Criminal Procedure – Closing statements

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Criminal Procedure – Closing statements

It was not improper for the prosecutor to call the defendant a liar during closing argument.

“The final two statements relating to Iacona’s truthfulness were pleas to the jury to consider the testimony of Iacona and the history of his dealings with people, and to determine his honesty from all of that evidence. In those statements, the prosecutor emphasized to the jury that it was entitled to consider Iacona’s testimony under oath as evidence and to evaluate it, and the prosecutor argued that such testimony evidenced his guilt. Iacona has failed to point to anything in those statements that is an inaccurate statement of the law.

Iacona’s testimony was evidence in the case, and the jury properly could determine his credibility based on all of that evidence. At no point did the prosecutor inject his personal opinion as to Iacona’s credibility; instead, the prosecutor pointed out the inconsistencies between Iacona’s testimony and that of the other witnesses, and encouraged the jury to consider all of that evidence in determining his credibility and his guilt. That is neither improper nor excessive, particularly in a case such as this in which the only defense presented was Iacona’s testimony. In such a case, it is unremarkable that the prosecutor in closing arguments would address the veracity of the defendant’s testimony in light of the testimony of the other witnesses.”

Affirmed.

12-1632 U.S. v. Iacona

Appeal from the United States District Court for the Southern District of Illinois, Reagan, J., Rovner, J.

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