Summary
The Minnesota Supreme Court affirmed Earl Wembley's conviction for first-degree criminal sexual conduct. The court held that Wembley waived any challenge to the procedure used to replay a videotaped victim interview for the jury during deliberations because he did not object and had affirmatively encouraged the jury's access to the tape. The court did not decide whether a defendant's presence or additional safeguards are otherwise required during such a replay.
Topics
Practice areas
Questions Presented
- Whether Wembley waived his challenge to the procedure used to replay the victim's videotaped interview during jury deliberations.
- Whether replaying the videotape without the defendant and district court present violated the defendant's right to be present at every stage of trial or otherwise constituted reversible error.
Holdings
- Wembley waived any challenge to the district court's procedure for replaying the videotape, including any claim that his presence was required, because he failed to object and affirmatively encouraged the jury to have access to the tape.
- The court did not decide whether replaying an admitted videotaped witness interview during jury deliberations is a stage of trial requiring the defendant's presence, because the issue was waived.
Key quotations
“The interests of justice do not require us to address this issue, where Wembley consented to and actively encouraged the court to allow the jury to see the tape again.” (246)
Factual background
A jury convicted Earl Wembley of first-degree criminal sexual conduct based on allegations that he sexually assaulted his twelve-year-old daughter, K.C., during a May 2004 visit. Before deliberations, the district court declined to send a videotape of K.C.'s CornerHouse interview to the jury room but stated that it would hear argument if the jury requested to review it. After the jury requested the tape, the court replayed it in open court while counsel and Wembley were present for the instructions, then allowed the tape to play while Wembley, the judge, and counsel were absent. Wembley did not object and had previously requested that the jury have access to the tape because he believed it contained an inconsistency relevant to K.C.'s credibility.
Procedural history
A jury found Wembley guilty of first-degree criminal sexual conduct, and the district court sentenced him to 144 months in prison. The court of appeals held that the replay procedure did not constitute error. The Minnesota Supreme Court granted Wembley's petition for review and affirmed on the ground that he waived the challenge by failing to object and by affirmatively requesting that the jury have access to the videotape.