State v. Torres
174 A.3d 202
| Conn. App. Ct. | 2017Background
- Defendant Julio Torres was convicted by a jury of murder and sentenced to 50 years.
- At trial the court instructed the jury on reasonable doubt using language that described reasonable doubt as “not a surmise, a guess or mere conjecture,” “such a doubt as in serious affairs… you would pay attention to,” and “a real doubt, an honest doubt, a doubt that has… its foundation in the evidence or lack of evidence.”
- Torres appealed, arguing those portions of the reasonable-doubt instruction (and their cumulative effect) constituted plain error.
- This court initially found the claim waived under State v. Kitchens; the Connecticut Supreme Court granted certification and remanded for plain-error review in light of State v. McClain (holding a Kitchens waiver does not preclude plain-error review).
- On remand this court reviewed whether the instruction (individually or cumulatively) was plain error and whether failure to correct would result in manifest injustice.
Issues
| Issue | Plaintiff's Argument (State) | Defendant's Argument (Torres) | Held |
|---|---|---|---|
| Whether the trial court’s reasonable-doubt instruction constituted plain error | Instruction was proper and not plainly erroneous; no reversal required | Phrases used misstated or diluted reasonable doubt and therefore were plain error warranting reversal | No plain error; instruction upheld under binding precedent |
| Whether cumulative effect of challenged phrases constituted plain error | Individual phrases are proper; cumulative-error aggregation not available under Connecticut precedent | Even if each phrase is acceptable, together they produce constitutional error requiring reversal | No cumulative plain error — Connecticut rejects aggregating nonerroneous instructional components to create error |
Key Cases Cited
- State v. McClain, 324 Conn. 802 (Conn. 2017) (plain-error doctrine requires clear and harmful error; Kitchens waiver does not preclude plain-error review)
- State v. Coward, 292 Conn. 296 (Conn. 2009) (upholding similar reasonable-doubt language)
- State v. Davis, 283 Conn. 280 (Conn. 2007) (rejecting challenge to “not a surmise, a guess or a conjecture” and related language)
- State v. Ross, 269 Conn. 213 (Conn. 2004) (approving instruction that reasonable doubt would cause reasonable persons to hesitate in important matters)
- State v. Ferguson, 260 Conn. 339 (Conn. 2002) (upholding “real doubt, an honest doubt” phrasing)
- State v. Lemoine, 256 Conn. 193 (Conn. 2001) (approving language that reasonable doubt is more than a guess and has foundation in evidence or lack thereof)
- State v. Griffin, 253 Conn. 195 (Conn. 2000) (rejecting challenges to similar reasonable-doubt formulations)
- State v. Tillman, 220 Conn. 487 (Conn. 1991) (rejecting cumulative-error approach for jury-instruction claims)
- State v. Kitchens, 299 Conn. 447 (Conn. 2011) (procedural waiver rule addressed; later distinguished by McClain for plain-error review)
- Gaines v. Kelly, 202 F.3d 598 (2d Cir. 2000) (Second Circuit recognizes possible aggregation of nonerroneous components; cited by defendant but Connecticut Supreme Court rejects adopting this approach)