*1 Illinois Official Reports
Appellate Court
People v. Kimble
,
Appellate Court THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, Plaintiff-Appellee, v. DAVID D. KIMBLE, Defendant-Appellant. Caption Second District District & No.
Docket No. 2-16-0087 Filed September 25, 2017
Decision Under Appeal from the Circuit Court of McHenry County, No. 13-CF-1123; the Hon. Sharon L. Prather, Judge, presiding. Review Reversed. Judgment
Counsel on Michael J. Pelletier, Thomas A. Lilien, and Josette M. Skelnik, of State Appellate Defender’s Office, of Elgin, for appellant. Appeal
Patrick D. Kenneally, State’s Attorney, of Woodstock (Patrick Delfino, Lawrence M. Bauer, and Aline B. Dias, of State’s Attorneys Appellate Prosecutor’s Office, of counsel), for the People. JUSTICE ZENOFF delivered the judgment of the court, with opinion.
Panel
Justices McLaren and Jorgensen concurred in the judgment and opinion.
OPINION On January 22, 2014, a McHenry County grand jury indicted defendant, David D. Kimble, on four counts of aggravated criminal sexual abuse (720 ILCS 5/11-1.60(c)(1) (West 2012)) against nine-year-old S.M. The indictment charged that, on four separate occasions between August and November 2013, defendant touched S.M.’s vagina over her clothing. The jury trial consumed three days. After less than three hours’ deliberation, the jury communicated to the court through the bailiff that it was at an “impasse.” Without notifying the State and the defense, the judge directed the bailiff to instruct the jury to continue deliberating. After a total of five hours of deliberation, with significant interruptions, the jury foreman reported in open court that the jury was still at an impasse. The court denied the State’s and defendant’s request to give the Prim instruction for juries in disagreement, [1] remarking that it would be “futile” to do so, and declared a mistrial. Defendant appeals the order denying his motion to dismiss the charges on the ground that reprosecution would be barred by double jeopardy pursuant to section 3-4(a)(3) of the Criminal Code of 2012 (720 ILCS 5/3-4(a)(3) (West 2014)). We reverse. I. BACKGROUND Trial commenced on November 2, 2015. The evidence showed the following. S.M. lived in
Wonder Lake, Illinois, with her father, Jeff, her three siblings, Jeff’s girlfriend, Jen, and Jen’s two children. For a time, they lived next door to defendant. Defendant and Jeff worked and socialized together. All of the children frequented defendant’s home, and defendant babysat them. Even after Jeff and his family moved some distance away, the children continued to visit defendant. Defendant gave S.M. presents, including clothing, money, and a bicycle. On December 5, 2013, Jen asked S.M. whether defendant had ever touched her inappropriately. S.M. at first was silent but then said yes. On December 10, 2013, Detective Misty Marinier interviewed S.M. at the Children’s Advocacy Center (CAC) in Woodstock, Illinois. The interview was videotaped. During the interview, S.M. told Marinier that defendant touched her “privates” with his hand, and she pointed to the genital area on a chart depicting the female anatomy. S.M. told Marinier that her clothes were “usually” on when defendant touched her. Marinier testified that, according to S.M., the touching happened between two and five times, in defendant’s bedroom. S.M. did not tell Marinier that defendant held her down or that he pulled down her pants. According to Marinier, children sometimes disclose more after they have been formally interviewed. S.M., 11 years old at the time of trial, testified that defendant pushed her onto his bed,
removed her clothes, and rubbed her “bad spot” approximately 10 times. She did not remember
when it happened, but she recalled that it was still daylight, and it always occurred in defendant’s bedroom. S.M. testified that she did not tell Marinier that defendant removed her clothes. She testified that she was not comfortable talking to Marinier.
¶ 6 Anne Huff, the principal at S.M.’s school, testified that she interviewed Jen’s daughter,
Brooklyn, and then spoke to S.M. because Brooklyn told Huff that defendant had “snuggled” with her.
¶ 7 The parties stipulated that S.M. was interviewed by the State’s Attorney’s victim witness
coordinator, Kelly Gallagher, on October 30, 2015. Assistant State’s Attorneys Sharyl Eisenstein and John Gibbons were also present. S.M. told them that defendant had touched her over her clothes approximately 10 times. S.M. denied that defendant ever touched her under her clothes. S.M. stated that she was confused when she told the prosecutors the previous week that defendant touched her under her clothes. S.M. also stated on October 30, 2015, that defendant held her down and that her clothes were both “on” and “off.” S.M. then said in that interview that, because she was embarrassed to talk about it, she told them that her clothes were on. Brooklyn, age nine at the time of trial, testified that she knew “Dave,” but she did not see
him in the courtroom. Brooklyn testified that “Dave” knelt beside her and rubbed his hand over her upper thigh when she was on his bed. Detective Michelle Asplund testified that she interviewed defendant on December 11,
2013. During the three-hour interview, defendant repeatedly denied any wrongdoing. The State rested. The court denied defendant’s motion for a directed verdict, and defendant rested without presenting evidence. On November 5, 2015, the jury began deliberating at 10:50 a.m. The jurors asked to watch
the tape of Marinier’s CAC interview with S.M. again. The time of that request is not noted in the record. The video of the interview was replayed for the jury in the courtroom at 1:40 p.m. The jurors returned to the jury room at 2:15 p.m. At 4:25 p.m., the foreman sent a note to the judge: “Dear Judge Prather, after deliberating
for 5 hours and despite our best efforts, we are at an empasse [ sic ].” After receiving this communication, the judge convened defense counsel and the State. The record does not show whether defendant was present. The judge disclosed the note, and she also disclosed that the jury had earlier indicated to her, through her bailiff, that it was at an “impasse.” She divulged that she had instructed the bailiff to tell the jury to continue deliberating. According to the judge, that communication occurred “shortly after” the jury rewatched Marinier’s CAC interview with S.M. Now, the judge suggested that she inquire whether further deliberation would help. She noted that she was willing to ask if the jurors would like to go home, sleep on it, and return the next morning. When the State wondered whether the judge’s questions would elicit multiple responses, the judge stated: “I’ll inquire of the foreperson.” Defense counsel agreed to that procedure. The judge then acquiesced to the State’s request to follow up on the foreman’s answers with arguments outside the jury’s presence on how next to proceed. The jurors returned to the courtroom, and the judge asked the foreman how long the jury
had been at an impasse. He replied, “[p]retty much a good part of the day. Four and a half hours or five hours.” He indicated that “some numbers changed here and there, but we were stuck at a certain proportion” for the last three hours. The judge asked if it would do any good to go home and “sleep on it” and continue deliberations the next day. The foreman stated: “I asked *4 that question, and it was indicated that it would not [do any good].” The judge asked: “It would not?” The foreman replied: “No, ma’am.” The jury then returned to the jury room. ¶ 13 The State and defense counsel both asked the judge to give the instruction and to
bring the jury back for further deliberations the following morning. The judge responded: “I am fearful, folks, if I do that, you’re going to have some extremely angry jurors. *** There has been [ sic ] some very loud voices back there for a period of time. I think it would be futile to do that. Therefore, I would decline.” The prosecutor said: “Understood, Judge.” Defense counsel did not respond. The judge then excused the jurors and declared a mistrial. The State asked for another trial date. Defense counsel requested a status date.
¶ 14 On December 4, 2015, defendant filed a motion to dismiss the charges on the ground that
reprosecution was barred by double-jeopardy principles. Defendant argued that, as he and the
prosecution had both requested the court to give the instruction and to order further
deliberation, there was no “manifest necessity” to declare a mistrial. The court found that a
manifest necessity existed and denied the motion. Defendant filed a timely appeal.
II. ANALYSIS
Defendant contends that the court abused its discretion in denying his motion to bar retrial
where the trial judge’s communication with the jury caused the conditions that led to
the mistrial. The State argues that defendant consented or acquiesced to the mistrial or,
alternatively, that there was a manifest necessity to declare the mistrial because the jury was
hopelessly deadlocked. We review the denial of a motion to dismiss on double-jeopardy
grounds for an abuse of discretion.
People v. Wilson
,
protection against double jeopardy embraces a defendant’s “valued right” to have his trial
completed by a particular tribunal.
Arizona v. Washington
,
“manifest necessity” for declaring the mistrial.
Washington
,
arguing that the jury should be brought back the next day to resume deliberations.
Nevertheless, the State now maintains that defendant consented or acquiesced to the mistrial.
Relying on
People v. Camden
,
had two opportunities to object but stood mute and then later agreed to a date for retrial.
Camden
,
judge called the foreman of a deliberating jury into chambers when he discovered that the
jurors had access to police street files.
Escobar
,
denied the motion, and the defendant appealed.
Escobar
, 168 Ill. App. 3d at 36. The First
District Appellate Court affirmed, holding that the defendant was required to
contemporaneously object to the mistrial, in words that specifically invoked the right against
double jeopardy.
Escobar
,
Seventh Circuit disagreed. In
Escobar v. O’Leary
, 943 F.2d 711 (7th Cir. 1991), the court
noted that the United States Supreme Court has never required that an objection to a mistrial
contain an explicit reference to double jeopardy to preserve a defendant’s double-jeopardy
rights.
O’Leary
, 943 F.2d at 715-16. “As long as the defendant’s desire that the first jury
continue deliberating is clear, there is no additional obligation to broach the topic of retrial.”
O’Leary
,
court held that a defendant who “forcefully argued” his position that the trial should proceed
was not obligated to specifically object when the court
sua sponte
declared a mistrial.
Bagley
,
committing perjury, the judge expressed his belief off the record that a directed verdict in the
defendant’s favor would be appropriate.
Kendrick
,
¶ 29 C. Whether There Was a Manifest Necessity for the Mistrial ¶ 30 1. Judicial Indiscretion Much of the case law applying the manifest-necessity doctrine involves the proper
evaluation of alternatives to a mistrial. 5 Wayne R. LaFave
et al.
, Criminal Procedure § 25.2(d)
(3d ed. 2007); see
Street
,
judge’s
sua sponte
dismissal of the charges barred a retrial. In
Wiley
, after the arresting officer
testified for the prosecution, the State requested an overnight continuance to bring in its two
remaining witnesses.
Wiley
,
judge declared a mistrial so that government witnesses, who assisted in preparing
fraudulent tax returns, could consult with attorneys.
Jorn
,
discretion by ordering a mistrial without a “scrupulous” search for alternative means to deal with the difficulties. Stephen J. Schulhofer, Jeopardy and Mistrials , 125 U. Pa. L. Rev. 449, 465 (1977). Professor Schulhofer also observed that Jorn upheld the defendant’s double-jeopardy claim “in the absence of actual or potential harassment and in the absence of identifiable prejudice to the defendant.” Schulhofer, supra , at 466. [3] When we read Wiley in light of Jorn , we interpret Wiley to mean that a mistrial is improper where the trial judge is responsible for the difficulty and alternatives are available. We agree with defendant that Wiley is apt.
*8 In our case, the judge’s ex parte jury communication led to the precipitous declaration of a
mistrial without considering available alternatives. A criminal defendant has a constitutional
right to a public trial, and to appear and participate in person and by counsel at all proceedings
involving his or her substantial rights. U.S. Const., amend. VI; Ill. Const. 1970, art. I, § 8;
People v. Childs
,
We look at whether the content of the communication created prejudice.
Ross
, 303 Ill. App. 3d
at 975. The judge told the bailiff to instruct the jury to “continue to deliberate.” Presumably,
that is what the bailiff conveyed to the jury, though the bailiff’s precise words are not part of
the record. That direction was given when the jury first indicated that it was at an impasse,
“shortly after” it rewatched the video. The purpose of the
Prim
instruction is to guide a jury
that is unable to reach a verdict.
People v. Chapman
,
Prim
,
so that counsel can “aid and advise the defendant as to what course of action he should take,
including whether to object, concur, or attempt to influence how the court addresses the jury.”
Ross
,
“The verdict must represent the considered judgment of each juror. In order to return a verdict, it is necessary that each juror agree thereto. Your verdict must be unanimous.
It is your duty, as jurors, to consult with one another and to deliberate with a view to reaching an agreement, if you can do so without violence to individual judgment. Each of you must decide the case for yourself, but do so only after an impartial consideration of the evidence with your fellow jurors. In the course of your deliberations, do not hesitate to reexamine your own views and change your opinion if convinced it is erroneous. But do not surrender your honest conviction as to the weight or effect of evidence solely because of the opinion of your fellow jurors, or for the mere purpose of returning a verdict.
You are not partisans. You are judges—judges of the facts. Your sole interest is to
ascertain the truth from the evidence in the case.”
Prim
,
equivalent of the
Prim
instruction. We disagree. The purpose of the
Prim
instruction is to
ensure that deadlocked jurors will closely examine their competing views and attempt to reach
a unanimous verdict.
People v. Bibbs
, 101 Ill. App. 3d 892, 900 (1981). The instruction to
“continue to deliberate” did not contain the five points inherent in the
Prim
instruction: (1) to
return a verdict, each juror must agree thereto, (2) jurors have a duty to consult with one
another and to deliberate with a view to reaching agreement, (3) each juror must decide the
case for himself or herself but only after an impartial consideration of the evidence with fellow
jurors, (4) jurors should not hesitate to reexamine their own views and change their opinions if
convinced they are erroneous, and (5) no juror should surrender his or her honest conviction.
,
¶ 42 2. Jury Deadlock
¶ 43 Even though we have determined that retrial is barred due to judicial indiscretion, we
nevertheless will consider defendant’s argument that there was no manifest necessity to
declare the mistrial due to jury deadlock. In
Andrews
, this court identified six factors to
consider where the issue presented is the manifest necessity for declaring a mistrial based on
jury deadlock: (1) the jury’s collective opinion that it cannot agree, (2) the length of the
deliberations, (3) the length of the trial, (4) the complexity of the issues, (5) any proper
communications that the judge has had with the jury, and (6) the effects of possible exhaustion
and the impact that coercion of further deliberations might have on the verdict.
Andrews
, 364
Ill. App. 3d at 266-67. Reviewing courts must examine the facts of each case to determine the
propriety of a double-jeopardy claim.
Street
,
case was a manifest necessity.
a. The Jury’s Collective Opinion That It Is Deadlocked
After receiving the jury’s 4:25 p.m. note, the court brought the entire jury into the
courtroom but spoke only to the foreman.
[4]
The foreman related that the jury had been at an
impasse “pretty much a good part of the day. Four or five hours.” He also indicated that “some
numbers changed here and there,
but we were stuck at a certain proportion for the last three
hours
.” (Emphasis added.) The foreman opined that it would not do any good to continue
deliberations the next day. The salient point is that the actual deadlock was only three hours
old.
As the court explained in
Mills v. Tinsley
,
cannot determine the length of its deliberations.” The court also noted that “[i]t is not unusual
for a jury to advise the court that it is deadlocked and to thereafter agree and return a verdict.”
Mills
,
jurors” if deliberations were allowed to continue. Experience shows that tempers flare in the emotional atmosphere of a criminal trial. In other words, angry voices do not necessarily signal a hopelessly deadlocked jury.
b. The Length of Deliberations, Length of Trial, and Complexity of Issues
Generally, the longer the trial and the more complex the issues, the longer the jury should
be given to deliberate.
Andrews
,
The issue that the jury had to resolve was S.M.’s credibility. That issue was anything but straightforward. Jen was the first person to ask S.M. if defendant had touched her inappropriately. S.M. at first did not answer, but then she indicated that defendant had touched her. The indictment charged that the touching occurred over S.M.’s clothing because that was what she told investigators. She also told investigators that it happened two to five times. Then, S.M. testified that it happened 10 times and that defendant removed her clothes. The parties stipulated that S.M. had variously told members of the State’s Attorney’s office that she was dressed or undressed. Consequently, we cannot agree with the State that determining S.M.’s credibility was a simple job.
c. Communications Between the Judge and the Jury The judge and the jury communicated three times. The first communication was on the jury’s request to rewatch the video of the CAC interview. As discussed above, the second, communication caused the court to end the trial prematurely when it received the third communication (the note) because the court had foreclosed all other options. It is significant that neither side moved for a mistrial.
d. Effect of Exhaustion on the Jury Because the jury did not deliberate for even a full workday, this factor weighs against a manifest necessity to declare a mistrial.
We are mindful that, while trial judges have “considerable leeway” in determining whether
the jury is hopelessly deadlocked, the reviewing court has an obligation to satisfy itself that the
trial judge exercised sound discretion.
Renico v. Lett
,
III. CONCLUSION For the foregoing reasons, the judgment of the circuit court of McHenry County is reversed and defendant’s motion to bar reprosecution is hereby granted.
Reversed.
Notes
[1] See
People v. Prim
,
[2] The “manifest necessity” doctrine was first articulated in United States v. Perez , 22 U.S. (9 Wheat.) 579 (1824).
[3] According to Professor Schulhofer, the decision in
Illinois v. Somerville
,
[4] In
Andrews
, this court held that a mistrial due to jury deadlock may be declared even where the
trial judge relies on the foreperson’s statement without polling the other jurors.
Andrews
, 364 Ill. App.
3d at 268. However, we expressed that polling each juror with respect to his or her opinion on the
issue of deadlock is the preferred procedure.
Andrews
,
