Ricky R. House, Jr. v. State of Indiana
2016 Ind. App. LEXIS 361
| Ind. Ct. App. | 2016Background
- Defendant Ricky R. House and his girlfriend Kendra Tooley detained and repeatedly sexually assaulted victim J.L. over a 58-day period in House’s trailer; J.L. was chloroformed, bound, blindfolded, caged, threatened with a gun, and drugged.
- J.L. testified that during captivity she and the perpetrators used marijuana and methamphetamine; she said she had prior drug use history and had injected methamphetamine during captivity because she had done so before.
- A jury convicted House on multiple counts; the trial court later vacated several counts and entered judgments on a subset, including three Level 1 rape convictions and related confinement/kidnapping and misdemeanor convictions; aggregate sentence = 93 years.
- Prior to trial the State obtained a motion in limine excluding evidence of the State’s witnesses’ prior drug or alcohol usage; House did not object to the motion in limine and did not seek to introduce prior-use evidence during direct examination of J.L.
- At the close of his case House recalled J.L. outside the jury’s presence to make an offer of proof about her prior drug history; the trial court sustained exclusion and did not admit that evidence.
- House appealed, arguing exclusion of J.L.’s prior drug-usage evidence was an abuse of discretion and prejudicial; the Court of Appeals affirmed, finding exclusion proper and, in any event, harmless.
Issues
| Issue | Plaintiff's Argument (State) | Defendant's Argument (House) | Held |
|---|---|---|---|
| Whether the trial court abused its discretion by excluding evidence of the victim’s prior drug use | Motion in limine was proper; prior drug-use evidence is irrelevant and highly prejudicial; jury already heard drug use during captivity | Prior drug-use evidence would show J.L. voluntarily used drugs, explaining why she went to and remained at the trailer and tending to voluntariness/consent | Exclusion not an abuse of discretion; even if error, harmless because jury knew of in-captivity drug use and overwhelming evidence showed nonconsent/and captivity |
Key Cases Cited
- Griffith v. State, 31 N.E.3d 965 (Ind. 2015) (standard: exclusion of evidence reviewed for abuse of discretion; harmless-error framework)
- Jenkins v. State, 729 N.E.2d 147 (Ind. 2000) (prior drug use of victim not relevant to consent and may be unfairly prejudicial)
- Williams v. State, 681 N.E.2d 195 (Ind. 1997) (trial courts’ exclusions of past drug use evidence upheld as consistent)
- Crocker v. State, 563 N.E.2d 617 (Ind. Ct. App. 1990) (prior drug use only pertinent when it impairs memory/recollection or the witness is on drugs at trial)
- Palmer v. State, 654 N.E.2d 844 (Ind. Ct. App. 1995) (limits on cross-examining witnesses about drug use)
- Miller v. State, 716 N.E.2d 367 (Ind. 1999) (motion in limine preserves issues but evidence must be offered at trial to preserve error)
- Harman v. State, 4 N.E.3d 209 (Ind. Ct. App. 2014) (traditional offer of proof procedure when objection sustained at trial)
- Stonebraker v. State, 505 N.E.2d 55 (Ind. 1987) (discussing circumstances when drug abuse is relevant to a witness’s credibility)