Com. v. Medeiros

• Decision Date: 09 July 1985
• Citation: Com. v. Medeiros, 479 N.E.2d 1371, 395 Mass. 336 (Mass. 1985)
• Parties: COMMONWEALTH v. Gilbert A. MEDEIROS.
• Court: Supreme Judicial Court of Massachusetts

Page 1371

479 N.E.2d 1371

395 Mass. 336

COMMONWEALTH v. Gilbert A. MEDEIROS.

Supreme Judicial Court of Massachusetts Bristol.

Argued May 6, 1985.

Decided July 9, 1985.

Raymond A. Letourneau, New Bedford (John P. Letourneau, New Bedford, with him), for defendant.

Phillip L. Weiner, Asst. Dist. Atty. (Dana A. Curhan, Asst. Dist. Atty., with him), for the Commonwealth.

Before HENNESSEY, C.J., and WILKINS, LIACOS, ABRAMS and O'CONNOR, JJ.

HENNESSEY, Chief Justice.

The defendant, Gilbert A. Medeiros, is appealing his conviction by a jury in the Superior Court for the murder in the second degree of William N. Lawrence. He contends that the trial judge erred in: (1) failing to instruct the jury properly on the lesser included offense of involuntary manslaughter; (2) denying the defendant's motion to suppress statements made to the police; (3) informing the jury, during his charge, that the Commonwealth does not have a death penalty; and (4) admitting in evidence a photograph of the victim taken at an autopsy conducted approximately one month after his death. He also claims that certain errors, although not objected to at trial, pose a substantial risk of a miscarriage of justice and therefore warrant a new trial.

The facts may be summarized as follows. William Lawrence was found dead in his New Bedford apartment on December 28, 1979. He was lying on a bed with a pillow over his face and a rope loosely hanging around his neck. There was dried blood on the victim's face and the pillow was also bloodstained. The victim suffered from epilepsy and indulged in alcohol and drug abuse. Several pill bottles, some of which were empty, were found at the foot of the bed along with a telephone paging beeper. After medical examiner Dr. Stanley Koczera examined the victim's body, it was removed to a funeral home. The next day, Dr. Koczera and Dr. Ambrose Keeley, the State pathologist, arrived at the funeral home to conduct an autopsy but were refused permission to do so. The victim's death certificate, signed by Dr. Koczera, attributed the cause of death to "[a]sphyxiation due to obstruction of airway" resulting from suicide. The victim's body was buried without an autopsy having been performed.

The police discovered that the beeper found in the victim's apartment had been stolen from a New Bedford resident on December 18, 1979, the day on which she had a new rug installed in her home. The defendant was identified as one of the men who had installed the rug. At about noon on January 15, 1980, two police detectives went to a game room to speak with the defendant. After becoming visibly upset, the defendant agreed to talk to them in their cruiser, where they informed him that they were investigating the theft of the beeper. He agreed to accompany the detectives to the police station, after being told that he was not under arrest. He arrived at the station at about 1 P.M., at which time he was taken to an interrogation room and advised of his Mirandarights. In response to police questioning, the defendant admitted installing the rug, but denied taking the beeper. He was then asked whether he knew Lawrence and admitted that he did. One of the detectives then explained his "theory" of the beeper to the defendant, accusing him of taking the beeper to Lawrence's apartment, fighting with the victim, and consequently causing his death. The defendant was not readvised of his Miranda rights at this time. After further questioning, the defendant admitted stealing the beeper and meeting Lawrence on December 22, 1979, but denied fighting with the victim or ever visiting his apartment. At about 2 P.M. the defendant agreed to take a polygraph test. Prior to the test, the examiner read him his Miranda rights and the defendant signed a consent form attesting to the voluntariness of the examination. After the polygraph examination, at approximately 4:15 P.M., the defendant was again advised of his Miranda rights and again indicated that he understood and intended to waive his rights. However, he refused to sign a waiver of rights form. He was then told that the results of the polygraph examination showed he had answered certain questions deceptively. ¹ As a result of further questioning, the defendant admitted going to Lawrence's apartment on December 23, 1979. He stated that while at the apartment, Lawrence made a homosexual advance toward him which he warded off by striking the victim. Lawrence then allegedly hit the defendant as he was attempting to leave the apartment and the defendant struck him back, causing the victim to fall onto the bed. The defendant then climbed atop the victim and struck him on the head twice more. At that point Lawrence appeared to be unconscious, his face was bloody, and he was foaming at the mouth. The defendant alleged that he then put a pillow over the victim's face and loosely looped the end of a rope, which was in the room and used as a fire escape device, around the victim's neck. At about 5:45 P.M. the defendant was asked and agreed to sign a waiver of rights form. His statement was then read to additional police officers, and the defendant interjected periodically to clarify, correct, or add details. The defendant was then placed under arrest for Lawrence's murder. His pretrial motion to suppress all the foregoing statements was denied.

As a result of the defendant's admissions, the victim's body was exhumed on January 23, 1980, and an autopsy was conducted by Dr. Keeley. The autopsy report stated that Lawrence "died of blunt force injuries of the head and asphyxia secondary to ligature strangulation." At trial, Dr. Keeley admitted that none of the most common alterations normally appearing in a person who died from ligature strangulation was found. He explained their absence as due to advanced decomposition. A pathologist who testified for the defense stated that, after reviewing the autopsy report and facts presented, he could not determine, with reasonable medical certainty, the date or cause of the victim's death. The defendant did not testify at trial. On December 15, 1980, the jury returned verdicts against the defendant of larceny and murder in the second degree. The defendant's motion for a new trial was denied, and we transferred the case to this court on our own motion.

1. Manslaughter Instructions.

The defendant claims that the judge erred in failing to instruct the jury properly on involuntary manslaughter. In response to the defendant's request, such an instruction was given. However, after the charge, ² the defendant's request for curative instructions was denied. The Commonwealth argues that involuntary manslaughter instructions were not warranted by the evidence and therefore any deficiencies in the instruction could not prejudice the defendant. We agree.

"Involuntary manslaughter is an unlawful homicide, unintentionally caused (1) in the commission of an unlawful act, malum in se, not amounting to a felony nor likely to endanger life, ... or (2) by an act which constitutes such a disregard of probable harmful consequences to another as to constitute wanton or reckless conduct." Commonwealth v. Campbell, 352 Mass. 387, 397, 226 N.E.2d 211 (1967), and cases cited. It is well established that, "if any view of the evidence in a case would permit a finding of manslaughter rather than murder, a manslaughter charge should be given.... On the other hand, a judge need not charge on a hypothesis not supported by evidence." Commonwealth v. Walden, 380 Mass. 724, 726-727, 405 N.E.2d 939 (1980).

The Commonwealth argues that where death is caused by ligature strangulation, "[o]n no view of the evidence could the jury rationally have found that the death ... was caused unintentionally." Id. at 730, 405 N.E.2d 939. See Commonwealth v. Santo, 375 Mass. 299, 306, 376 N.E.2d 866 (1978). The defendant contends that the jury could have disregarded Dr. Keeley's opinion as to the cause of Lawrence's death and inferred from other medical testimony that he died as the result of the defendant's blows, either alone or as the catalyst of an epileptic seizure. According to the defendant, "that scenario ... would be involuntary manslaughter at worst." We disagree. Even assuming that the defendant's "hypothesis ... is entirely true," Campbell, supra 352 Mass. at 398, 226 N.E.2d 211, the evidence would warrant an instruction on voluntary, not involuntary, manslaughter. According to the statements the defendant gave the police, he struck Lawrence to ward off his sexual advances. He alleged that the victim made verbal overtures to him and tried to pull the defendant towards him. In response, the defendant struck the victim. Then, as the defendant attempted to leave the apartment, Lawrence allegedly struck him in the face. At this point, the defendant knocked Lawrence onto the bed, climbed on top of him and hit him twice more about the head until he was unconscious.

"Voluntary manslaughter is a killing from a sudden transport of passion or heat of blood upon a reasonable provocation and without malice or upon sudden combat." Commonwealth v. Peters, 372 Mass. 319, 324, 361 N.E.2d 1277 (1977), quoting Commonwealth v. Soaris, 275 Mass. 291, 299, 175 N.E. 491 (1931). Voluntary manslaughter also encompasses deaths caused by the use of excessive force in self-defense, Commonwealth v. Walden, 380 Mass. 724, 729, 405 N.E.2d 939 (1980). Commonwealth v. Kendrick, 351 Mass. 203, 211-212, 218 N.E.2d 408 (1966). To resolve all inferences in the defendant's favor, Campbell, supra 352 Mass. at 398, 226 N.E.2d 211, we will assume that the victim's advances constituted reasonable provocation and that there was some continuing threat to the defendant's well being. The same inferences, however, are insufficient to warrant an involuntary manslaughter instruction. By his own admissions, the defendant deliberately and repeatedly struck the victim, even while the victim was subdued and lying on his back. "The unlawful...