Com. v. Watkins

• Decision Date: 06 June 2003
• Citation: 843 A.2d 1203,577 Pa. 194
• Parties: COMMONWEALTH of Pennsylvania, Appellee, v. Gerald WATKINS, Appellant.
• Court: Pennsylvania Supreme Court

843 A.2d 1203

577 Pa. 194

COMMONWEALTH of Pennsylvania, Appellee, v. Gerald WATKINS, Appellant.

Supreme Court of Pennsylvania.

Argued September 9, 2002.

Decided June 6, 2003.

Reargument Denied March 23, 2004.

John L. Elash, for Gerard Watkins.

Michael Wayne Streily, Rebecca Denean Spangler, Sally Katherine Kaye, Pittsburgh, Robert A. Graci, Harrisburg, for Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.

Before ZAPPALA, C.J., and CAPPY, CASTILLE, NIGRO, NEWMAN, SAYLOR and EAKIN, JJ.

OPINION

Justice SAYLOR.

This is a direct appeal from a judgment of sentence imposed on December 13, 1996, by the Allegheny County Court of Common Pleas.

In December of 1994, Appellant was charged by information with three counts of criminal homicide for the shooting deaths of his ex-girlfriend and her two minor children in Pittsburgh.¹ On August 3, 1995, Appellant was arrested in New York City and returned to Pennsylvania. Pursuant to Rule of Criminal Procedure 352, the Commonwealth filed a notice of intent to seek the death penalty, and Appellant filed a motion to bar its imposition, as well as an omnibus pre-trial motion in which he sought, inter alia, suppression of certain statements he made to Pittsburgh detectives while en route from New York to Allegheny County. The trial court denied the omnibus motion after a hearing on December 9, 1996, deferring until completion of the guilt phase any ruling on the death penalty motion. Trial was held on December 9-12, 1996, after which the jury found Appellant guilty of three counts of first-degree murder. The following day, the same jury determined that the aggravating circumstances outweighed any mitigating factors, and set the penalty at death for each homicide.² The court denied Appellant's prior motion to bar imposition of the death penalty, and formally imposed three consecutive sentences of death.

On December 26, 1996, penalty phase counsel filed post-sentence motions, alleging that the death penalty statute was unconstitutional and challenging the trial court's instructions during the penalty phase. Thereafter, on December 30, 1996, the court appointed John Elash, Esq. (present counsel) to represent Appellant for purposes of filing a petition pursuant to the Capital Unitary Review Act ("CURA"), 42 Pa.C.S. §§ 9570-9579. The trial court denied the post-sentence motions by order dated April 24, 1997, and no appeal from such denial was taken. Subsequently, on May 2, 1997, Attorney Elash filed a CURA petition alleging trial counsel's ineffectiveness in preparing for trial, and challenging the constitutionality of CURA. An amended CURA petition was filed August 4, 1997. This Court suspended CURA one week later, see In re Suspension of the Capital Unitary Review Act, No. 224 Criminal Procedural Rules Docket No. 2 (filed August 11, 1997), reh'g denied, 554 Pa. 625, 722 A.2d 676 (Pa.1999), effectively rendering Appellant's CURA petition moot and ending Attorney Elash's representation.

For reasons that do not appear in the record, no notice of appeal was filed on behalf of Appellant nor was the record transmitted to this Court. The matter thus remained dormant for several years until the trial court discovered that no decision was pending in the case. The court then issued an order, dated February 28, 2001, inter alia, reciting that Appellant's CURA petition had been dismissed by operation of law upon CURA's suspension, withdrawing all prior counsel, and re-appointing Attorney Elash to represent Appellant in his appeal to this Court. The trial court additionally prepared an opinion addressing the issues raised in Appellant's pre-trial motion, in his death penalty motion, during trial, in his post-sentence motions, and in his CURA petition. The case was then certified for immediate appeal to this Court.

At approximately 10:00 p.m. on July 20, 1994, Beth Ann Anderson telephoned her friend and neighbor, Monique Kohlman, and told her that "Gerald [is] downstairs banging on the door." Anderson, who was using a portable phone, asked Kohlman to stay on the line as she went to the door. Kohlman then heard Anderson say, "Who is it?" and then, "Gerald." A few seconds later an individual whose voice and accent Kohlman recognized as belonging to Appellant, picked up the phone and spoke with Kohlman. He identified himself as `G', which Kohlman recognized as Appellant's nickname. The phone was then placed down, and Kohlman heard Anderson say "ow" or "stop Gerald." She then heard the sounds of a struggle, and then Anderson saying, "Call the police." After summoning the police, Kohlman went to Anderson's home, and, as she pounded on the front door, the police arrived and forced entry. Kohlman entered the house and observed Anderson on the floor and Anderson's 18-day-old baby, Melanie Watkins, lying on the couch. She tried unsuccessfully to detect pulses on both victims. The police then asked her to wait outside on the front porch.

Another neighbor, Ronnie Williams, saw Appellant on the porch of the Anderson home during the evening of July 20, 1994. He said that he recognized Appellant as Anderson's boyfriend, and that he saw him knocking on the front door to her home. He did not see him enter, because he went to answer the phone. When he returned to the front door several minutes later, the police had already arrived. The following day, Williams picked Appellant's photo from a photo array as the individual he saw. He also identified Appellant at trial as the person he had seen.

Pittsburgh Police Officer Talib Ghafoor responded to the call from Kohlman. Officer Ghafoor arrived as Kohlman was trying to enter the residence. Upon entering, he observed Anderson on the floor and the baby on the couch. Anderson had wounds to her face and the baby had what appeared to be a gunshot wound to the abdomen. When the officer proceeded upstairs to secure the residence, he discovered the body of nine-year-old Charles Kevin Kelly, Jr. ("Kevin") in the hallway at the top of the stairs. Officer Ghafoor observed that Kevin had a bullet wound near his right ear and was not moving or breathing.

Pittsburgh Homicide Detective Thomas Foley processed the crime scene. He testified that in the living room, where the bodies of Anderson and her daughter were found, a coffee table had been upturned and its contents spilled on the floor. Numerous spent .22 caliber shell casings, as well as several live rounds, were found throughout the room. Shell casings and spent bullets were also strewn about Kevin's body. All three victims were warm to the touch, indicating recent death. Forensic pathologist Leon Rozin, M.D., testified that the victims all died of multiple gunshot wounds: eighteen-day-old Melanie Watkins had been shot twelve times; Beth Ann Anderson received eight shots to her trunk and head; and her son Kevin was shot five times in the face, head, and neck. There was soot or powder stripling around many of the wounds, indicating that the bullets had been fired at close range. The Commonwealth's ballistics expert, Dr. Robert Levine of the Allegheny County Crime Lab, testified that all of the spent cartridge casings found at the crime scene were discharged from the same semi-automatic.22 caliber firearm, which was capable of holding a thirty-round clip. He additionally indicated that the markings on the bullets found at the scene were consistent with having been fired from a "Tech.22" semi-automatic handgun.

Appellant's friend Keith Platt testified that he had been with Appellant at a bar until approximately 9:30 p.m. on the night of the murders. One or two days after the crime, Appellant called Platt and said: "You know who this is. I'm not f___ing around. You know what I've done. Shut up and listen." Appellant then told Platt that he needed Platt to contact several mutual acquaintances who owed Appellant money, and instruct them to send the money to Appellant. When Platt declined, Appellant threatened to harm Platt and his family if he did not cooperate. Platt also testified that he knew Appellant only as `G,' and did not learn that his actual name was Gerald until after the murders. In May of 1995, FBI Special Agent Robert Bendetson and other members of the New York Fugitive Task Force apprehended Appellant in New York City, and informed him of his rights pursuant to Miranda v. Arizona, 384 U.S. 436, 479, 86 S.Ct. 1602, 1630, 16 L.Ed.2d 694 (1966). After waiving those rights orally and by executing a form to that effect, Appellant gave the agent a statement. He said that, on the evening in question, he left Pittsburgh at approximately 7:00 in his grandmother's car. He admitted having been at Anderson's house earlier that day, but denied having argued with her. He said that he drove to Fort Lee, New Jersey, left the car there, and took a bus into New York City. Although Appellant admitted knowing that he was wanted for Anderson's murder, he claimed not to have been aware of the deaths of his daughter Melanie or Anderson's son Kevin. He also admitted having seen an episode of the television show, "America's Most Wanted," which featured a story about him, but claimed that he had not paid close enough attention to learn of the death of his daughter, Melanie. He admitted further that he never inquired into Melanie's well being after learning of Anderson's death.

On August, 3, 1995, Pittsburgh homicide Detectives Logan and McDonald drove to New York to bring Appellant back for trial. After an extradition hearing at which Appellant was represented by New York counsel, Attorney Earl Rawlins, Appellant and the two officers left for Pittsburgh. Detective Logan testified that, during the initial part of the drive, Appellant was talkative, but confined the discussion to matters unrelated to the homicides. As they approached Somerset, Pennsylvania, however, Appellant raised the topic of the killings. Detective Logan interrupted Appellant and advised him of his rights. Appellant said that he understood his rights and agreed to make a...