State v. Lipham

[¶ 1] Jimmy D. Lipham appeals from a judgment of conviction for intentional or knowing murder, 17-A M.R.S. § 201(1)(A) (2005), following a jury trial in the Superi- or Court (Penobscot County, Mead, J.), contending that the court erred (1) in admitting into evidence a tape of a secretly recorded marital communication, and (2) in admitting the same tape over Lipham’s claim of unfair prejudice pursuant to M.R. Evid. 403. We affirm the judgment.1

I. BACKGROUND

[¶ 2] On July 31, 2003, Jimmy Lipham and the decedent, David Langway, acquaintances since 1984, drove to Lipham’s home in Glenburn. Upon…