State v. Bellamy, 149 Conn. App. 665

In 2008, three victims, Duncan, Davis, and Burruss, lived with Duncan's girlfriend at 124 County Street, New Haven; the defendant was known to them and attended Gotham City that night.
After an earlier nightclub altercation between Burruss and the defendant, the victims returned home in a car with loud music, and, parked in front of the house, Duncan was behind the others when shots were fired from a hooded shooter.
Burruss and Davis died from multiple gunshot wounds; Duncan was wounded but survived and later identified the shooter.
Cartridge casings recovered at the scene indicated a single weapon, likely a Glock; the gun was never recovered and no fingerprints or DNA linked the defendant.
The defendant was convicted after a jury trial of two counts of murder, assault in the first degree, criminal possession of a pistol, and carrying a pistol without a permit, receiving a total sentence of 100 years.
On appeal, the defendant challenged (1) jury instructions on identification, (2) the state’s in limine barring prostitution-related evidence about the eyewitness, and (3) testimony from the mother of a victim about a prior identification by the surviving victim.

Issue	Plaintiff's Argument	Defendant's Argument	Held
Identification instructions impermissibly prejudiced defendant	Bellamy argues instructions overstated eyewitness certainty	Defense claims instructions lacked factors favoring defendant and overemphasized certainty	Waived under Kitchens; no reversible error
Evidentiary ruling barring prostitution evidence was error	Evidence would bias credibility and was probative of bias	Evidence irrelevant to credibility and overly prejudicial	No abuse of discretion; ruling upheld
Testimony from mother about identification was unduly prejudicial	Impeachment via prior inconsistent statement probative and properly limited	Prejudicial emphasis on identification and collateral details	Court acted within discretion; ruling affirmed

State v. Golding, 213 Conn. 233 (1989) (unpreserved constitutional claims reviewed for potential error)
State v. Kitchens, 299 Conn. 447 (2011) (waiver where counsel reviewed and accepted instructions)
State v. Beebe, 131 Conn. App. 485 (2011) (waiver when draft charge reviewed and accepted)
State v. Charles, 134 Conn. App. 242 (2012) (waiver under Kitchens when defense agreed to charge)
State v. Douglas F., 145 Conn. App. 238 (2013) (balancing of probative value and prejudice in prior inconsistent statement)
State v. Morquecho, 138 Conn. App. 841 (2012) (limits on admissibility of prior inconsistent statements)
State v. Carter, 189 Conn. 631 (1983) (probative value vs. prejudice in impeachment)
State v. Devalda, 306 Conn. 494 (2012) (discussion of waiver in instructional claims)
State v. Brown, 299 Conn. 640 (2011) (impeachment evidence; balancing test)
State v. Holloway, 117 Conn. App. 798 (2009) (limits on appellate review of evidentiary rulings)