A prosecutor’s closing argument led the Washington Court of Appeals to reverse a criminal conviction after the court determined the trial outcome was affected by improper statements they’d made.
In an April 20 opinion, Judge Tracy A. Staab for the Washington Court of Appeals reversed Steven David Stotts’ convictions for second degree identity theft and forgery, despite sufficient evidence to support the convictions, as the prosecutor had engaged in improper vouching by suggesting that “that law enforcement witnesses would not risk their careers by testifying untruthfully.”
