State v. Ballard

KENNETH W. SHRUM, Judge.

A jury convicted Gary Ballard (Defendant) of stealing, a class C felony, § 570.080, RSMo Cum.Supp.1996, after which the trial court sentenced him to five years’ imprisonment. 1 Defendant’s appeal presents a single question: Did the trial court abuse its discretion in denying Defendant’s request for a mistrial after a police officer testified that he did not conduct a photo lineup with an eyewitness because the witness told him he “was familiar with [Defendant] from a previous incident?” Defendant contends that this testimony was irrelevant and prejudicial evidence of…