DAVIS v. STATE
DAVIS v. STATE
Opinion
JAMES RADFORD, RAVEN SEALY, P. O. BOX 926, NORMAN, OK 73070, COUNSEL FOR DEFENDANT.
JENNIFER AUSTIN, CHRISTY MILLER, ASSISTANT DISTRICT ATTORNEYS, 201 SOUTH JONES, NORMAN, OK 73069, COUNSEL FOR THE STATE.
JAMIE D. PYBAS, P.O. BOX 926, NORMAN, OK 73070, COUNSEL FOR APPELLANT.
E. SCOTT PRUITT, OKLAHOMA ATTORNEY GENERAL, ROBERT WHITTAKER, ASSISTANT ATTORNEY GENERAL, 313 N.E. 21ST STREET, OKLAHOMA CITY, OK 73105, COUNSEL FOR APPELLEE.
SUMMARY OPINION
HUDSON, JUDGE:
¶ 1 Appellant, Terron A. Davis, was tried by a jury and convicted in Cleveland County District Court, Case No. CF-2013-1293, of Count 1: Attempted Robbery with a Weapon, After Two Prior Felony Convictions, in violation of 21 O.S.2011, § 801 ; Count 2: Assault and Battery with a Deadly Weapon, After Two Prior Felony Convictions, in violation of 21 O.S.2011, § 652 ; and Count 3: Burglary in the First Degree, After Two Prior Felony Convictions, in violation of 21 O.S.2011, § 1431. 1 The jury recommended as punishment *275 twenty-five (25) years imprisonment on each of Counts 1 and 3, and life imprisonment on Count 2. On March 9, 2016, the Honorable Tracy Schumacher, District Judge, sentenced Davis in accordance with the jury's verdicts. 2 Judge Schumacher further ordered the sentences for all three counts to run concurrently and ordered credit for time served.
¶ 2 Davis now appeals, raising ten (10) propositions of error before this Court:
I. CONVICTIONS AND SENTENCES FOR ATTEMPTED ROBBERY WITH A WEAPON, ASSAULT AND BATTERY WITH A DEADLY WEAPON, AND BURGLARY IN THE FIRST DEGREE, VIOLATED APPELLANT'S RIGHT TO BE FREE FROM MULTIPLE PUNISHMENT UNDER 21 O.S.2011, § 11 ;
II. BECAUSE THE TRIAL COURT'S INSTRUCTIONS IMPROPERLY ALLOWED A CONVICTION FOR ASSAULT AND BATTERY WITH A DEADLY WEAPON WITHOUT REQUIRING PROOF OF AN INTENT TO KILL, THE JUDGMENT AGAINST APPELLANT MUST BE MODIFIED;
III. THE TRIAL COURT ERRED IN REFUSING TO INSTRUCT THE JURY ON ASSAULT AND BATTERY WITH A DANGEROUS WEAPON AS A LESSER RELATED OFFENSE TO THE CHARGED COUNT OF ASSAULT AND BATTERY WITH A DEADLY WEAPON, IN VIOLATION OF APPELLANT'S FUNDAMENTAL RIGHTS TO DUE PROCESS AND A FAIR TRIAL UNDER THE FIFTH AND FOURTEENTH AMENDMENTS TO THE UNITED STATES CONSTITUTION AND ARTICLE II, §§ 7 AND 20 OF THE OKLAHOMA CONSTITUTION ;
IV. THE TRIAL COURT ERRED BY DENYING APPELLANT'S REQUEST TO SEVER THE TRIAL IN VIOLATION OF THE FIFTH, SIXTH AND FOURTEENTH AMENDMENTS TO THE UNITED STATES CONSTITUTION, ARTICLE II, §§ 7 AND 20 OF THE OKLAHOMA CONSTITUTION AND 22 O.S.2011, § 439 ;
V. APPELLANT WAS DENIED HIS RIGHT TO FIVE SEPARATE PEREMPTORY CHALLENGES EVEN THOUGH HE AND HIS CODEFENDANTS HAD INCONSISTENT DEFENSES, IN VIOLATION OF HIS RIGHTS TO DUE PROCESS AND A FAIR TRIAL UNDER THE FIFTH, SIXTH AND FOURTEENTH AMENDMENTS TO THE UNITED STATES CONSTITUTION, 22 O.S.2011, § 655, AND ARTICLE II, §§ 7, 19, AND 20 OF THE OKLAHOMA CONSTITUTION;
VI. THE ADMISSION OF THE EXTRAJUDICIAL IDENTIFICATIONS OF APPELLANT VIOLATED HIS DUE PROCESS RIGHTS UNDER THE FIFTH AND FOURTEENTH AMENDMENTS TO THE UNITED STATES CONSTITUTION AND ARTICLE II, §§ 7 AND 20 OF THE OKLAHOMA CONSTITUTION ;
*276 VII. THE TRIAL COURT ERRED BY FAILING TO GIVE A CAUTIONARY JURY INSTRUCTION ON EYEWITNESS IDENTIFICATION IN VIOLATION OF APPELLANT'S DUE PROCESS RIGHTS UNDER THE FIFTH AND FOURTEENTH AMENDMENTS TO THE UNITED STATES CONSTITUTION AND ARTICLE II, §§ 7 AND 20 OF THE OKLAHOMA CONSTITUTION ;
VIII. APPELLANT WAS DEPRIVED OF THE EFFECTIVE ASSISTANCE OF COUNSEL IN VIOLATION OF THE SIXTH AND FOURTEENTH AMENDMENTS TO THE UNITED STATES CONSTITUTION AND ARTICLE II, §§ 7 AND 20 OF THE OKLAHOMA CONSTITUTION ;
IX. UNDER ALL OF THE FACTS AND CIRCUMSTANCES OF THIS CASE, A LIFE SENTENCE FOR ASSAULT AND BATTERY WITH A DEADLY WEAPON IS SHOCKINGLY EXCESSIVE;
X. THE ACCUMULATION OF ERRORS DEPRIVED APPELLANT OF A FAIR TRIAL AND RELIABLE VERDICT.
¶ 3 After thorough consideration of the entire record before us on appeal, including the original record, transcripts, exhibits and the parties' briefs, we find that no relief is required under the law and evidence. Appellant's Judgment and Sentence is therefore AFFIRMED.
I
¶ 4 Appellant concedes that his multiple punishment claim was not raised at trial and thus may be reviewed on appeal only for plain error.
Rousch v. State
,
¶ 5 Here, the charged burglary was completed when Appellant and his accomplices opened the front door and entered the occupied duplex with intent to commit assault and battery of the victim inside. The commission of the assault and battery with a deadly weapon was completed when Appellant stabbed the victim in the chest during the fight. It was only after David Morgan was stabbed and the fighting had stopped that the attempted robbery commenced. The record shows a clear separation or break between the stabbing of the victim in the chest, the completion of the fighting and the subsequent robbery attempt. The record thus shows separate and distinct offenses committed in rapid succession and requiring different proof. There is no actual or obvious double punishment error from Appellant's convictions on Counts 1-3.
State v. Kistler
,
II
¶ 6 The trial court appropriately used the uniform Oklahoma jury instructions defining the crime of assault and battery with a deadly weapon in the written charge. We recently reaffirmed that "[i]ntent to kill is not an element of assault and battery with a deadly weapon. It would be error to instruct jurors otherwise."
Tucker v. State
,
III
¶ 7 This Court reviews a trial court's decision on which instructions are given to a jury, including lesser related instructions, for an abuse of discretion.
Simpson v. State
,
¶ 8 After reviewing the evidence, we do not believe that a rational jury could find that the manner in which Appellant stabbed the victim was with the intent merely to harm or injure. 21 O.S.2011, § 645 ;
Eizember v. State
,
IV
¶ 9 The record shows that the defenses presented by Appellant and his codefendants were not mutually antagonistic.
Ochoa v. State
,
¶ 10 The jury's sentencing recommendation for Quantez Cotton during the first stage of trial also did not warrant severance. Appellant's jury was instructed that the issue of punishment was not before them when guilt was determined either for Appellant or Draquan Cotton. Further, the jury was instructed to consider each defendant's case separately and to consider only the evidence and law applicable to each defendant. "A jury is presumed to follow its instructions."
Blueford v. Arkansas
,
*278 V
¶ 11 Appellant did not assert below that inconsistent defenses required that he be given five peremptory challenges separate from his codefendants. He also did not renew his objection to the trial court's ruling when it came time to exercise jointly the five peremptory challenges authorized by 22 O.S.2011, § 655. Instead, Appellant's counsel spoke for all three codefendants and exercised peremptory challenges to remove five prospective jurors and two alternates. Appellant did not, at that time, request additional peremptory challenges. Under these circumstances, Appellant has waived review of this claim for all but plain error.
¶ 12 Appellant also fails to show actual or obvious error based on the trial court's ruling. Prior to the trial court's ruling, neither Appellant nor his codefendants alleged inconsistent defenses. At best, Appellant offered mere speculation that mutually antagonistic defenses would emerge at trial. The record does not show either that Appellant disagreed with the exercise of peremptory challenges against the five prospective jurors removed by all three defendants jointly or that Appellant would have removed other jurors had he been granted separate peremptory challenges. "It is the burden of the party urging error to present to this Court a sufficient record upon which this Court may determine the issue raised."
Boyd v. State
,
¶ 13 As discussed in Proposition IV, this is not a case where Appellant and his codefendants attempted to exonerate themselves by inculpating each other in the crimes. At most they forced the State to prove its case against all three defendants by challenging the credibility of the state's witnesses and overall theory of the case in light of the evidence. This does not amount to inconsistent defenses warranting separate peremptory challenges under Section 655.
See
Nickell v. State
,
VI
¶ 14 Appellant argues that testimony from both Dejia Rogers and Officer McGuire concerning Rogers's extrajudicial identification of Appellant at the police department was inadmissible. Appellant did not object to this identification testimony at trial, thus waiving review of all but plain error on appeal.
Ochoa
,
¶ 15 What has emerged from our cases over the years is a confusing patchwork of rules and restrictions governing the use of extrajudicial identification evidence. The general rule we have adopted is simple enough: "Evidence of an extrajudicial identification is admissible, not only to corroborate an identification made at the trial, but as independent evidence of identity."
Young v. State,
¶ 16 In adopting this position, we followed the lead of California in
People v. Gould
,
¶ 17 Although
Hill
represented on the one hand a watershed moment in our jurisprudence for its recognition of the admissibility of extrajudicial identification evidence, we nonetheless restricted the force of this ruling. Specifically, we held that statements of prior identification are admissible
only
through the testimony of the identifier-and at that only
after
a correct in-court identification by the identifier-which included testimony regarding the particular day, place and time of the prior identification. We further relegated testimony from third-parties concerning the out-of-court identification "to rebuttal and evidentiary hearing status."
¶ 18 We have generally adhered to these limits although with some exceptions pertinent to Appellant's appeal. In
Jones v. State
,
¶ 19 Nine months later, in
Elvaker v. State
,
¶ 20 In
Scales v. State
,
¶ 21 What has emerged from our cases is a rule allowing evidence of an extrajudicial identification where the witness fails to make a positive in-court identification, but strictly barring such evidence when the witness incorrectly identifies another as the defendant. Although the probative value of evidence concerning the extrajudicial identification may certainly be tainted or diminished by the in-court identification of a different person, we see no statutory or constitutional reason prohibiting it. Indeed, the continuing vitality of this prohibition is undermined by the Legislature's amendment of Title 12 O.S.2011, § 2801 to state the following:
B. A statement is not hearsay if:
1. The declarant testifies at the trial or hearing and is subject to cross-examination concerning the statement, and the statement is:
* * * *
c. one of identification of a person made after perceiving the person[.]
This provision was enacted in 1991 and remains in force today. In the present case, Rogers testified that she identified three of the intruders at the police station and was *280 able to describe their roles inside the victim's duplex. Under the express terms of Section 2801(B)(1)(c), Rogers's testimony concerning her previous identification at the police department was admissible as substantive evidence. Section 2801(B)(1)(c) does not as a precondition to admissibility require that the witness first correctly identify the defendant at trial. Rather, it requires simply that the identifier testify at the trial or hearing and be subject to cross examination concerning his or her prior statement of identification. In the present case, these preconditions were satisfied.
¶ 22 We therefore hold that the Elvaker procedure may be used to present evidence of an extrajudicial identification where the witness has made no in-court identification, or where the prosecution seeks to impeach the in-court identification with a prior, inconsistent extrajudicial identification. The holding in Jones is limited to its facts-i.e., where there is no evidence introduced tending to show the photograph which the witness identified out of court is one and the same person as the defendant. Jones is overruled to the extent it is inconsistent with today's decision.
¶ 23 We therefore find no actual or obvious error with respect to Rogers's testimony concerning her out-of-court identification. Appellant's challenge to Officer McGuire's testimony requires additional analysis. We have repeatedly held-consistent with
Hill
-that testimony from third parties concerning a witness's extrajudicial identification is inadmissible except as rebuttal or at an evidentiary hearing.
E.g.
,
Kamees v. State
,
¶ 24 Section 2801(B)(1)(c) eliminates what historically has been the major concern-i.e., hearsay-relating to admission of extrajudicial identification evidence presented through a third party.
See
Washington v. State
,
¶ 25 Additionally, in 2002, the Legislature amended Title 12 O.S. § 2802 to state: "[H]earsay is not admissible except as otherwise provided by an act of the Legislature. " (emphasis added). Previously, Section 2802 read that "Hearsay is not admissible except as provided by law. " (emphasis added). Professor Whinery opined in his commentaries on Oklahoma evidence that the Legislature's amendment of Section 2801 was expected to supersede Hill and its progeny but that the Legislature's adoption of the original version of Section 2802 stating that hearsay is not admissible "except as provided by law" allowed our decisional authority to coexist with the statutory revision to Section 2801 relating to identification testimony. 2 Leo Whinery, Oklahoma Evidence, Commentary on the Law of Evidence , § 29.11 (2d. ed. 2000).
¶ 26 The combined effect of the statutory amendments to Sections 2801 and 2802 is to undermine the limits placed on the admission of extrajudicial identification testimony by this Court in Hill and subsequent *281 decisions. Section 2801(B)(1)(c) makes extrajudicial identification testimony admissible as substantive evidence-both by the identifier and third parties present at the prior identification-so long as the declarant testifies at trial and is subject to cross-examination concerning the statement. Moreover, Section 2802's express command that the Legislature alone defines what is and is not hearsay effectively supersedes this Court's decisions disallowing the admissibility of extrajudicial identification testimony from third parties except upon certain conditions as set forth in our decisional law. In so doing, the Legislature has removed the remaining limits to extrajudicial identification testimony embodied in our case law. To the extent that our previous decisions are inconsistent with today's ruling, they are expressly overruled. 3 Thus, under these circumstances, we find no actual or obvious error from the admission of Officer McGuire's testimony.
¶ 27 To summarize, extrajudicial identification evidence remains competent and material in the trial of a criminal case for the reasons discussed in Hill and the cases applying it. Title 12 O.S.2011, §§ 2801 and 2802 authorizes the admission of extrajudicial identification testimony from both an identifying witness and third parties as substantive evidence where the identifying witness testifies at trial and is subject to cross-examination concerning the statement of identification. This is so regardless of whether the identifying witness correctly identifies, misidentifies or fails to identify the defendant at trial or whether the identifying witness denies or affirms her out-of-court identification. So long as the requirements of Section 2801 are met, a police officer (or some other third party) may testify about a prior statement of identification made by a witness identifying the defendant and the trier of fact may consider that testimony as substantive evidence of identity. Sections 2801 and 2802 supersede the restrictions placed on the admission of out-of-court statements of identification by Hill and its progeny.
¶ 28 Finally, we reject Appellant's related claim on appeal that the show-up procedure used by Norman Police in this case was both suggestive and unnecessary. We have approved of show-up procedures similar to that used in the present case.
Harrolle v. State
,
VII
¶ 29 "Instructions are sufficient where they state the applicable law."
Mitchell v. State,
VIII
¶ 30 To prevail on an ineffective assistance of counsel claim, Appellant must show both that counsel's performance was deficient and that the deficient performance prejudiced his defense.
Strickland v. Washington
,
¶ 31 In Proposition I, we found that Appellant's convictions on Counts 1, 2 and 3 did not arise from a single act made criminal in different ways and thus there is no double punishment violation. In Proposition II, we applied our prior decisions and reaffirmed that assault and battery with a deadly weapon does not have an intent-to-kill element. In Proposition V, we held that Appellant was not entitled under 22 O.S.2011, § 655 to separate peremptory challenges. In Proposition VI, we rejected Appellant's challenge to the admission of testimony concerning Dejia Rogers's extrajudicial identification testimony. Based upon our rejection of the underlying claims of error for each instance of ineffectiveness now alleged, Proposition VIII lacks merit and is denied.
IX
¶ 32 Under the total circumstances, Appellant's sentence is not so excessive as to shock the conscience of the Court.
Duclos v. State
,
X
¶ 33 We deny relief for Appellant's claim of cumulative error.
Mitchell v. State
,
DECISION
¶ 34 The Judgment and Sentence of the District Court is AFFIRMED . Pursuant to Rule 3.15, Rules of the Oklahoma Court of Criminal Appeals , Title 22, Ch. 18, App. (2018), the MANDATE is ORDERED issued upon delivery and filing of this decision.
LUMPKIN, P.J.: CONCUR
LEWIS, V.P.J.: CONCUR IN RESULTS
KUEHN, J.: CONCUR
ROWLAND, J.: CONCUR
LEWIS, VICE PRESIDING JUDGE, CONCURRING IN RESULTS:
¶ 1 I commend my colleague on his well-written opinion, particularly his scholarly review of Proposition VI on the issue of extrajudicial identification.
Stare decisis
requires that I join the opinion. However, as I expressed in my dissent in
Goree v. State
,
Davis was tried jointly with codefendants Draquan Cotton and Quantez Cotton. Draquan Cotton was convicted of Count 1: Attempted Robbery with a Weapon, After Two Prior Felony Convictions, and was sentenced to twenty-five (25) years imprisonment. Quantez Cotton was convicted of Count 1: Attempted Robbery with a Weapon; Count 2: Assault and Battery with a Deadly Weapon; and Count 3: Burglary in the First Degree. He was sentenced to five (5) years imprisonment on Count 1; seven (7) years imprisonment on Count 2; and seven (7) years imprisonment on Count 3. We affirmed Draquan's judgment and sentence on direct appeal. See Cotton v. State, No. F-2016-193, slip op. (Okl.Cr. Jan. 18, 2018) (unpublished). At Quantez's request, we dismissed his direct appeal. Cotton v. State , No. F-2016-601, Order Dismissing Appeal (Okl.Cr. Mar. 3, 2017) (unpublished).
Davis must serve 85% of the sentences imposed for Counts 2 and 3 before he is eligible for parole. 21 O.S.2011, § 13.1.
See
Myers v. State,
Reference
- Full Case Name
- Terron A. DAVIS, Appellant v. the STATE of Oklahoma, Appellee.
- Cited By
- 35 cases
- Status
- Published