurors of their oath and instructing them not to allow their verdict to be determined by bias or prejudice rendered the supplemental charge coercive.

Disposition

affirmed