Com. v. Drumheller
| Decision Date | 20 September 2002 |
| Citation | 808 A.2d 893,570 Pa. 117 |
| Parties | COMMONWEALTH of Pennsylvania, Appellee v. Troy G. DRUMHELLER, Appellant. |
| Court | Pennsylvania Supreme Court |
Timothy Andrew Bowers, Danville, for appellant, Troy G. Drumheller.
Marianne Kreisher Fogelsanger, Robert A. Graci, Harrisburg, for appellee, Com. of PA.
Before ZAPPALA, C.J., and CAPPY, CASTILLE, NIGRO, NEWMAN, SAYLOR and EAKIN, JJ.
Troy G. Drumheller (Drumheller) brings this direct appeal from the Judgment of Sentence of the Court of Common Pleas of Columbia County (trial court) that sentenced him to death following his conviction for first-degree murder. After reviewing the claims raised by Drumheller, we affirm the conviction and sentence of death.
The evidence suggests that Drumheller and his sometimes girlfriend, Carol Huttenstine (Huttenstine), had a violent and abusive relationship. In fact, Huttenstine filed four separate protection from abuse (PFA) petitions against Drumheller, one in July of 1996, one in February of 1997, one in December of 1997, and the most recent one on January 15, 1999. Each of the PFA petitions contained recitations of acts of abuse perpetrated by Drumheller against Huttenstine, including numerous incidents where Drumheller punched Huttenstine in the face, pulled her hair, kicked her, threw her to the ground, choked her, and threatened to kill her. Following the filing of each petition, the court entered a restraining order against Drumheller. With the last PFA petition, the court issued a temporary restraining order against Drumheller on January 15, 1999, and issued a final restraining order on February 8, 1999, that Huttenstine never requested be discontinued, altered, or modified.
This final PFA order was in effect at the time of Huttenstine's death on April 24, 1999. The court served Drumheller with notice of the January 15, 1999 PFA order restricting his contact with Huttenstine. However, on at least four occasions, Huttenstine reported to police that Drumheller had violated the terms of that order by contacting her. (Notes of Testimony (N.T.), dated December 6, 2000, Volume 4, at 152-153). In fact, on March 2, 1999, approximately six weeks before her death, Huttenstine reported to police that Drumheller had appeared at her home and had grabbed her. Id. at 144-148.
On August 12, 1997, Huttenstine had contacted police to provide them with information regarding the drug trafficking activities of Drumheller. Thereafter, Huttenstine became a confidential informant and had contact with police many times. Brenda Thomas (Thomas), another former girlfriend of Drumheller, who was also cooperating with police as a confidential informant, testified that she had first met Huttenstine in May of 1997, at which point Huttenstine showed her bruises and bite marks. According to Thomas, Huttenstine told her that Drumheller had done this by punching her, pulling her hair, biting her, and kicking her with steel-toed boots. Id. at 195. While Huttenstine was at Thomas' house, Drumheller appeared and accused them both of plotting against him to set him up on a drug bust. Id. at 196. Drumheller allegedly told Huttenstine and Thomas that if "either one of [them] ever did anything to set him up he would kill [them]." Id. On other occasions, Drumheller told Thomas that he thought Huttenstine was providing information to police about his drug dealing and that if he "ever found out or had proof to back up his suspicions he would kill her." Id. at 197. Cheryl Cerasoli (Cerasoli), the director of Beyond Violence, a women's center that Huttenstine frequented between January of 1999 and her death that April, testified that Huttenstine told her that, Id. at 208-209.
Shortly after midnight on April 24, 1999, the date of her murder, Huttenstine appeared at the mobile home of Robert Brockway (Brockway), a friend and co-worker of Huttenstine. Brockway testified that Huttenstine told him that Drumheller had gotten into her house and had started beating her. (N.T., dated December 5, 2000, Volume 3, at 38-39). Huttenstine showed Brockway bruises and bite marks. Id. At approximately 1:30 a.m., Brockway and Huttenstine were startled by a loud noise; Brockway testified to the ensuing events as follows:
(N.T., Volume 3, at 43-51). Brockway made it to the home of a neighbor, who called the police and the paramedics. At 1:44 a.m., the State Police arrived at the scene and observed Huttenstine's motionless body laying on the floor of Brockway's mobile home.
Dr. Michael Kenny (Dr. Kenny), the coroner and a forensic pathologist, pronounced Huttenstine dead at 2:41 a.m. and estimated the time of death to be 1:35 a.m. Dr. Kenny testified that Huttenstine was stabbed twenty-one different times, of which six of the wounds were potentially fatal. (N.T., dated December 5, 2000, Volume 2, at 39, 54). He stated that the stab wounds were at different orientations and angles, indicating a struggle, which was corroborated by a myriad of defensive wounds present on Huttenstine's hands. Id. at 56. Additionally, Dr. Kenny observed bruising on Huttenstine's body, including her knee, thigh, and arm, which he estimated had been inflicted within the three to five days preceding her death. Id. at 45.
Following a nine-hour search, the police arrested Drumheller and charged him with murder,1 attempted murder,2 two counts of aggravated assault,3 two counts of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon,4 and burglary.5 The police confiscated the clothing that Drumheller was wearing at the time of his arrest and tested it. The tests revealed the presence of blood consistent with that of Huttenstine on Drumheller's sweatshirt. (N.T., Volume 4, at 67-68, 82, 90).
The trial court appointed a public defender to represent Drumheller. On June 28, 1999, the Commonwealth informed Drumheller and the court of its intention to seek the death penalty. On July 28, 1999, Drumheller filed an omnibus pre-trial motion seeking, inter alia, a change of venue or venire. On November 1, 1999, the trial court continued the motion for change of venue or venire until jury selection. On November 9, 1999, the voters of Columbia County elected Drumheller's public defender to the position of...
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