Murder Conviction Reversed Due to Trial Court’s Violation of the Right to a Public Trial
At the end of the first day of testimony at Mr. White’s trial, the court excluded a spectator from the courtroom. The trial judge stated that the spectator had been sleeping, which was “distracting to the jurors” and “disrespectful.” The court instructed the spectator, who was apparently Mr. White’s friend, that he was “excluded from this courtroom for the rest of this trial” and was “not to return.” When the spectator then asked the court, “I can’t come back,” the court ordered him to immediately leave the courtroom.
Defense counsel objected to the exclusion, challenging that the spectator had disturbed the proceedings and noting that the court had failed to provide the spectator with a warning before the exclusion. The court repeatedly stated it would not reconsider its decision and would not entertain any further argument on the issue. Counsel’s motion for a mistrial was denied. The following day, the court stated that the spectator, who was not present, was no longer excluded from the courtroom.
The Appellate Division reversed the murder conviction and ordered a new trial. The Court found that the trial judge failed to sufficiently consider whether less drastic measures–such as a warning to the spectator or requesting he alter his demeanor–could have addressed the spectator’s behavior. Furthermore, the trial court’s statement the next day that the spectator was no longer excluded was insufficient to remedy the error, since the spectator was not present and had no reason to believe he could return in light of the court’s instruction that he was excluded “for the rest of this trial.” Accordingly, because the trial judge “improvidently exercised its discretion,” the right to a public trial was violated and Mr. White was entitled to a new trial.
William Kastin represented Mr. White