## Facts

- A federal jury convicted Joe Lewis Collins of conspiring to murder, and murdering, government witness Clovis Reed.
- The government’s theory was that Collins and others killed Reed to prevent him from testifying in an upcoming fraud-conspiracy trial.
- After Reed was killed, the perpetrators severed Reed’s head and hands and dumped his body—wearing only underwear—in a wooded clearing.
- Reed’s head and hands were never recovered.
- At trial, the government introduced six photographs of Reed’s body: two crime-scene photographs and four autopsy photographs.
- The two crime-scene photographs were introduced during the testimony of Luther Crownover, a beekeeper who discovered the body and initially thought it was an animal carcass; he described the area as marshy and remote from houses.
- The four autopsy photographs were introduced through Dr. Hayne, a medical examiner, including one photo showing the decapitation wound and three photos showing Hayne comparing a Kaiser blade to the wounds.
- Hayne testified that a Kaiser blade probably was used to amputate Reed’s head and hands approximately 36 to 48 hours after Reed died; because the missing body parts were not found, Hayne could not give a definitive cause of death.
- The government argued that the minimal blood visible at the dump site supported an inference that Reed was killed and dismembered elsewhere.
- Collins did not contest that Reed was murdered, but argued that no physical evidence tied Collins to the killing and objected that the photographs were unfairly prejudicial, especially given his offer to stipulate to the facts shown in the images.

## Issues

1. Whether the district court abused its discretion under Federal Rule of Evidence 403 by admitting six crime-scene and autopsy photographs where Collins offered to stipulate to the facts depicted and argued the images were unfairly prejudicial.

## Decision

- The Sixth Circuit affirmed Collins’s convictions.
- The court held the district court did not abuse its discretion in admitting the photographs under Rule 403.
- The court reasoned the photographs had probative value in explaining the discovery site, the condition of the body, and the medical examiner’s testimony about dismemberment and timing.
- The court rejected the argument that Collins’s willingness to stipulate required exclusion of the government’s evidence.
- The court concluded that, given the limited number of images and their evidentiary use, the risk of unfair prejudice did not substantially outweigh their probative value.

## Legal Principles

- Federal Rule of Evidence 403 permits exclusion only when the danger of unfair prejudice substantially outweighs probative value; the rule generally favors admission.
- “Unfair prejudice” means an undue tendency to cause a decision on an improper basis (such as emotion), not merely that evidence is damaging.
- Photographs of a victim’s body may be admitted when they help the jury understand witness testimony, the scene, the nature of injuries, or the government’s theory of the case.
- A defendant’s offer to stipulate does not automatically bar the government from presenting otherwise admissible evidence; the prosecution may present evidence to prove its case and explain events to the jury.
- Appellate review of Rule 403 rulings is for abuse of discretion, and reversal is reserved for decisions outside the range of reasonable choices.
- In balancing probative value against unfair prejudice, courts may consider the number of photographs, whether they are cumulative, how they are used at trial, and whether they assist in explaining contested or contextual facts.

## Conclusion

The Sixth Circuit upheld Collins’s conspiracy-to-murder and murder-of-a-witness convictions, concluding that the district court acted within its discretion by admitting two crime-scene photographs and four autopsy photographs because they materially supported the government’s narrative and expert testimony, and their probative value was not substantially outweighed by any risk of unfair prejudice under Rule 403, even though Collins offered to stipulate to the facts depicted.


United States v. Collins, 368 F. App’x 517, 2010 U.S. App. LEXIS 4347 (2010)