Lewis v. Wilkinson

307 F.3d 413 (6th Cir. 2002)

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Nature of the Case

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Facts

Lewis (P) and Christina Heaslet were friends who met during their first year at the University of Akron. Heaslet testified that Lewis was a joker and a flirt who was interested in her sexually. On the evening of October 12, 1996, at 8:45 p.m., Heaslet called P and invited him to her dormitory room. Heaslet and P watched television, listened to music, and talked with Keryn Mayback, while Heaslet drank wine coolers. Ms. Mayback left at approximately 9:30 or 9:45, and Heaslet and P were alone in Heaslet's room. Shortly after Mayback left, while Heaslet and P were listening to music, P got up and turned off the light. According to Heaslet's testimony, P grabbed her, threw her on the bed, and took off all her clothes. P then completely disrobed, stood up, pulled out a condom, and placed it on his penis. Heaslet testified she was repeatedly pushed down by P, and her legs were forced apart, while she continued to cry 'don't do this.' P then penetrated her. P's testimony was that after he turned the lights off, he told Heaslet to come and find him. Heaslet found him on the bed, and he put his hand up her shirt. Heaslet removed her bra, and they started kissing. Together they removed Heaslet's sweatshirt, and then P disrobed and put on a condom. Meanwhile, Heaslet took off the rest of her clothes. According to P, Heaslet did not say anything during the time they had intercourse. P then turned on the lights, wrapped the condom in a tissue and threw it in the trash. Heaslet picked up the condom wrapper, threw it in the trash, and told P he had to leave. Heaslet left the room with P. P stopped a couple of doors down the hall to write a note on another girl's door. Heaslet rode down the elevator with P and signed him out at the front desk. Heaslet then went to see Alison Legitt, the Resident Coordinator for the dormitory, who called the police. Heaslet did not want to speak to the police initially. She was taken to the hospital but did not want to see a rape counselor, and for the first several hours did not wish to file any charges. Heaslet eventually agreed to see a counselor on October 14 and was encouraged by her counselor to keep a diary. P was arrested in his dormitory room in the early hours of October 13. He waived his Miranda rights and gave a statement explaining that he and Heaslet had consensual sex. Several weeks prior to the scheduled trial date, P received in the mail an envelope that had been sent anonymously to his home address. The envelope contained xeroxed excerpts of Heaslet's diary. P gave the envelope to his trial counsel, who disclosed the contents to the assistant prosecutor and the trial judge. P's counsel requested the production of the entire diary. The State acquired Heaslet's complete diary and provided it to the court for in camera review. The State moved the court in limine to exclude reference to the diary except for certain limited portions. The court marked the entire diary as Exhibit 'E.' The portions anonymously sent to P were marked Exhibits 'A,' 'B,' 'C' and 'D.' Defense counsel argued for permission to cross-examine Heaslet on excerpts 'A,' 'B,' 'C' and 'D,' arguing they were relevant to Heaslet's veracity and motive to lie and spoke directly to the issue of consent. Defense counsel was particularly interested in excerpt 'B' contained in the entry dated April 20, 1997: I can't believe the trial's only a week away. I feel guilty (sort of) for trying to get Nate locked up, but his lack of respect for women is terrible. I remember how disrespectful he always was to all of us girls in the courtyard . . . he thinks females are a bunch of sex objects! And he's such a player! He was trying to get with Holly and me, and all the while he had a girlfriend. I think I pounced on Nate because he was the last straw. That, and because I've always seemed to need some drama in my life. Otherwise, I get bored. That definitely needs to change. I'm sick of men taking advantage of me . . . and I'm sick of myself for giving in to them. I'm not a nympho like all those guys think. I'm just not strong enough to say no to them. I'm tired of being a whore. This is where it ends. Citing the rape shield law, Ohio Revised Code § 2907.02(D), the trial court prohibited the defense from introducing the following language from Exhibit 'B':. . . and I'm sick of myself for giving in to them. I'm not a nympho like all those guys think. I'm just not strong enough to say no to them. I'm tired of being a whore. This is where it ends. The defense had argued that this provision, when read in context, was vital because it stated, or at least implied, that Heaslet had not said 'no' to P, and it could be construed as an admission that she had consented to intercourse with P. It also provided an apparent motive as to why she would falsely claim she was raped - she was upset with herself for giving in to men. The State had argued that the language at issue constituted opinion and reputation evidence of the victim's past sexual activity and was therefore protected under the rape shield law. The trial court agreed with the State, holding that any probative value of the evidence was outweighed by its prejudicial effect. P was convicted and sentenced. His state appeals were denied. He filed this writ.