Missouri Court of Appeals, Eastern District / Aug 14, 2018
State of Missouri, Respondent, vs. Denise Hein, Appellant.
Denise Hein appealed her conviction for second-degree murder and armed criminal action, arguing the trial court abused its discretion by admitting an unauthenticated letter purportedly from the victim. The appellate court found the letter was improperly admitted due to a lack of authentication. However, the court affirmed the conviction, concluding that the error was not prejudicial because it was a bench trial where the judge is presumed to disregard incompetent evidence, and similar evidence was properly admitted.