People of Michigan v. William Clyde Harris
327873
| Mich. Ct. App. | Nov 22, 2016Background
- Defendant William Clyde Harris was convicted by a jury of one count of second-degree home invasion for a May 24, 2012 break‑in at John Lata’s residence; four other counts deadlocked and were dismissed without prejudice.
- Co‑defendant/witness Tosha Barbee (testifying pursuant to a plea agreement) said she and Harris used her red Dodge Durango to drive to the Lata home, wore gloves, stole a gun safe, marijuana, electronics, and jewelry, and later sold some items in Flint for drugs/cash. Two stolen guns were recovered in the Flint area.
- Harris argued on appeal multiple trial errors: prosecutorial misconduct (vouching/denigrating, and allegedly eliciting false testimony), ineffective assistance of counsel for failing to impeach witnesses, improper exclusion/ admission rulings (prior conviction and recorded jail calls), denial of the right to present witnesses (investigator intimidated), and insufficiency of the evidence.
- Many claims were unpreserved or cursorily briefed; the Court limited review to the record and plain‑error or appellate‑record standards where applicable.
- The Court affirmed Harris’s conviction, finding the evidence sufficient and rejecting all claimed trial errors and ineffective‑assistance arguments for the reasons stated.
Issues
| Issue | Plaintiff's Argument | Defendant's Argument | Held |
|---|---|---|---|
| Prosecutorial misconduct / vouching and denigrating remarks | Prosecution argues no reversible misconduct occurred and no plain error appears from the cited transcript pages. | Harris contends prosecutor vouched for witnesses, denigrated him in closing, and knowingly presented false testimony. | Rejected: defendant’s briefing is cursory/abandoned; no plain error shown; prosecutor did not knowingly allow perjury. |
| Ineffective assistance for failing to impeach witnesses | Prosecution notes claim is unpreserved and record contains no supporting impeachment material admitted on appeal. | Harris argues counsel failed to use investigator interviews/evidence to impeach witnesses about Barbee’s truthfulness. | Rejected: claim unpreserved; appellant attempted to expand record with an extraneous e‑mail not in the record, so factual predicate absent. |
| Sufficiency of evidence for second‑degree home invasion | Prosecution: evidence (Barbee’s testimony, Durango sightings, recovered guns in Flint, sale of stolen goods) supports conviction when viewed in the light most favorable to the prosecution. | Harris: Barbee was an unreliable, coached liar; no physical evidence directly ties him to the Lata home. | Affirmed: circumstantial evidence and testimony sufficient; credibility for jury to decide. |
| Evidentiary rulings and witness availability (prior conviction, jail calls, PI testimony) | Prosecution: admissions were either conceded by defense, properly handled, or waived; investigator testified after receiving immunity. | Harris claims errors in admitting prior conviction, recorded jail calls, and that PI was threatened into invoking Fifth, depriving defense of witnesses. | Rejected: many issues waived or abandoned; PI did not invoke the Fifth and testified; prior‑conviction admissibility conceded by defense; no unfair prejudice shown. |
Key Cases Cited
- People v Carines, 460 Mich. 750 (plain‑error review standard)
- People v Unger, 278 Mich. App. 210 (review of credibility and weight; conflicts resolved for prosecution)
- People v Hampton, 407 Mich. 354 (sufficiency / due process requires sufficient evidence)
- People v McGhee, 268 Mich. App. 600 (standard for sufficiency review)
- People v Aceval, 282 Mich. App. 379 (prosecutor obligation to correct known perjured testimony)
- People v Hoag, 460 Mich. 1 (failure to establish factual predicate defeats claim)
- People v Powell, 235 Mich. App. 557 (may not expand record on appeal)
- People v Ackah‑Essien, 311 Mich. App. 13 (hung jury/mistrial double jeopardy principles)