People v. Turner, Docket No. 10872
| Decision Date | 23 November 1971 |
| Docket Number | No. 3,Docket No. 10872,3 |
| Citation | 194 N.W.2d 496,37 Mich.App. 162 |
| Parties | PEOPLE of the State of Michigan, Plaintiff-Appellee, v. Gregory TURNER, Defendant-Appellant |
| Court | Court of Appeal of Michigan — District of US |
Russell A. Kreis, Gemrich, Moser, Dombroski, Bowser & Garvey, Kalamazoo, for defendant-appellant.
Frank J. Kelley, Atty. Gen., Robert A. Derengoski, Sol. Gen., Donald A. Burge, Pros. Atty., for plaintiff-appellee.
Before R. B. BURNS, P.J., and LEVIN and T. M. BURNS, JJ.
The defendant appeals his conviction of armed robbery. M.C.L.A. § 750.529; M.S.A. § 28.797.
After the jurors retired to consider their verdict they returned and the foreman asked that the testimony of the victim and of the only other eyewitness be read back to them. The judge refused the request saying that the trial had lasted but one day--the jurors were deliberating on the following day--and he did not think the request was justified. The jurors again retired to consider their verdict.
Later they reported that they were unable to agree on a verdict and stood nine or ten for conviction. In response, the judge said that perhaps he had been too hasty in refusing the previous request and if the jurors still desired that the testimony be read it could be done, 'if that is where the dividing line is between you, that you cannot agree upon what the testimony was.'
The jurors were permitted to consider the judge's response in private and reported that they would like to have the eyewitness's testimony read. The jurors were then excused so that the judge could consider the matter with counsel. The defendant's lawyer asked that the request be denied and, if it was granted, that the testimony of all the witnesses be read. The judge ruled that the eyewitness's testimony would be read in its entirety, direct and cross, and it was so read to the jurors. None of the testimony of the other witnesses was read.
We do not think the judge conveyed to the jury that he desired a guilty verdict by first denying the jury's request and then granting it after he learned that most of the jurors had voted to convict the defendant. The communication to the judge of how the jurors had voted occurred inadvertently. The judge made it clear that this information was not pertinent:
'Juror No. 7: Your Honor, we find the conclusion is, this far, we have nine guilty--
'The Court: Don't tell me that--
'Juror No. 7: I am sorry, sir.
'Juror No. 7: We have not agreed upon a verdict.'
We have examined the authorities cited by the defendant's lawyer. They do not substantiate his contention that the defendant should be granted a new trial because the eyewitness's testimony was read back to the jurors.
The general rule, well established, is that when a jury requests that...
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People v. Howe
...to emphasize what is read. The Court declared: 'This is not now and never has been the law in Michigan'.' People v. Turner, 37 Mich.App. 162, 165, 194 N.W.2d 496, 497 (1971). Contained within this case law rule is the recognition that a jury will at times require testimony read back to it t......
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People v. Richardson
...to emphasize what is read. The Court declared: "This is not now and never has been the law in Michigan".' People v. Turner, 37 Mich.App. 162, 174, 194 N.W.2d 496 (1971)." (Emphasis added.) People v. Howe, 392 Mich. 670, 675-676, 221 N.W.2d 350, 352 (1974). Accord, People v. Smith, 65 Mich.A......
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People v. Bloom, Docket No. 23705
...to emphasize what is read. The Court declared: "This is not now and never has been the law in Michigan".' People v. Gregory Turner, 37 Mich.App. 162, 165, 194 N.W.2d 496, 497 (1971)." 392 Mich. at 675-676, 221 N.W.2d at In Howe, supra, the jury had requested that the testimony of the only t......
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People v. Henry, Docket No. 10835
...194 N.W.2d 456 ... 37 Mich.App. 160 ... PEOPLE of the State of Michigan, Plaintiff-Appellee, ... Turner HENRY, Defendant-Appellant ... Docket No. 10835 ... Court of Appeals of Michigan, Division No. 1 ... Nov. 23, 1971 ... Released for Publication ... ...