State v. Demery

— Kenneth Demery appeals convictions of robbery and kidnapping, alleging, among other things, that the trial court committed prejudicial error when it allowed the State to play his taped interview to the jury without redacting accusatory statements made by the interviewing officer. The officer told Demery that his story “doesn’t make sense” and he needs to “start tellin’ the truth”; the officer also said that Demery was lying. We conclude that these remarks constituted improper and prejudicial comments on Demery’s credibility and guilt. Because the error was not harmless, we reverse and…