State v. Smith

The opinion of the court was delivered by

*161STEIN, J.

This is an appeal from a conviction for vehicular homicide. The specific issue is whether comments made by the prosecutor with respect to defendant’s expert witnesses’ compensation, and their relationship to the reliability of their testimony, constituted prosecutorial misconduct that requires a new trial.

I

A

On April 6,1996, defendant, Robert Smith then age twenty-five, attended a sporting event in Philadelphia with his father and brother-in-law. Defendant admitted to drinking four or five twelve-ounce beers at the sporting event. At…