United States v. Bobby Ray Golden, 671 F.2d 369, 10th Cir. (1982)

671 F.
2d 369
9 Fed. R. Evid. Serv. 1515
UNITED STATES of America, Plaintiff-Appellee,

v.
Bobby Ray GOLDEN, Defendant-Appellant.
No. 81-1001.
United States Court of Appeals,

Tenth Circuit.
Submitted Sept. 31, 1981.
Decided Feb. 8, 1982.
Stanley D. Monroe, Larry A. Gullekson of Frasier, Frasier & Gullekson,

Tulsa, Okl., for defendant-appellant.
James P. Turner, Acting Asst. Atty. Gen., Jessica Dunsay Silver and
James W. Clute, Attys., Dept. of Justice, Washington, D. C., and Hubert
H. Bryant, U. S. Atty., N. D. Okl., Tulsa, Okl., for plaintiff-appellee.
Before McWILLIAMS, BREITENSTEIN and McKAY, Circuit Judges.
McKAY, Circuit Judge.
Bobby Ray Golden, a police officer in Nowata, Oklahoma, was convicted by a

jury of violating 18 U.S.C. 242,1 which makes criminal the willful
deprivation of constitutional rights by any person acting under color of law. He
was sentenced to serve one year in prison, with all but sixty days suspended,
and five years probation.
On appeal, Mr. Golden challenges his conviction on the grounds that (1) there
was insufficient evidence to sustain a finding of guilt beyond a reasonable
doubt; (2) the trial court erroneously admitted hearsay testimony; and (3) the
trial court erroneously admitted physical evidence and failed to properly
admonish the jury to disregard an allegedly improper demonstration by the
prosecutor.
I. Sufficiency of the Evidence

3
Appellant alleges that the evidence was insufficient to support a finding of guilt
beyond a reasonable doubt on an essential element of a violation of 18 U.S.C.
242. Appellant was charged in the indictment with willfully striking, beating,
and assaulting the victim, and thereby violating his constitutional right not to be
deprived of liberty without due process of law. Record, vol. 1, at 6. The Due
Process Clause grants a person the "right not to be treated with unreasonable,
unnecessary or unprovoked force by those charged by the state with the duty of
keeping accused and convicted offenders in custody." United States v. Stokes,
506 F.2d 771, 776 (5th Cir. 1975); see also United States v. Villarin Gerena,
553 F.2d 723 (1st Cir. 1977). On appeal, Mr. Golden claims that the evidence
did not establish that he used excessive and unnecessary force in violation of
the victim's constitutional due process rights.
In an appeal challenging the sufficiency of evidence to support a jury verdict of

guilty, the Supreme Court has stated that the test is "whether, after viewing the
evidence in the light most favorable to the prosecution, any rational trier of fact
could have found the essential elements of the crime beyond a reasonable
doubt." Jackson v. Virginia, 443 U.S. 307, 319, 99 S.Ct. 2781, 2789, 61
L.Ed.2d 560 (1979). See United States v. Morris, 612 F.2d 483, 492 (10th Cir.
1979). Viewing the evidence in this manner, the facts show that the victim was
stopped by Officer Golden for allegedly running a red light at 2:00 a.m. In the
ensuing discussion, Officer Golden hit the victim with his flashlight, causing
severe injuries that required eight stitches. There was controverted evidence
that the victim resisted arrest and that Officer Golden struck the victim only to
subdue him. However, the jury apparently did not believe this evidence. On
appeal, Officer Golden has not pointed out a lack of evidence to show that he
willfully used excessive force. Instead, appellant has merely pointed out the
substantial conflicts in the evidence presented at trial. However, it is not this
court's function to weigh conflicting evidence nor to consider the credibility of
witnesses. United States v. Petersen, 611 F.2d 1313, 1317 (10th Cir. 1979),
cert. denied, 447 U.S. 905, 100 S.Ct. 2985, 64 L.Ed.2d 854 (1980); United
States v. Gibbons, 607 F.2d 1320 (10th Cir. 1979). It is the jury's responsibility
"to resolve conflicts in the testimony, to weigh the evidence, and to draw
reasonable inferences from basic facts to ultimate facts." Jackson v. Virginia,
443 U.S. 307, 319, 99 S.Ct. 2781, 2789, 61 L.Ed.2d 560 (1979). From our
review of the record, we conclude that there was substantial evidence to
support the jury's finding that Mr. Golden's use of force was unjustified and
excessive and therefore constituted a willful deprivation of the victim's
constitutional rights.
II. Hearsay Evidence

5
Mr. Golden alleges that the trial court erroneously admitted into evidence
testimony concerning the victim's statements to his grandmother pursuant to the
excited utterance exception to the hearsay rule. Fed.R.Evid. 803(2). He also
argues that the grandmother's testimony was cumulative, and therefore
admitted in violation of Rule 403 of the Federal Rules of Evidence.
Rulings on evidentiary matters are committed to the discretion of the trial judge
and will not be reversed on appeal unless it is shown that the ruling was a clear
abuse of discretion or that it affected the substantial rights of the defendant.
United States v. Carranco, 551 F.2d 1197, 1199-1200 (10th Cir. 1977);
Fed.R.Crim.P. 52(a).
An excited utterance is an exception to the general rule that hearsay testimony

is not admissible into evidence. It is defined as "(a) statement relating to a
startling event or condition made while the declarant was under the stress of
excitement caused by the event or condition." Fed.R.Evid. 803(2). The
evidence shows that after the altercation, the victim drove twelve miles to his
grandmother's house at speeds of approximately 120 miles per hour. Upon his
arrival he related what had happened to him and said he feared for his life.
Appellant argues that the trial court erred in admitting this testimony because
the conversation was hearsay and occurred too remote in time from the assault
to fall within the excited utterance exception. However, the victim's statement
to his grandmother occurred within fifteen minutes of the startling event,
immediately after a high-speed flight from the scene of the assault. The facts
presented indicate that there was no reason to suspect that the victim was no
longer "under the stress of excitement caused by the event" when he spoke with
his grandmother. Therefore, the court did not err in admitting testimony
concerning this conversation under the excited utterance exception to the
hearsay rule.
Section 403 of the Federal Rules of Evidence provides that relevant evidence
may be excluded because of "considerations of undue delay, waste of time, or
needless presentation of cumulative evidence." Although the grandmother's
testimony paralleled that of the victim, we do not believe that the trial judge
abused his discretion in refusing to exclude it under Rule 403.
III. Physical Evidence and Demonstration

9
Mr. Golden argues that the trial court erred in admitting into evidence the same
type of flashlight used in the assault. Trial judges have discretion to decide
whether an adequate foundation has been laid for the admission of evidence.
United States v. Carranco, 551 F.2d 1197, 1199-1200 (10th Cir. 1977). During
trial, a defense witness who was riding with Officer Golden and was present
during the assault described the flashlight and identified the government's
exhibit as a flashlight similar to that used by Mr. Golden. Furthermore, an FBI
agent testified that he had interviewed Officer Golden and that Mr. Golden told
him he had a seven-cell kel-light flashlight with him when he approached the
victim's truck. The agent further testified that the government exhibit was a
seven-cell kel-light flashlight. Based on this evidence, the trial court in this case
did not err in determining that a proper foundation was established for
admitting the flashlight into evidence.
10
Appellant also contends that the trial court erred in failing to admonish the
jurors to disregard the prosecutor's use of the flashlight in questioning a witness
about the degree of force used in the assault. After a defense witness testified
that Mr. Golden "thumped" the victim with a flashlight on the back of the head,
the prosecutor struck the back of a chair with the flashlight in an effort to
determine what the witness meant when he used the word "thump." The court
sustained an objection to this action but did not admonish the jury to disregard
it. Appellant argues that this affected his substantial rights and therefore
required that his conviction be reversed. Trial judges also have discretion to
determine how to correct improper conduct during the course of trial. Rogers v.
United States, 411 F.2d 228, 230 (10th Cir. 1969). We are not persuaded that
the prosecutor's conduct affected the defendant's substantial rights in this case.
Therefore, the court's failure to admonish the jury does not constitute reversible
error.
11
In conclusion, we find that none of appellant's allegations of error has merit,

and accordingly, the judgment of the district court is AFFIRMED.
18 U.S.C. 242 reads:

Whoever, under color of any law, statute, ordinance, regulation, or custom,
willfully subjects any inhabitant of any State, Territory, or District to the
deprivation of any rights, privileges, or immunities secured or protected by the
Constitution or laws of the United States, or to different punishments, pains, or
penalties, on account of such inhabitant being an alien, or by reason of his
color, or race, than are prescribed for the punishment of citizens, shall be fined
not more than $1,000 or imprisoned not more than one year, or both; and if
death results shall be subject to imprisonment for any term of years or for life.

United States v. Bobby Ray Golden, 671 F.2d 369, 10th Cir. (1982)

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671 F.

UNITED STATES of America, Plaintiff-Appellee,

United States Court of Appeals,

Stanley D. Monroe, Larry A. Gullekson of Frasier, Frasier & Gullekson,

Bobby Ray Golden, a police officer in Nowata, Oklahoma, was convicted by a

I. Sufficiency of the Evidence

In an appeal challenging the sufficiency of evidence to support a jury verdict of

II. Hearsay Evidence

An excited utterance is an exception to the general rule that hearsay testimony

III. Physical Evidence and Demonstration

In conclusion, we find that none of appellant's allegations of error has merit,

18 U.S.C. 242 reads:

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