Arevalo v. State

• Decision Date: 11 July 2002
• Docket Number: No. S02P0342.,S02P0342.
• Citation: 567 S.E.2d 303,275 Ga. 392
• Parties: AREVALO v. The STATE.
• Court: Georgia Supreme Court

567 S.E.2d 303

275 Ga. 392

AREVALO v. The STATE.

No. S02P0342.

Supreme Court of Georgia.

July 11, 2002.

Reconsideration Denied July 26, 2002.

Edwin J. Wilson, Snellville, for Appellant.

Daniel J. Porter, Dist. Atty., James M. Miskell, Elizabeth L. Jaeger, Asst. Dist. Attys., Lawrenceville; Thurbert E. Baker, Atty. Gen., Karen A. Johnson, Asst. Atty. Gen., Atlanta, for Appellee. CARLEY, Justice.

A jury found Joaquin Enrique Arevalo guilty of two counts of malice murder, two alternative counts of felony murder, one count of armed robbery, and two counts of possession of a firearm during the commission of a felony. The jury recommended a death sentence for the murder of Marc Ratthaus after finding beyond a reasonable doubt that the murder was committed while Arevalo was engaged in the capital felony of armed robbery and that it was outrageously or wantonly vile, horrible or inhuman in that it involved depravity of mind and an aggravated battery to the victim. See OCGA § 17-10-30(b)(2), (7). The jury also recommended the death penalty for the murder of Adolfo Gonzales after finding beyond a reasonable doubt that the murder was committed while Arevalo was engaged in the capital felony of armed robbery and that it was outrageously or wantonly vile, horrible or inhuman in that it involved depravity of mind. See OCGA § 17-10-30(b)(2), (7). Arevalo's motion for new trial was denied and he appeals.¹

General Grounds

1. Construed so as to support the jury's verdicts, the evidence presented at trial showed the following: The crimes occurred at a restaurant which had previously employed Arevalo. Approximately one week before the murders, an associate manager discharged Arevalo. Mr. Ratthaus was the manager, but he was on vacation at the time. At least some of the restaurant's employees were unaware that Ratthaus would return on April 6, 1998 and that the associate manager would not be working that day. Appellant's brother, David Arevalo, was working at the restaurant on the morning of April 6 and deliberately left a back door open to facilitate the armed robbery. Appellant and Ernesto Mejia entered the restaurant through the back door. Ratthaus was shot in the restaurant's cooler during the ensuing armed robbery, and the cook, Mr. Gonzales, was shot in the hallway as appellant and Mejia fled. Both victims were shot in the back of the head, Gonzales died instantly, and Ratthaus died later while undergoing medical treatment. After law enforcement officers interviewed David Arevalo, appellant was located and arrested. Although he initially denied involvement, appellant later admitted limited participation in the armed robbery, but claimed that Mejia was the triggerman and that the shootings were not planned. We conclude that the evidence was sufficient to authorize a rational trier of fact to find Arevalo guilty of the crimes charged beyond a reasonable doubt. Jackson v. Virginia, 443 U.S. 307, 99 S.Ct. 2781, 61 L.Ed.2d 560 (1979).

Jury Selection

2. Arevalo contends that the trial court erroneously excused three prospective jurors for cause. One of them stated that she would not vote for a death sentence because of the publicity and politics which follow and that she would most likely always choose life imprisonment without parole over death. Another prospective juror declared that she did not think she could ever under any circumstances vote for a death sentence, that it would be very hard to do so, and that she would probably always choose to let the defendant live. Thus, both of these prospective jurors, despite some equivocation, expressed a very high degree of reluctance ever to vote for the death penalty. They also indicated that they would hold the State to a higher standard of proof than the law requires.

Although a prospective juror gives answers which, standing alone, might indicate that his or her opposition to the death penalty is not "automatic," this is not decisive. [Cit.].... Moreover, it is immaterial that the disqualification of a prospective juror does not appear with "unmistakable clarity.".... An appellate court should not substitute its own finding for that of the trial court, since it must pay deference to the trial court's determination. [Cits.] This deference encompasses the trial court's resolution of any equivocations and conflicts in the prospective jurors' responses on voir dire. [Cits.]

Greene v. State, 268 Ga. 47, 49, 485 S.E.2d 741 (1997). The trial court did not abuse its discretion, but was authorized to find that these two prospective jurors conveyed the impression that they would be unable to apply the law faithfully and impartially. Greene v. State, supra at 50, 485 S.E.2d 741.

The third prospective juror excused for cause thought that, in the event that his strongly held personal beliefs conflicted with the law, he could not put them aside and that he would be unable to follow the trial court's instructions. It is critical to a juror's qualification that he be able to set aside any personal opinions and decide the case based upon the evidence and the trial court's charge. Fults v. State, 274 Ga. 82, 85(3), 548 S.E.2d 315 (2001); Garland v. State, 263 Ga. 495, 496(1), 435 S.E.2d 431 (1993). We cannot say that the trial court abused its discretion in removing this third prospective juror for cause. See Garland v. State, supra at 496-497(1), 435 S.E.2d 431.

3. Arevalo further contends that the trial court erred by failing to excuse for cause six jurors who were allegedly biased in favor of the death penalty. These jurors initially expressed their personal beliefs in support of the death penalty for murder or indicated that they anticipated voting for it if the defendant were found guilty. Several jurors also expressed reservations specifically regarding life imprisonment with parole. However, all six jurors indicated that they would follow the trial court's instructions and fully and fairly consider all the evidence and each of the three sentencing options. Two jurors were reluctant to vote for life where there was more than one victim, but later stated that they would consider all sentencing options even if there were two or more murders.

The proper standard for determining the disqualification of a prospective juror based upon his views on capital punishment "is whether the juror's views would `prevent or substantially impair the performance of his duties as a juror in accordance with his instructions and his oath.'" [Cit.].... There is no requirement that a prospective juror's qualification or disqualification appear with unmistakable clarity, since the trial court often has to resolve equivocations or conflicts in the responses on voir dire. [Cits.] (Emphasis supplied.)

Heidler v. State, 273 Ga. 54, 56(3), 537 S.E.2d 44 (2000). Therefore, this Court must pay deference both to a trial court's decision that a prospective juror is disqualified to serve and to a determination that such a juror is qualified, "and affirm the ruling below absent some manifest abuse of discretion. [Cit.]" Heidler v. State, supra. Upon examination of the entire voir dire of the prospective jurors challenged in this appeal, we conclude that the trial court properly resolved issues regarding any contradictory or equivocal responses and the jurors' abilities to consider each of the three authorized sentences in light of all of the evidence that might be presented at trial. Lucas v. State, 274 Ga. 640, 646(9), 555 S.E.2d 440 (2001); Presnell v. State, 274 Ga. 246, 251(4), 551 S.E.2d 723 (2001); Heidler v. State, supra at 56-57(3)(a), (b), (d), 537 S.E.2d 44. Accordingly, the trial court did not abuse its discretion by finding that these six jurors were qualified to serve.

4. The qualification of prospective jurors as to their views on the death penalty is not unconstitutional. DeYoung v. State, 268 Ga. 780, 790(11), 493 S.E.2d 157 (1997).

The Guilt Innocence Phase

5. During the guilt phase of the trial, the State introduced a copy of a letter purportedly written by David Arevalo to appellant while they were both inmates in the county jail. Appellant objected to the admission of the letter on several grounds, some of which are raised in this appeal.

One of those grounds was the alleged absence of proper authentication. The genuineness of a writing may be proved by circumstantial evidence. Johnson v. State, 273 Ga. 872, 873(1), 548 S.E.2d 292 (2001); State v. Smith, 246 Ga. 129, 269 S.E.2d 21 (1980); Weathers v. State, 198 Ga.App. 871, 872(3), 403 S.E.2d 449 (1991). The lengthy letter here in question was written in Spanish, a circumstance which in and of itself limits the number of possible authors. It refers to the recipient as "my brother" and "brother." Moreover, the communication contains detailed references to the crimes indicative of first-hand knowledge of how they were committed. It correctly identifies the crime scene as a restaurant, notes there were two victims, describes the manner in which the victims were killed, and even names one of the victims and notes that he was shot in the head. The writer indicates that the intended addressee drove the getaway vehicle, which was consistent with appellant's admission that he had done so. The writing also refers to another of the perpetrators by a Spanish nickname that appellant himself used to identify that individual. The letter instructs the addressee to contact "Tomas and Guillermo" for money, which are the names of two of appellant's and David's brothers. The author acknowledges speaking with the authorities about the crimes, which David had in fact done, and also offers the recipient advice for defending against the charges.

Thus, the trial court was presented with a letter which was written in Spanish to "my brother" and which discussed in great detail the crimes that appellant and his Spanish-speaking brother were charged with committing. The author of the writing admitted talking with police, as David...