455 S.W.2d 882 (Ark. 1970)
On April 24, 2005, Darvell Guest was shot and killed at Ferrari's Bar in Perryville, Cecil County.1 Antoine Levar Griffin was charged with numerous counts in connection with the shooting.2
The case proceeded to trial in the Circuit Court for Cecil County.3 At trial the State sought to introduce several pages printed from a MySpace profile in the name of Sistasouljah.4 The profile described a twenty-three-year-old female from Port Deposit whose birthday was listed as October 2, 1983, and it included a photograph of an embracing couple.5 The pages also contained the statement FREE BOOZY!!!! JUST REMEMBER SNITCHES GET STITCHES!! U KNOW WHO YOU ARE!!6
Jessica Barber, Griffin's live-in fiance, was called as a witness by the State but was not questioned about the profile.7 Authentication was attempted through the testimony of Sergeant John Cook, the lead investigator.8 Cook stated that he recognized the photograph as one of Jessica Barber and the defendant, matched the birth date, and noted references to Boozy.9
During voir dire outside the jury's presence, Cook admitted he could not say that Barber sent the posting and confirmed the page was accessible to the public.10 The print date on the form was December 5, 2006.11 The trial court allowed a redacted version of the printout.12 The parties entered a stipulation describing what Sergeant Cook would say if called, including that he downloaded the posting from MySpace and that the jury should consider only the snitches get stitches portion.13
The exhibit was offered to corroborate a witness's account that Barber had threatened him before trial.14 Griffin was convicted on the charges.15 The Court of Special Appeals affirmed the convictions.16 The Court of Appeals of Maryland granted Griffin's petition for a writ of certiorari to consider whether the MySpace pages had been properly authenticated.17
Whether the trial court erred in admitting a page printed from a MySpace profile alleged to be that of Petitioner's girlfriend?18
Maryland Rule 5-901(a) provides that authentication is satisfied by evidence sufficient to support a finding that the matter in question is what its proponent claims.19 Rule 5-901(b)(1) permits testimony of a witness with knowledge, and Rule 5-901(b)(4) permits circumstantial evidence of distinctive characteristics such as appearance, contents, or other features.20
Yes. The State attempted to authenticate the MySpace printout through Sergeant Cook, who identified a photograph resembling Jessica Barber, matched her birth date of October 2, 1983, and noted references to freeing Boozy.21 During voir dire, however, Sergeant Cook admitted he could not say that Barber sent the posting and confirmed the page was publicly accessible.22 The parties then entered a stipulation describing the download and the redacted snitches get stitches language, but the stipulation provided no testimony from Barber herself and did not establish that she created the profile or authored the posting.23
Because anyone could create a fictitious profile or post under another name, the distinctive characteristics cited were insufficient to authenticate the exhibit under Rule 5-901(b)(4).24
The trial court erred in admitting the MySpace printout without proper authentication, requiring reversal of the convictions and remand for a new trial.25
Related opinions on this issue
Joined by Judge Murphy
Judge Harrell dissented on the ground that a reasonable juror could find the profile authentic based on the photograph of Barber with the defendant, the matching birth date, the age and location description, and the references to freeing Boozy.26 He maintained that concerns about possible unauthorized access go to the weight of the evidence rather than admissibility.27 The authentication burden under Rule 5-901 is slight, requiring only evidence sufficient to support a finding by a reasonable juror.28
Whether the trial court erred in allowing the prosecutor to define reasonable doubt incorrectly over defense objection?29
A prosecutor's misstatement of the reasonable-doubt standard during closing argument may constitute reversible error if it misleads the jury on the burden of proof.30
The Court did not resolve whether the prosecutor's definition of reasonable doubt was erroneous.33
Is Griffin's challenge to the probative value of the evidence preserved for appellate review?34
An objection to authentication preserves the claim that the evidence was inadmissible regardless of its probative value.35
The challenge to the evidence was preserved for review.39