Smith v. State

The trial court did not reversibly err in allowing the State to question the defendant about the meaning of his tattoos in his murder trial in connection with the death of his 2-month-old daughter.

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Appellant Deonte T’varis Smith challenges his conviction for felony murder in connection with the death of his two-month-old daughter, Keymaya Smith. Appellant contends that the trial court committed reversible error by allowing the State to cross-examine him about tattoos on his arm and by allowing the State’s expert witness to give a demonstration using a baby doll. As explained below, the trial court abused its discretion in allowing the full line of questioning about the tattoos, but any error was harmless, and the court did not abuse its discretion in permitting the expert’s demonstration. We therefore affirm.1

1. Viewed in the light most favorable to the verdicts, the evidence at trial showed the following. On the evening of April 12, 2012, Appellant was at his trailer home with the baby victim and her mother, Shamiah Rainey. Appellant’s sister and Rainey’s one-year-old son were also there. The baby was fussy, and Rainey and Appellant attempted to calm her on several occasions throughout the night. The last time the baby woke up crying, Appellant went into her room alone; after he was there for several minutes, the baby began exhibiting signs of distress. Appellant’s sister was in her room the whole time, and Rainey was in the living room with the one-year-old. At some point, Rainey noticed that she had a missed call from Appellant on her cell phone, so she went into the baby’s room. As soon as she saw the baby, Rainey told Appellant that they needed to take her to the emergency room.

Smith v. State

The trial court did not reversibly err in allowing the State to question the defendant about the meaning of his tattoos in his murder trial in connection with the death of his 2-month-old daughter.

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