State of Arizona v. Dimitri Polanco Romero

Summary

The court held that establishing prosecutorial error does not require proof of the prosecutor’s intent or any other culpable mental state. It found that repeated leading questions and the admission of technical ballistics testimony from unqualified witnesses were prosecutorial errors, but concluded that their cumulative effect did not fundamentally deprive Romero of a fair trial because properly admitted evidence independently linked him to the shooting. The court affirmed Romero’s convictions and sentences while vacating the court of appeals’ opinion.