State V. Richard
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In the case brought before the Supreme Court of the State of South Dakota, Elias Richard was convicted of second-degree murder for the shooting death of Vernall Marshall. Richard appealed the decision, arguing that the circuit court erred in allowing evidence of his gang affiliation and in denying his motion for mistrial due to the State’s failure to disclose a forensic report.
On Christmas Eve 2020, Richard, along with several others, confronted Marshall regarding inappropriate text messages Marshall had sent to a minor. Richard was part of a gang known as the Dark Side Family, and the confrontation ended with Marshall being shot twice in the back and left for dead. The court allowed reference to Richard’s gang affiliation to explain his involvement in the incident, which was otherwise unconnected to him.
Richard also sought a mistrial after it was revealed during trial that the State had not disclosed a forensic report. This report contradicted the defense's opening statement claim that shell casings found at the crime scene matched those found at a co-defendant’s apartment. The court, however, denied the motion, deeming the failure to disclose inadvertent and not prejudicial.
On appeal, the Supreme Court affirmed the circuit court's decisions. It concluded that the evidence of Richard’s gang affiliation was relevant to explain his motive for confronting Marshall and did not unfairly prejudice the jury. The court also found that the failure to disclose the forensic report did not materially prejudice Richard's defense, as his primary strategy was to argue that another defendant was the shooter, a theory that was not undermined by the undisclosed report. Therefore, the court held that the circuit court did not err in denying Richard's motion for mistrial.
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