Prosecutorial Misconduct – Sufficiency of Evidence

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7^th Circuit Court of Appeals

Case Name: United States of America v. Richard J. Klemis

Case No.: 15-2057

Officials: EASTERBROOK, KANNE, and SYKES, Circuit Judges

Focus: Prosecutorial Misconduct – Sufficiency of Evidence

Richard Klemis was in the business of selling heroin in O’Fallon and Belleville, Illinois, two suburban communities in the Metro East area of greater St. Louis. His customer base included teenagers and 18- to 21-year-olds. One of his young customers overdosed on heroin in Klemis’s driveway and nearly died; timely medical intervention saved his life. Nineteen-year-old Tyler McKinney was not so lucky. A regular customer and occasional driver for Klemis, McKinney fatally overdosed on heroin supplied by Klemis. Klemis was indicted on multiple drug charges, including conspiracy to distribute heroin, distribution of heroin to persons under 21, using a minor in a drug operation, and heroin distribution resulting in serious physical injury or death. A jury convicted him on all counts, and the judge imposed a lengthy prison term. Klemis’s main claim on appeal is that the prosecutor made a number of improper and inflammatory statements during closing argument, including a vivid rhetorical flourish assigning Klemis to the innermost circle of hell depicted in Dante’s Inferno. This form of argumentation indeed crossed the line, but it was not prejudicial given the quantity and quality of the evidence against Klemis; the rest of the prosecutor’s closing argument was well within bounds. Klemis’s remaining claims include a challenge to the sufficiency of the evidence on the count relating to McKinney’s death, an argument about hearsay evidence, and a complaint about juror bias. We find no error and affirm.

Affirmed

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Attorney Derek A. Hawkins is the managing partner at Hawkins Law Offices LLC, where he heads up the firm’s startup law practice. He specializes in business formation, corporate governance, intellectual property protection, private equity and venture capital funding and mergers & acquisitions. Check out the website at www.hawkins-lawoffices.com or contact them at 262-737-8825.