United States v. Phillip Brumfield
2012 U.S. App. LEXIS 15740
| 8th Cir. | 2012Background
- Brumfield was charged with possession of child pornography under 18 U.S.C. § 2252A(a)(5)(B) and (b)(2) after police found images on his computers and disks following a May 2008 search.
- A neighbor reported Brumfield exposed himself; his 14-year-old daughter corroborated an April 2008 request to have sex while videotaped.
- Law enforcement seized 45 disks, a camcorder, and four computers; evidence was processed by state and local investigators and a forensic examiner found 171 images of child pornography on two computers and many more on disks.
- In May 2009 Brumfield was indicted; a federal search yielded written documents authored by Brumfield discussing childhood sex.
- At trial Brumfield admitted some possession but claimed the images did not depict minors or that he did not download them; he denied knowledge of most images.
- The jury found Brumfield guilty and the district court admitted several pieces of evidence over defense objections; Brumfield appeals the evidentiary rulings.
Issues
| Issue | Plaintiff's Argument | Defendant's Argument | Held |
|---|---|---|---|
| Admissibility of A.B.’s testimony under Rule 404(b) | Brumfield’s knowledge/intent to possess. | Evidence is improper character proof. | Admissible for knowledge/intent; not undue prejudice. |
| Opening the door to cross-examination about misconduct and the related document | Cross-exam validly opened door. | Brumfield did not open door; prejudicial. | Court did not abuse discretion; door opened by Brumfield’s testimony. |
| Admission of Brumfield’s writings about child sex | Writes show motive to access pornography. | Not opened by cross-exam; irrelevant. | Admissible; Brumfield opened the door to this evidence. |
| Chain of custody of digital evidence | Evidence preserved by custodians; proper chain. | Gaps in custody due to death of custodian. | Not reversible error; chain of custody sufficient for admissibility; weight for jury. |
| Plain-error review on cross-examination evidence | Plain-error review not satisfied; no reversible error. |
Key Cases Cited
- Huddleston v. United States, 485 U.S. 681 (Sup. Ct. 1988) (probative value of prior acts balancing test; Rule 404(b))
- United States v. Winn, 628 F.3d 432 (8th Cir. 2010) (Rule 404(b) admissibility factors)
- United States v. Cole, 537 F.3d 923 (8th Cir. 2008) (similar in kind and timely to crime; probative for knowledge/intent)
- United States v. Yielding, 657 F.3d 688 (8th Cir. 2011) (limiting instruction of Rule 404(b) evidence; probative value outweighs prejudice)
- United States v. Durham, 868 F.2d 1010 (8th Cir. 1989) (opening the door doctrine; rebuttal of direct testimony)
- United States v. Trogdon, 575 F.3d 762 (8th Cir. 2009) (plain-error review standard for unobjected evidence)