State v. Fournier, 203 A.3d 801

Background

In August 1980 a 16-year-old girl was found dead with blunt head trauma and neck injuries; an electric insulator and rock were recovered near the body but heavy rain prevented biological evidence linking anyone to the crime.
Philip Fournier (then 19) was seen near the high school/little-league field the evening of the murder, later gave multiple statements describing the body and the scene, and in 1981 told a pastor and family members that he had killed the victim with an insulator.
Fournier was not arrested in 1981; decades later he was indicted in 2016 and tried in a jury-waived 11-day trial, after which the court found him guilty and sentenced him to 45 years.
At trial the court excluded or admitted de bene various alternative-suspect evidence, limited a detective’s nonexpert opinion testimony, and ruled that Fournier had waived clergy–penitent privilege by repeating substantial parts of his confession to others.
Fournier appealed, challenging (1) the court’s method of considering alternative-suspect evidence, (2) exclusion of the detective’s opinion testimony, (3) the waiver of religious privilege, and (4) certain factual findings about his whereabouts; the Law Court affirmed.

Issues

Issue	Plaintiff's Argument (Fournier)	Defendant's Argument (State)	Held
Court’s method for considering alternative-suspect evidence	Court should have considered all alternative-suspect evidence collectively and clarified which items it relied on	Court properly excluded inadmissible items, admitted some de bene, and assessed probative value under controlling two-part test	No abuse of discretion; court may exclude speculative evidence and consider items de bene as they develop; Fournier failed to seek additional findings
Exclusion of detective’s nonexpert opinion about why Fournier wasn’t arrested in 1981	Detective should be allowed to opine on sufficiency of evidence and explain non-arrest	Nonexpert opinion on ultimate sufficiency is inadmissible under M.R. Evid. 701; detective may testify to perceived missing or inaccurate investigative facts	No abuse of discretion; court properly limited testimony under Rule 701
Waiver of religious (clergy–penitent) privilege	Statements to pastor were privileged and should be excluded	Fournier voluntarily disclosed significant parts of the clergy communications to family and police, waiving the privilege	No clear-error; privilege waived because Fournier repeated substantial content (that he had killed the victim) to others
Challenged factual findings re: Fournier’s whereabouts 8:00–8:45 p.m.	Court’s factual findings on timeline were erroneous	Credible record evidence supports the court’s findings; trial court resolves credibility	Affirmed; appellate court defers to trial court’s factfinding

Key Cases Cited

State v. Jeskey, 146 A.3d 127 (Me. 2016) (standard for viewing evidence in favor of the State and reliance on trial-court findings)
State v. Fox, 157 A.3d 778 (Me. 2017) (inference of unchallenged factual findings when defendant does not request specific findings)
State v. Mitchell, 4 A.3d 478 (Me. 2010) (abuse-of-discretion review for excluding alternative-suspect evidence)
State v. Jaime, 111 A.3d 1050 (Me. 2015) (two-part admissibility test for alternative-suspect evidence requiring admissibility and a reasonable connection)
State v. Dechaine, 572 A.2d 130 (Me. 1990) (prohibiting speculation; alternative-suspect evidence must reasonably connect person to crime)
State v. Dube, 136 A.3d 93 (Me. 2016) (review of trial court discretion on nonexpert opinion testimony)
State v. Robinson, 118 A.3d 242 (Me. 2015) (trial court discretion under M.R. Evid. 701)
State v. Lipham, 910 A.2d 388 (Me. 2006) (waiver of clergy privilege by voluntary disclosure of significant parts)
State v. Cruthirds, 96 A.3d 80 (Me. 2014) (Maine requires only a reasonable connection, not a ‘clear link,’ for alternative-suspect evidence)
State v. Black, 763 A.2d 109 (Me. 2000) (appellate deference to trial court’s credibility determinations)