State v. Jonathan Phillips ( 2021 )

February 16, 2021
Supreme Court
No. 2019-240-C.A.
(P1/16-736A)
No. 2020-38-C.A.
(P2/14-913A)
State :
v. :
Jonathan Phillips. :
NOTICE: This opinion is subject to formal revision
before publication in the Rhode Island Reporter. Readers
are requested to notify the Opinion Analyst, Supreme
Court of Rhode Island, 250 Benefit Street, Providence,
Rhode Island 02903, at Telephone (401) 222-3258 or
Email: opinionanalyst@courts.ri.gov, of any
typographical or other formal errors in order that
corrections may be made before the opinion is published.
Supreme Court
No. 2019-240-C.A.
(P1/16-736A)
No. 2020-38-C.A.
(P2/14-913A)
State :
v. :
Jonathan Phillips. :
Present: Suttell, C.J., Goldberg, Flaherty, and Robinson, JJ.
OPINION
Justice Goldberg, for the Court. This case came before the Supreme
Court on December 3, 2020, on appeal by the defendant, Jonathan Phillips, from a
judgment of conviction entered in the Superior Court following a jury verdict of
guilty on six counts of first-degree child molestation sexual assault, in violation of
G.L. 1956 §§ 11-37-8.1 and 11-37-8.2; three counts of second-degree child
molestation sexual assault, in violation of §§ 11-37-8.3 and 11-37-8.4; and one
count of second-degree child abuse, in violation of G.L. 1956 § 11-9-5.3(b)(2).
-1-
These charges arose from a series of sexual assaults from 2011 through 2013 upon
the defendant’s then-girlfriend’s daughter, Hillary, and Hillary’s cousin, Katie.1
On appeal, defendant challenges the trial justice’s denial of his motion for a
new trial, and he also argues that evidence of prior bad acts was admitted without a
proper limiting instruction to the jury. For the reasons set forth in this opinion, we
affirm the judgment of conviction.
Facts and Travel
By way of background, defendant met Palma Sardinha2 in 2009, and, shortly
thereafter, the two became romantically involved. Sardinha had two children; a
daughter, Hillary, one of the complainants in this case, and a son, Anthony.
Sardinha and her children lived in a third-floor apartment on Woodbine Street in
Cranston, Rhode Island. Sardinha’s mother, Patty Camacho, lived in the apartment
on the first floor. The defendant moved into the third-floor apartment with
Sardinha and her two children in March 2010. Hillary was eight years old at the
time. Hillary’s slightly older cousin Katie, the second complainant in this case,
would often visit the Woodbine Street apartment for sleepovers. In March 2011,
Sardinha and defendant welcomed a child, Thomas.
1
In order to protect the identity of the complainants and minor family members,
we refer to them by pseudonyms in this opinion.
2
In the trial transcripts, Palma Sardinha is sometimes referenced by her former last
name, Camacho. For clarity’s sake, we use her current last name.
-2-
In 2013 Hillary and Katie came forward with allegations of child
molestation and sexual abuse by defendant. As a result, on April 7, 2014,
defendant was charged by criminal information in P2/14-913A with four counts of
second-degree child molestation sexual assault, in violation of §§ 11-37-8.3 and
11-37-8.4. Additionally, in 2015, Hillary and Katie came forward with additional
allegations of first-degree child molestation sexual assault against defendant. In
2016, defendant was charged by grand jury indictment in P1/16-736A with ten
counts of first-degree child molestation sexual assault, in violation of §§ 11-37-8.1
and 11-37-8.2, and one count of second-degree child abuse, in violation of § 11-9-
5.3(b)(2). The two cases were consolidated for trial.3 In accordance with Rule
48(a) of the Superior Court Rules of Criminal Procedure, the state dismissed one
count of second-degree child molestation charged in the 2014 information and four
counts of first-degree child molestation set forth in the 2016 indictment. The cases
proceeded to trial in April 2018.
3
Pursuant to an order entered by this Court on March 6, 2020, these two cases
were also consolidated on appeal.
-3-
The state presented testimony from Sardinha and from the complainants,
Katie and Hillary.4 The testimony revealed horrific facts arising from multiple
incidents of sexual assault by defendant upon these complainants.
Katie’s Testimony
Katie testified that she was very close to both her aunt, Sardinha, and her
cousin, Hillary. She would frequently spend weekends and school breaks at
Sardinha’s apartment and would stay in Hillary’s room. Her grandmother, Patty
Camacho, lived on the first floor. Katie explained that the family dynamic
changed after defendant arrived. She remembered that defendant would often
watch the children while Sardinha and Camacho were at work and that he was
“controlling and rude.” According to Katie, defendant “tried to tell [Hillary] what
to do * * * like he was her father and he wasn’t.” Katie testified that her
relationship with defendant deteriorated when she was ten years old. She
recounted six specific incidents of sexual abuse perpetrated by defendant.
The first assault occurred in Hillary’s bedroom, when defendant appeared in
the doorway and asked the girls if they wanted to play “Truth or Dare.” Katie
testified that the game “escalated to the dares getting worse, and it was touching.”
She explained that defendant touched her breasts under her clothes for a “few
4
The state also proffered the expert testimony of Christine Barron, M.D., a doctor
at the Aubin Center at Hasbro Children’s Hospital who examined both Katie and
Hillary.
-4-
minutes.” The defendant threatened to “hurt [Katie’s] family” if she disclosed the
abuse.
Katie recounted the second incident of assault, when she returned to
Woodbine Street for another sleepover with Hillary. She stated that defendant
touched her breasts, both under and over her clothes. The third incident—again
under the guise of Truth or Dare—led to defendant performing cunnilingus on ten-
year-old Katie. At another sleepover on Woodbine Street, during a fourth episode,
defendant instructed Katie to perform fellatio on him; in that episode, defendant
went into Hillary’s room and directed Katie, “put your mouth on it and move back
and forth[.]”
Katie testified to a fifth incident that occurred when she was eleven years
old, when defendant came into Hillary’s room with a condom, locked the door, and
engaged in penile penetration with Katie. She recalled that Hillary was in the room
the entire time and that defendant did “[t]he same thing” to Hillary before he
assaulted Katie. Katie also described a sixth incident that occurred in Hillary’s
room when Katie was eleven years old, during which defendant penetrated Katie
with his fingers. Katie testified that the digital penetration by defendant would
happen “[a]lmost whenever [she] would go there.” Katie testified that there were
numerous other occasions when defendant would force both Hillary and Katie to
touch his penis and touch each other’s breasts, while defendant watched.
-5-
When she was in the sixth grade, in January 2013, Katie disclosed
defendant’s abuse to a friend from school. After that, she told her teacher; the
principal; guidance counselors; a representative from the Department of Children,
Youth, and Families; police; and doctors. However, at that point, she had revealed
only the incidents in which defendant had touched her breasts; she did not disclose
the incidents of oral and penile penetration. Katie testified at trial that she decided
to “only t[ell] them some things” because she “didn’t want [Thomas] to grow up
without a dad.” After Katie initially reported the assaults, an angry Hillary claimed
that Katie was lying about what happened. As a result, Katie’s relationship with
Hillary became strained, and all communication ceased. The estrangement was
short-lived.
In February or March 2013, Hillary disclosed defendant’s abuse to Sardinha,
thus corroborating Katie’s initial allegations; the girls’ relationship improved.
Katie resumed visiting Woodbine Street and spending vacations with Sardinha and
her family. The defendant had returned to New York and was no longer part of
their lives.
Over two years later, in May 2015, while on vacation with Hillary and
Sardinha, Katie decided to tell Sardinha her “whole story.” Katie divulged “[t]he
entire secret” to her aunt, including the incidents of sexual penetration that both
girls endured. Katie’s motivation for revealing the whole story was born out of her
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concern for Hillary; she testified that she waited two years because she feared
defendant. Katie admitted that, between 2013 and 2015, she spoke with numerous
people—including police and doctors—about defendant’s abuse; but she was not
completely honest and never told the full story until her 2015 disclosure.
Hillary’s Testimony
Hillary testified that, when defendant moved into Woodbine Street, the two
“were kind of friends[,]” and developed a sort of “stepfather and stepdaughter
relationship.” The somewhat friendly relationship changed after Thomas was born
in March 2011. According to Hillary, defendant became “aggressive and mean[,]”
and he would yell at her and throw things at her, such as glass plates and cups. She
testified that defendant would also hit her on her arms, back, and thighs. Hillary
refrained from telling Sardinha about defendant’s behavior because she thought it
was normal and “just punishment for being a bad kid.”
In 2011 the nature of the relationship between defendant and Hillary
changed once again, when defendant began touching her. Hillary was ten years old
when defendant started playing the nefarious Truth or Dare game with her and
Katie. She recalled that defendant would put his hands in her shirt and “touch
[her] breasts and [her] vagina.” Hillary also recounted a specific incident that
occurred in 2012, shortly after her tenth birthday, when defendant called her into
Sardinha’s room, pushed her onto the bed, “ripped [her] shirt off and pushed [her]
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skirt up and raped [her].” She recalled another incident that happened after her
eleventh birthday, when defendant came into her room, sat next to her on her bed,
and “slid his hands down [her] pants and started touching [her] vagina.” He moved
his hand around on the outside of her vagina but under her underwear.
The record discloses that, in light of Katie’s allegations of sexual abuse,
DCYF was assigned to investigate whether something similar happened to any
other minor living with defendant. In February 2013, a DCYF investigator met
with Hillary and asked her if defendant had inappropriately touched her. Hillary
admitted at trial that she had lied during that interview, denying that defendant ever
touched her. After the DCYF interview, Sardinha asked Hillary if anything
inappropriate had happened with defendant, and Hillary told her that nothing had
happened. Hillary also went to Hasbro Children’s Hospital and again denied any
inappropriate touching by defendant. Because Hillary denied any sexual abuse by
defendant, the investigation was deemed closed.
Hillary testified that, a few days after the DCYF visit, defendant sexually
assaulted her yet again. This time, Hillary was taking a shower when defendant
came into the bathroom and pulled her out of the shower, causing her to fall onto
the bathroom floor and crack one of the tiles. Hillary recalled “kicking and trying
to push [defendant] away from her[,]” to no avail. She detailed that defendant
“punched [her] in the face and then picked [her] up and threw [her] onto [her]
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mom’s bed and raped [her].” She stated that, in that moment, she was “terrified,
but [she] was kind of used to it.” Hillary did not tell anyone what happened,
thinking that if she could keep the assaults a secret, “it would just be dropped.”
Hillary also testified that defendant touched her in myriad other ways, including
oral penetration, digital penetration, and having her put “[her] mouth on him.” She
stated that these instances occurred both when she was alone and when her cousin
Katie would sleepover at Woodbine Street.
According to Hillary, in early 2013, two weeks after the DCYF interview,
she told Sardinha that defendant had touched her breasts, but she did not mention
the oral and penile penetration. In response, Sardinha sent Hillary to stay with the
neighbors for a couple of days and immediately ejected defendant from the
Woodbine Street apartment. In 2015, after the vacation with Sardinha and Katie,
Hillary met with an interviewer from Day One, a sexual assault and trauma center,
and disclosed the sexual assaults, including penile penetration. Hillary also
returned to Hasbro in October 2015, where she spoke with doctors and disclosed
the sexual assaults.
Sardinha’s Testimony
Sardinha testified that she first learned of her niece Katie’s allegations
against defendant in February 2013 from her mother, Camacho, who lived in the
first-floor apartment on Woodbine Street. Camacho mentioned something about
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an “inappropriate game[,]” but Sardinha was unsure of specific details and
assumed it was a misunderstanding. Sardinha confronted Hillary about Katie’s
allegations, and Hillary denied that anything inappropriate had happened.
However, Sardinha confronted Hillary again in April 2013, and, that time, Hillary
said that the allegations were true. After defendant left the Woodbine Street
apartment, the DCYF investigator returned to the apartment, and Hillary admitted
that defendant had been sexually abusing her for approximately two years,
specifically by digital penetration and touching her breasts. Sardinha did not learn
the full extent of the sexual abuse until Katie’s disclosures in 2015. From the time
of the first disclosure in 2013 until the full disclosure in 2015, Sardinha testified,
Hillary “was really struggling”—she “was having a lot of nightmares * * * [and]
was cutting herself[.]”
Defendant’s Testimony
The defendant testified in this case and denied engaging in any inappropriate
sexual contact with either Katie or Hillary. He explained that he stepped into a
fatherly role with Hillary and would spend a lot of time with her, “together as just
friends” to foster that relationship.5 He was introduced to Katie within a month of
5
According to defendant, Hillary “had a serious want and desire to have a
father[.]” He testified that he tried to be supportive by helping Hillary with her
schoolwork, watching movies together, and going on walks together. He said that
he would also drop Hillary off at school and pick her up so that she did not have to
walk home alone.
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meeting Sardinha, and, he testified, Katie would sleep over at the Woodbine Street
apartment frequently. After Thomas was born, Sardinha returned to work, and
defendant became the primary caretaker of the household; he would often look
after Katie and Hillary during their playdates.
The defendant testified that, in February 2013, his and Sardinha’s
relationship began to deteriorate due to “financial stresses[.]” That same month, a
DCYF investigator came to the house to speak to Hillary, and she informed
defendant that someone made an allegation of child molestation against him. The
defendant testified that he was upset and that he “didn’t understand the reasons for
the allegations[.]” Two months later, the allegations resurfaced, and Sardinha
asked defendant to move out. The defendant did not argue with Sardinha; he
“accepted the fact” that she wanted him to leave.
On May 3, 2018, the jury returned a verdict of guilty on all counts. The trial
justice heard and denied defendant’s motion for a new trial on May 24, 2018. For
each of the three counts of second-degree child molestation charged in the 2014
criminal information, the trial justice sentenced defendant to concurrent terms of
fifteen years to serve at the Adult Correctional Institutions. As to each of the six
counts of first-degree child molestation set forth in the 2016 indictment, the trial
justice sentenced defendant to seventy-five years at the ACI, with fifty-five years
to serve and twenty years suspended, with probation. The sentence for four of
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those counts was consecutive to the sentence imposed for count two of the 2014
criminal information. The sentence for the two remaining counts was to run
consecutive to the sentences for the four previous counts. As to the charge of
second-degree child abuse, the trial justice sentenced defendant to ten years to
serve at the ACI, to run consecutive to the sentence for four counts of first-degree
child molestation in the 2016 indictment and two counts of second-degree child
molestation in the 2014 criminal information. The cumulative sentence imposed
was 125 years to serve. The defendant timely appealed.
Discussion
Before this Court, defendant assigns two errors of law: (1) the trial justice
erred in denying defendant’s motion for a new trial because she overlooked
inconsistencies and biases in assessing the credibility of the complainants; and (2)
the trial justice erroneously admitted evidence of prior bad acts without giving the
jury a proper limiting instruction. We address each contention in turn and provide
additional facts as necessary.
Motion for a New Trial
The defendant contends that the trial justice erred in denying his motion for
a new trial. Specifically, he argues that the trial justice overlooked numerous
inconsistencies in the testimonies of the complainants and that she also overlooked
the motive for the complainants to falsify their testimony.
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Standard of Review
“When a trial justice considers a motion for a new trial, he or she ‘acts as a
thirteenth juror and exercises independent judgment on the credibility of witnesses
and on the weight of the evidence.’” State v. Perkins, 966 A.2d 1257, 1260 (R.I.
2009) (quoting State v. Cerda, 957 A.2d 382, 385 (R.I. 2008)). “Specifically, ‘the
trial justice must (1) consider the evidence in light of the jury charge,
(2) independently assess the credibility of the witnesses and the weight of the
evidence, and then (3) determine whether he or she would have reached a result
different from that reached by the jury.’” State v. Paola, 59 A.3d 99, 104 (R.I.
2013) (brackets omitted) (quoting State v. Vargas, 21 A.3d 347, 354 (R.I. 2011)).
“If, after conducting such a review, the trial justice reaches the same conclusion as
the jury, the verdict should be affirmed and the motion for a new trial denied.” Id.(quoting State v. Heredia, 10 A.3d 443, 446 (R.I. 2010)).
In reviewing a motion for a new trial, this Court accords “great weight to a
trial justice’s ruling” if he or she “articulated sufficient reasoning in support of the
ruling.” State v. Rogers, 207 A.3d 457, 461 (R.I. 2019) (brackets omitted) (quoting
State v. Kizekai, 19 A.3d 583, 589 (R.I. 2011)). “A trial justice’s determination
will therefore be ‘left undisturbed unless the trial justice overlooked or
misconceived material evidence or otherwise was clearly wrong.’” State v.
Baptista, 79 A.3d 24, 29 (R.I. 2013) (quoting Paola, 59 A.3d at 104).
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Analysis
After careful review of the record, we are of the opinion that the trial justice
did not overlook or misconceive material evidence. The trial justice articulated
more than adequate grounds for denying defendant’s motion for a new trial. In her
comprehensive bench decision denying defendant’s motion, which spanned over
eighteen pages of transcript, the trial justice reviewed the applicable standards,
summarized the testimony adduced at trial, and thoroughly evaluated the
credibility of the witnesses.
The trial justice acknowledged that this case turned on the credibility of the
two complainants and, because he testified on his own behalf, the credibility of
defendant. She found Katie to be quite credible, describing her testimony as
“sincere” and “compelling.” She assessed the inconsistencies raised by defendant,
particularly Katie’s change of story from 2013 to 2015, and found that
“she did not then reveal all of the abuse because, in her
naivety, she didn’t think that disclosing mere touching
would result in the removal of [d]efendant from the
house. She didn’t want [Thomas] to grow up without a
father. She was growing up without a mother and
[Hillary] without a father, and she was sensitive to the
problems [Thomas] would face if he lost his father.”
As to why Katie continued to return to Woodbine Street for overnight stays and
vacations with Sardinha and her family after the abuse began, the trial justice was
compelled by Katie’s explanation that “she already lost her own mother[,] * * *
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[s]he didn’t want to lose the rest of her maternal family.” The trial justice noted
that Katie never recanted her allegations, despite the pushback she faced after her
initial disclosure.
The trial justice also deemed Hillary a sincere and credible witness,
particularly considering her ability to recall specific details concerning each
incident of assault. She was convinced by Hillary’s testimony that she did not
disclose the abuse because she feared defendant, noting that he was a “big guy”
and she was just a young girl. The trial justice found no issue with Hillary initially
denying the abuse and was satisfied that Hillary did not want anyone to know
because she was afraid that Thomas would be taken away from his family.
Contrary to the state’s witnesses, the trial justice was not persuaded by
defendant’s testimony and found that he was not a credible witness on his own
behalf. In assessing his testimony, the trial justice concluded that “[h]e came
across as cold, uncaring and arrogant.” She was especially critical of defendant’s
reaction to the allegations of child molestation, noting that “[h]e wasn’t even
angry” and willingly left the home, his son, and Sardinha without putting up a
fight.
The trial justice also addressed defendant’s argument that the complainants
were motivated to fabricate the allegations and rejected those assertions. She
found that:
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“It is interesting to note that there was not one iota of
evidence to explain why [Katie] would have lied about
those assaults. After she disclosed the abuse, she lost her
relationship with her mother’s family. They had no
communication whatsoever. [Katie] felt terrible, but
never recanted. It clearly was a great loss for her. She
lost her grandmother, her aunt and her cousin. She clearly
had cherished her relationship with [her grandmother, her
aunt, and her cousin]. There was so much to lose, but
nothing to gain unless it was true. And by disclosing she
was able to end the abuse, at least the abuse of her.”
The trial justice ultimately determined that she “would have issued the identical
verdict provided by the jury” and found the evidence in favor of the jury verdict to
be “overwhelming[.]”
We conclude that the trial justice carefully performed her duty as a thirteenth
juror, assessing the material evidence in the record and independently weighing
that evidence. She passed upon the credibility of the testimony by Hillary and
Katie, finding both witnesses to be very credible—“a finding to which this Court
accords great deference.”6 State v. Moten, 187 A.3d 1080, 1090 (R.I. 2018). We
are disinclined to overturn the credibility findings of a trial justice, because “a trial
justice, being present during all phases of the trial, is in an especially good position
to evaluate the facts and to judge the credibility of the witnesses.” Rogers, 207
6
The trial justice also found Sardinha to be a credible witness, describing her as
“sad rather than angry.”
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A.3d at 462 (quoting Baptista, 79 A.3d at 29-30). As such, we are satisfied that the
trial justice committed no error in denying defendant’s motion for a new trial.
The Rule 404(b) Evidence
The defendant also argues that the trial justice erred in admitting evidence
under Rule 404(b) of the Rhode Island Rules of Evidence without articulating the
special relevance of the evidence in her limiting instructions.7 He contends that the
limiting instructions that the trial justice provided were insufficient.
In this case, the trial justice conducted a pretrial hearing on the state’s
motion to admit evidence pursuant to Rule 404(b). The state sought to admit
evidence of uncharged acts of molestation, threats, and physical abuse by
defendant against Hillary and Katie. The state expected both complainants to
7
Rule 404(b) of the Rhode Island Rules of Evidence provides:
“Evidence of other crimes, wrongs, or acts is not
admissible to prove the character of a person in order to
show that the person acted in conformity therewith. It
may, however, be admissible for other purposes, such as
proof of motive, opportunity, intent, preparation, plan,
knowledge, identity, absence of mistake or accident, or to
prove that defendant feared imminent bodily harm and
that the fear was reasonable.”
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testify regarding an extensive amount of uncharged sexual conduct.8 The state
further sought to introduce testimony that defendant threatened to hurt the
complainants if they told anybody about the abuse, and testimony that defendant
threw glass plates at Hillary, hit Hillary in the face and on the back, and squeezed
her arms, leaving marks. The state argued that this testimony was admissible
under Rule 404(b) to show a common design, plan, intent, and defendant’s lewd
disposition, as well as demonstrating defendant’s attitude toward sexual activity
with the complainants.
The state agreed that the trial justice would give a limiting instruction both
before the evidence was introduced and at the end of the case in order to reiterate
to the jury that the evidence was admitted for a limited purpose. The record
8
At a pretrial hearing, the state specified the uncharged sexual conduct of
defendant that it sought to admit. Katie was expected to testify to fondling of her
breasts, mouth-to-breast contact, mouth-to-vagina contact, penis-to-mouth contact,
penis penetrating vagina, defendant masturbating while touching Katie’s breasts,
an incident where Katie performed fellatio on defendant while Hillary touched his
genitals, various sexual acts performed on defendant while the other girl watched,
three instances of Katie being forced to perform fellatio on defendant during the
time she was in the fourth through sixth grades, over ten instances of cunnilingus,
being molested “almost every night she spent” at the Woodbine Street apartment
over the course of two years, and testimony that defendant would instruct the girls
to touch each other while he masturbated.
Regarding Hillary’s testimony, the state proffered that she would testify to
kissing on the mouth, penile and oral penetration, mouth-to-breast contact, mouth-
to-vagina contact, digital and vaginal penetration, being molested “[eighty] times
over a two-year span[,]” forced fellatio in the presence of Katie, digital penetration
in Katie’s presence, two or three other instances of digital penetration alone with
defendant, forced cunnilingus in the presence of Katie, and forced cunnilingus
“switching between” Katie and Hillary.
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reveals that defendant did not object to the introduction of this evidence. Defense
counsel said he had no objection to evidence of the threats by defendant, and he
withdrew his previous objection to the evidence of physical abuse. He noted that,
although the evidence of molestation would be cumulative and would cause
potential harm, his only concern was remedial, and he deferred to the trial justice
to give an appropriate limiting instruction.
As promised, before the opening statements of counsel, the trial justice
instructed the jurors about the limited purpose of uncharged conduct. Immediately
after Katie testified that defendant would penetrate her “[a]lmost whenever [she]
would go there[,]” the trial justice again instructed the jury regarding the limited
purpose of evidence of uncharged acts. When the trial justice asked if defendant
had any issue with that instruction, he responded, “No, Your Honor.” Then, during
Hillary’s testimony, the trial justice gave another limiting instruction. Again, the
trial justice asked if “everyone [was] satisfied[,]” and defendant responded, “Yes,
Your Honor.” Finally, in her final instruction to the jury, the trial justice included
an instruction about uncharged acts.9 When she finished charging the jury, she
9
The trial justice instructed, in her final instructions to the jury,
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called counsel to the sidebar and asked if they had exceptions to the jury charge;
defense counsel replied, “None.”
This Court has repeatedly held that the “‘raise-or-waive’ rule precludes our
consideration of an issue that has not been raised and articulated at trial.” State v.
Viveiros, 45 A.3d 1232, 1243 (R.I. 2012) (quoting State v. Bido, 941 A.2d 822, 828
(R.I. 2008)). Thus, “if an objection to a jury instruction is not effectively raised
below, it is waived on appeal.” State v. Crow, 871 A.2d 930, 935 (R.I. 2005).
Moreover, Rule 30 of the Superior Court Rules of Criminal Procedure provides, in
pertinent part, that “[n]o party may assign as error any portion of the charge or
omission therefrom unless the party objects thereto before the jury retires to
consider its verdict, stating distinctly the matter to which the party objects and the
grounds of the party’s objection.” It is crucial that an objection to a jury
instruction be raised before the jury retires “because, once alerted to the perceived
“I want to talk to you about uncharged acts. I mentioned
it to you a few times. You’ve heard evidence in this trial
on other occasions the [d]efendant allegedly was
involved in other alleged misconduct. Bear in mind that
he hasn’t been charged with any offense arising out of
that alleged misconduct. That evidence was admitted for
a limited purpose. It can’t be considered as proof of bad
character on his part or proof that he acted in conformity
with the uncharged alleged acts when you consider the
charges in this case.
“However, if you do wish to do so, you may consider
evidence of uncharged alleged acts on the issue of
opportunity, motive, plan, scheme, or lewd disposition
toward either or both of the complaining witnesses.”
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error in the instruction that has been given, the trial justice has an opportunity to
cure the alleged deficiencies before the jury retires for deliberations.” Crow, 871
A.2d at 935; see Viveiros, 45 A.3d at 1244 (“By failing to raise a proper objection,
defendant deprived the trial justice of any opportunity to remedy possible
deficiencies in the instructions before they were delivered.”); State v. Hanes, 783
A.2d 920, 924 (R.I. 2001) (“The purpose of the rule is to ensure that the trial
justice is alerted to any deficiencies in the charge while there is still an opportunity
for cure.”).
In this case, the defendant did not object to the admission of the Rule 404(b)
evidence, other than to request a limiting instruction—a request that the trial justice
accommodated. Moreover, the defendant not only failed to object to the trial
justice’s numerous limiting instructions, he affirmatively deferred to her judgment
and voiced his satisfaction with each limiting instruction as given. In doing so, the
defendant acquiesced to the sufficiency of the trial justice’s limiting instructions.
The defendant afforded the trial justice no indication of the purported errors he
now raises and, thus, no opportunity to remedy the alleged deficiency. We deem
this a waiver. Because the defendant has failed to demonstrate that he is entitled to
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any of the very narrow exceptions to the “raise-or-waive” rule, we hold that the
objection to the instructions which he now seeks to argue is waived.10
Conclusion
For the reasons set forth in this opinion, we affirm the Superior Court’s
judgment of conviction. The papers in this case may be remanded to the Superior
Court.
Justice Flaherty participated in the decision but retired before its publication.
Justices Lynch Prata and Long did not participate.
10
In his brief to this Court, the defendant asks us to deviate from our adherence to
the raise-or-waive rule and apply the narrow exception applicable to issues
concerning basic constitutional rights. The defendant has not even approached the
minimal requisite criteria for that exception.
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STATE OF RHODE ISLAND
SUPREME COURT – CLERK’S OFFICE
Licht Judicial Complex
250 Benefit Street
Providence, RI 02903
OPINION COVER SHEET
Title of Case State v. Jonathan Phillips.
No. 2019-240-C.A.
(P1/16-736A)
Case Number
No. 2020-38-C.A.
(P2/14-913A)
Date Opinion Filed February 16, 2021
Justices Suttell, C.J., Goldberg, Flaherty, and Robinson, JJ.
Written By Associate Justice Maureen McKenna Goldberg
Source of Appeal Providence County Superior Court
Judicial Officer from Lower Court Associate Justice Netti C. Vogel
For State:
Virginia M. McGinn
Attorney(s) on Appeal Department of Attorney General
For Defendant:
Kara Hoopis Manosh, Esq.
SU-CMS-02A (revised June 2020)