Duffitt v. State

ON CRIMINAL PETITION TO TRANSFER

DICKSON, Justice.

Defendant’s multiple convictions were affirmed by the Court of Appeals. Duffitt v. State (1988), Ind.App., 519 N.E.2d 216. Among the grounds asserted in his petition to transfer, defendant contends that the Court of Appeals erred when it found that he was not denied a fair trial by reason of drawings and posters placed in the courtroom to lessen the anxiety of some of the young witnesses.

We grant transfer to express disapproval of this practice. Such decorations unduly emphasize the testimony of one witness over another and may convey to some…