People v. Smith

*496During jury selection, a prospective juror, who had testified to having a friendship with a police officer, expressed apprehension at defense counsel’s stated objective- “to prove * * * that the police lied.” Counsel responded, “I don’t have to prove anything to you,” and indicated his intention to demonstrate that “the people have not proven their case beyond a reasonable doubt because of the credibility of the witnesses that they presented.” When counsel suggested, “You have a problem with that, don’t you?”, the prospective juror responded, “A little bit.”

After counsel indicated that he was…