State v. Souksamrane

Summary

The New Hampshire Supreme Court affirmed Thavone Souksamrane’s convictions for criminal threatening and felon in possession of a dangerous weapon. The court held that the prosecutor’s repeated questions asking whether other witnesses had lied were improper, but concluded that the errors were harmless or did not constitute plain error because the evidence of guilt was overwhelming.

Holdings

1. Cross-examination that requires a defendant to state whether police officers or other witnesses lied is improper because it invades the jury's credibility-determination function, asks the witness to testify beyond personal knowledge, distorts the State's burden of proof, creates a no-win situation, and is argumentative.
2. The preserved error was harmless beyond a reasonable doubt and did not require reversal because the evidence of guilt was overwhelming and the improper questioning was cumulative.
3. The unpreserved questioning did not constitute reversible plain error because, although the first two plain-error elements were satisfied, the error did not affect the defendant's substantial rights.

Questions Presented

1. Whether the prosecutor improperly asked the defendant to characterize other witnesses' testimony as lies.
2. Whether the preserved error concerning the prosecutor's question about the defendant's wife's testimony required reversal.
3. Whether the unpreserved questioning concerning police officers' testimony constituted plain error requiring reversal.

Disposition

affirmed