In re Commitment of Stephen Lee Hale

Summary

The Texas Fourteenth Court of Appeals affirmed a judgment ordering Stephen Lee Hale’s civil commitment as a sexually violent predator. The court held that evidence of unadjudicated juvenile sexual misconduct was admissible to show the basis of an expert’s behavioral-abnormality opinion and was accompanied by proper limiting instructions. The court further held that any error would not have been reversible.

Holdings

1. The trial court did not abuse its discretion by admitting evidence of Hale's unadjudicated juvenile sexual conduct and other unadjudicated bad acts because the evidence was probative of the basis of the psychologist's opinion that Hale suffered from a behavioral abnormality, and its probative value was not substantially outweighed by unfair prejudice, confusion of the issues, or other Rule 403 concerns.
2. Even assuming the admission of the challenged evidence was erroneous, any error was not reversible because the jury received oral and written limiting instructions and Hale identified no record evidence showing that the jury disregarded them or that the judgment was improper.
3. Hale waived any challenge to bad acts to which he admitted at trial because he subsequently permitted the same or similar evidence to be introduced without objection.

Questions Presented

1. Whether the trial court abused its discretion under Texas Rule of Evidence 403 by admitting evidence of unadjudicated juvenile sexual conduct and other unadjudicated bad acts to show the basis of an expert's behavioral-abnormality opinion.
2. Whether any error in admitting the challenged evidence was reversible when the jury received oral and written limiting instructions restricting its use to the basis of the expert's opinion.

Disposition

affirmed