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Evidence — ethnicity

By: WISCONSIN LAW JOURNAL STAFF//January 7, 2013//

Evidence — ethnicity

By: WISCONSIN LAW JOURNAL STAFF//January 7, 2013//

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United States Court of Appeals For the Seventh Circuit

Criminal

Evidence — ethnicity

It was not error to admit negative testimony about “gypsies” at a trial for wire fraud and mail fraud.

“Keskes complains that the witnesses offered ‘offensive and stereotypical’ descriptions of ‘gypsies’ related to their ethnicity. These descriptions did not deprive Keskes of a fair trial. Keskes did not object to the descriptions related to ethnicity, and the descriptions were only a small part of a five-day trial. At a pretrial conference, the government advised the court and defense counsel that some of its witnesses would use the term ‘gypsy’ during their testimony because that was how the witnesses knew the people. The prosecutors said they would strive not to use the term. But as the court recognized, ‘[Y]ou cannot stop witnesses from testifying.’ There was a discussion about the parties suggesting a different term, but the defense proposed none and did not object to use of the term ‘gypsy.’ Nor did the defense object to use of the term during the trial. Moreover, defense counsel used the term at least as often as the prosecutors did in opening statement, cross-examination, and closing argument. It is hard for Keskes to complain about the government witnesses’ and attorneys’ use of a term that his own attorney used freely.”

Affirmed.

12-1127 U.S. v. Keskes

Appeal from the United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois, Der-Yeghiayan, J., Tinder, J.

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