Order Michigan Supreme Court
Lansing, Michigan
January 16, 2019 Bridget M. McCormack,
Chief Justice
157936 David F. Viviano,
Chief Justice Pro Tem
Stephen J. Markman
Brian K. Zahra
PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF MICHIGAN, Richard H. Bernstein
Plaintiff-Appellee, Elizabeth T. Clement
Megan K. Cavanagh,
Justices
v SC: 157936
COA: 328759
Kent CC: 15-000869-FC
JAMAL DEVONTA BENNETT,
Defendant-Appellant.
_____________________________________/
On order of the Court, the application for leave to appeal the April 17, 2018
judgment of the Court of Appeals is considered. We direct the Clerk to schedule oral
argument on the application. MCR 7.305(H)(1). The appellant shall file a supplemental
brief within 42 days of the date of this order addressing whether the Court of Appeals
erred in concluding: (1) that the preserved error in admitting the rap videos was not
outcome determinative; (2) that the unpreserved error in admitting the gang-affiliation
testimony was not plain error; and (3) that the erroneously admitted evidence, in
conjunction with the prosecutor’s argument in closing that this evidence showed the
“mentality” of defendant and his friends and the “lifestyle” they lived, did not constitute
impermissible character evidence under MRE 404(a) and People v Bynum, 496 Mich 610
(2014).
In addition to the brief, the appellant shall electronically file an appendix
conforming to MCR 7.312(D)(2). In the brief, citations to the record must provide the
appendix page numbers as required by MCR 7.312(B)(1). The appellee shall file a
supplemental brief within 21 days of being served with the appellant’s brief. The
appellee shall also electronically file an appendix, or in the alternative, stipulate to the use
of the appendix filed by the appellant. A reply, if any, must be filed by the appellant
within 14 days of being served with the appellee’s brief. The parties should not submit
mere restatements of their application papers.
I, Larry S. Royster, Clerk of the Michigan Supreme Court, certify that the
foregoing is a true and complete copy of the order entered at the direction of the Court.
January 16, 2019
a0109
Clerk