State v. Anderson

• Decision Date: 21 December 2009
• Docket Number: No. 26751.,26751.
• Citation: 386 S.C. 120,687 S.E.2d 35
• Court: South Carolina Supreme Court
• Parties: The STATE, Respondent, v. Richard P. ANDERSON, Petitioner.

687 S.E.2d 35

The STATE, Respondent, v. Richard P. ANDERSON, Petitioner.

No. 26751.

Supreme Court of South Carolina.

Heard October 7, 2009.

Decided December 21, 2009.

Appellate Defender LaNelle C. DuRant, of Columbia, for Petitioner.

Attorney General Henry Dargan McMaster, Chief Deputy Attorney General John W. McIntosh, Assistant Deputy Attorney General Salley W. Elliott, Assistant Attorney General Julie M. Thames, all of Columbia, and Solicitor John Gregory Hembree, of Conway, for Respondent.

Justice BEATTY.

After a jury convicted Richard P. Anderson of first-degree burglary, the trial judge sentenced him to twenty years in prison. Anderson appealed his conviction and sentence to the Court of Appeals. In his appeal, Anderson argued the trial judge erred in admitting into evidence an unauthenticated ten-print card as maintained in the "Automated Fingerprint Identification System" (AFIS). The Court of Appeals affirmed Anderson's conviction and sentence. State v. Anderson, 378 S.C. 243, 662 S.E.2d 461 (Ct.App.2008). This Court granted Anderson's petition for a writ of certiorari to review the decision of the Court of Appeals. We affirm.

FACTUAL/PROCEDURAL HISTORY

On August 15, 2003, Priscilla Ward returned home after work around 11:10 a.m. to find someone had broken into her home. The intruder had entered the home by breaking a bedroom window. Following the break-in, Ward and her husband discovered several items missing from the home, which included jewelry and firearms.

Stephen Hardee, an officer with the Horry County Police Department, responded to investigate the break-in at the Wards' home. During his investigation, Hardee lifted two fingerprints from the broken window. At trial, Hardee identified two lift cards on which he transferred the latent fingerprints from the crime scene.

In an effort to identify the intruder's fingerprints, the State offered the testimony of Sergeant Jeffrey Gause, an expert in the field of fingerprint analysis. Gause testified he analyzed the latent fingerprints found at the Wards' home by checking them through the AFIS. In describing the AFIS, Gause explained a digital camera takes a picture of the latent print which is downloaded into the computer. The computer then sends the picture through the AFIS, which searches the database for fingerprints with comparable characteristics. As a result of this process, the AFIS produces twenty to thirty possible matches. The operator then has to physically review each print to compare similarities in ridge detail and the pattern of the prints. In using this technology, Gause determined that the latent print found at the Wards' home matched a known print in the database with the identifying number SC00454508. In explaining this identification number, Gause testified that when a person is arrested, the police or jail personnel roll the person's fingerprints onto a ten-print card. These ten-print cards are then retained on file through SLED and the FBI. Gause testified the ten-print card matching the identifying number SC00454508 belonged to Anderson.

Immediately after this statement, Anderson's counsel objected to any evidence concerning Anderson's ten-print card. Counsel argued the rolled ten-print card from the database was inadmissible given it had not been properly authenticated pursuant to State v. Rich, 293 S.C. 172, 359 S.E.2d 281 (1987).¹

After considering this Court's decision in Rich, the trial judge ruled that the State, in order to authenticate the ten-print card, had to present testimony as to when and how it was taken. In response to this ruling, Anderson's counsel asserted the State was also required to establish by whom the fingerprints were taken. The trial judge disagreed with this interpretation of Rich, finding the State did not have to show which particular officer took the fingerprints. Instead, the State was only required to present testimony as to which correctional facility² took the fingerprints.

Following the judge's ruling, the State offered the testimony of Lieutenant Joseph Means, who is in charge of the crime information center at SLED and oversees the AFIS. Means explained that SLED maintains ten-print cards on every person who is arrested in South Carolina. According to Means, the AFIS stores all the digital fingerprint images of every ten-print card in South Carolina. In order to positively identify each person who has been arrested, a unique state identifying number is assigned to the person at the time of the first arrest. This identifying number remains constant regardless of the number of times the person is arrested. Means testified that the ten-print card with identification number SC00454508 belonged to Anderson and was originated from a law enforcement agency on April 7, 2004. He further stated he was the custodian of the ten-print cards, and when a ten-print card is submitted to SLED it is maintained in the condition in which it arrives. Means emphasized that every fingerprint is unique and that it could not be changed legally.

On cross-examination, Means acknowledged that it was possible for a fingerprint to be altered. He further admitted that he was not present when Anderson's fingerprints were taken for the ten-print card. However, he stated Anderson's ten-print card was sent to him and entered into the AFIS by someone in his office.

Over Anderson's objection, the trial judge admitted into evidence Anderson's ten-print card. Ultimately, the jury convicted Anderson of first-degree burglary. The trial judge sentenced him to twenty years in prison.

On appeal, Anderson challenged his conviction and sentence on the ground the trial judge erred in admitting into evidence the ten-print card as maintained in the AFIS.

The Court of Appeals affirmed, holding the State presented sufficient evidence to authenticate the ten-print card as Anderson's known fingerprints. State v. Anderson, 378 S.C. 243, 662 S.E.2d 461 (Ct.App.2008). More specifically, the Court of Appeals stated:

[W]e find the evidence presented by the State, showing when and where the fingerprints were taken and how they were submitted to SLED, and describing the process implemented by law enforcement for taking the fingerprints and maintaining an accurate record of them in AFIS, was sufficient to authenticate the fingerprints as Anderson's known prints.

Id. at 249, 662 S.E.2d at 464.

This Court granted Anderson's petition for a writ of certiorari to review the decision of the Court of Appeals.

DISCUSSION

Anderson argues the Court of Appeals erred in finding the trial judge properly admitted the master fingerprint card with Anderson's known fingerprints. He contends the fingerprint card was inadmissible given the person who actually took the fingerprints did not testify and, thus, the card was not authenticated. Because the fingerprint evidence was the only evidence connecting Anderson to the crime scene, he contends the admission of the fingerprint card constituted reversible error and could not be considered harmless error.

"The admission of evidence is within the discretion of the trial court and will not be reversed absent an abuse of discretion." State v. Pagan, 369 S.C. 201, 208, 631 S.E.2d 262, 265 (2006). "An abuse of discretion occurs when the conclusions of the trial court either lack evidentiary support or are controlled by an error of law." Id.

The analysis regarding the admissibility of the fingerprint card involves a two-prong approach. The initial question is whether the fingerprint card was testimonial in nature and, if so, fell within an exception to the hearsay rule. If a hearsay exception is applicable, then the next consideration in assessing admissibility is authentication.

Regarding the first question, Anderson never challenged the admissibility of the fingerprint card on the ground that it constituted inadmissible hearsay. Thus, we confine our analysis solely to a determination of the authenticity of the fingerprint card.³

As recognized by the Court of Appeals, the decision in the instant case is governed by an interpretation and application of State v. Rich, 293 S.C. 172, 359 S.E.2d 281 (1987).⁴

In Rich, the defendant was convicted of second-degree burglary, grand larceny, and failure to stop for a blue light stemming from a break-in at a pharmacy. At trial, the SLED agent who lifted the latent fingerprints at the crime scene testified regarding his comparison of the these fingerprints with the "inked impressions" of a set of fingerprints on file. Id. at 173, 359 S.E.2d at 281. Over the objection of Rich, the trial judge admitted the testimony.

On appeal, Rich contended the inked impressions were erroneously admitted into evidence because the State failed to lay the proper foundation. Id. This Court agreed with Rich and reversed his convictions and sentences.

Initially, this Court recognized the admission of police fingerprint records is generally considered not to violate the prohibition against hearsay, either under the public records exception⁵ or the business record exception.⁶ Id. at 173, 359 S.E.2d at 281. We, however, emphasized that the proponent of the evidence must still comply with authentication requirements. Id.

Given the State neither attempted to lay a foundation that the fingerprints on the master file card were in fact those of Rich, nor sought to introduce the master file card, this Court found the police fingerprint records should have been excluded from evidence. Id. at 173, 359 S.E.2d at 282. We explained that the testimony regarding the police fingerprint records was inadmissible "`without evidence as to when and by whom the card was made and that the prints on the card were in fact those of [the] defendant.'" Id. at 174, 359 S.E.2d at 282 (quoting State v. Foster, 284 N.C. 259, 200 S.E.2d 782, 793 (1973)).

Because the SLED agent should not have been allowed to testify about data contained in an unauthenticated document, which was crucial to the State's case, we...