Kyree Davon Howard-Walker, Petitioner v. the People of the State of Colorado, Respondent.

Summary

The Supreme Court of Colorado held that a court of appeals division erred by supplementing the state's long-standing Oaks cumulative error standard with a two-step, multi-factor test drawn from federal circuit precedent, reaffirming that Oaks governs cumulative error review regardless of whether the underlying errors were preserved or unpreserved. Applying Oaks, the Court concluded that the cumulative prejudicial effect of eight trial errors—five involving Detective Garcia's testimony, two instructional errors, and prosecutorial misconduct in closing arguments commenting on the defendant's failure to testify—deprived Howard-Walker of a fair trial even though each error was individually harmless or not plain. The Court reversed the judgment of conviction and remanded for a new trial, declining to reach whether plain error is measured at the time of appeal or the time of trial.