Commonwealth v. Gaynor
| Decision Date | 07 October 2004 |
| Citation | 443 Mass. 245,820 NE 2d 233 |
| Parties | COMMONWEALTH v. ALFRED GAYNOR. |
| Court | United States State Supreme Judicial Court of Massachusetts Supreme Court |
Present: MARSHALL, C.J., GREANEY, SPINA, & SOSMAN, JJ.
Kenneth J. King for the defendant.
Marcia B. Julian, Assistant District Attorney, for the Commonwealth.
The defendant was convicted of the aggravated rape and murder of four women in Springfield between November 1, 1997, and March 11, 1998. The jury returned verdicts under all three theories of murder in the first degree in each case. On appeal, the defendant asserts error in certain pretrial rulings, including (1) the denial of his motions to suppress evidence where (a) his consent to the taking of a blood sample allegedly was obtained by trickery, and therefore not voluntary, (b) the scope of the search of his blood exceeded the scope of his consent, and (c) the second of two statements he gave police allegedly was obtained in violation of his assertion of the right to counsel; (2) change of trial venue to a community that is not demographically representative of the community where the crimes occurred; (3) joinder of four cases that he contends are not related within the meaning of Mass. R. Crim. P. 9, 378 Mass. 859 (1979); and (4) rulings that deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) evidence taken from mixed DNA samples was sufficiently reliable to be admitted in evidence, and that the database on which Cellmark Diagnostics Laboratories (Cellmark) based its frequency calculations was adequate. The defendant also alleges error at trial from (1) the admission of hearsay testimony to impeach his first statement to police; (2) the admission of evidence that constituted improper comment on his right to remain silent; (3) the denial of his motion to limit the prosecutor's cross-examination of the defendant to the case on which the defendant intended to offer alibi testimony; and (4) the prosecutor's closing argument. Finally, the defendant asks us to grant him a new trial under G. L. c. 278, § 33E. We affirm the convictions and decline to grant relief under § 33E.
1. Facts. The jury could have found the following facts.
a. Victim no. 1. The victim put her children to bed at 10 P.M. on October 31, 1997. Sometime between midnight and 12:30 A.M., the first-floor tenant at 866 Worthington Street in Springfield heard a "scream of pain" followed by a "thud" from the victim's second-floor apartment. The victim's son discovered her body on the living room couch after he awoke at 7 A.M. on November 1. Her naked body was covered by a blanket and a towel had been placed over her head. Her hands were bound behind her back.
An autopsy revealed that death was caused by asphyxia due to manual strangulation. The victim's blood tested positive for metabolites of cocaine and alcohol. Her anus was widely dilated, consistent with penetration.
The defendant's thumb print was identified on a broken ashtray found in the living room, and his palm print was identified on a hair gel container, also in the living room. Fecal matter was found on a sock and inside the rim of a small vase recovered from the victim's living room. The defendant told his brother that he had had anal intercourse with women he met in the Worthington-Federal Streets section of Springfield, an area known for prostitutes and "crack" cocaine. The defendant's brother had driven him several times in October and November, 1997, to the neighborhood where the victim lived.
Several items collected from the scene and all biological evidence recovered from the first victim's body, as well as blood samples given by the defendant were sent to Cellmark for DNA analysis. Cellmark performed two series of polymerase chain reaction (PCR) tests on DNA samples taken from items submitted in all four cases. The first series of tests were performed at nine genetic loci: DQ Alpha, five polymarker (PM) loci, and three (TPOX, THO1, and CSF) short tandem repeat (STR) loci. In some instances testing was done at a tenth locus, identified as D1S80. Some of these tests were witnessed by a defense expert. A second series of PCR tests was done on some samples at thirteen core STR loci (including the three STR loci where testing previously had been done) designated for inclusion in the national database that contains DNA profiles1 of convicted felons, known as the combined DNA index system, or CODIS. See G. L. c. 22E, § 1 (definitions). A defense expert was present during the second series of tests. DNA samples from seven other suspects were examined and all seven were excluded as contributors in each case.
In the case of the first victim, sperm fractions, the part of sperm that contains DNA, were extracted from sperm cells found on several items taken from the scene, including a sock, the victim's shirt, the rim and side of the small vase, a carpet section and a towel. They were also extracted from sperm cells on an anorectal swab taken at autopsy. After the first series of tests on DNA samples from the sperm fractions, the defendant could not be excluded as the contributor. A frequency calculation based on tests of the sample from the anorectal swab indicated that one in 450,000 African-Americans would be expected to share this DNA profile. Frequency calculations based on tests of the sample from the victim's shirt and the sock indicated that one in 8.4 million African-Americans would be expected to have the same DNA profile. The samples of DNA from the victim's shirt and the sock were determined to have come from a single source, male, and not a mixture of DNA from two or more persons. Frequency calculations based on the second series of tests performed on the sperm fractions from the first victim's shirt and the sock indicated a "match" to the defendant's DNA profile: one in 64 quadrillion (64 × 1015) African-Americans would be expected to have the same DNA profile as the sperm fraction.
b. Victim no. 2. The second victim had a drug and alcohol problem and would prostitute herself to obtain money to purchase drugs. She frequented a crack house at 65 Maynard Street, Springfield, where crack cocaine could be obtained for cash, goods, or sex. Sexual favors were often exchanged on the premises for cocaine. The defendant was a "regular" at 65 Maynard Street, where he obtained both drugs and sex.
At approximately 9 A.M. on February 2, 1998, the victim's partially naked body was discovered in an alley near a post office on State Street in Springfield, a few blocks away from Maynard Street. Her arms were extended over her head by her sweatshirt, which had been pulled up over her head. Fecal matter was found on a gray sweatshirt and two socks. A ballpoint pen was found under her body. The pen was a promotional item similar to one the defendant had obtained at a local auto body shop one week earlier.
An autopsy disclosed that death was caused by manual strangulation. Cocaine metabolites were present in the victim's blood. Her anus was dilated, consistent with penetration. The pathologist concluded that the victim had been dead one to two days when the autopsy was performed on February 3.
The first series of DNA tests on sperm fractions extracted from sperm cells found on a sock, a sweatshirt, and an undershirt taken from or near the victim's body could not exclude the defendant as the contributor. A frequency calculation based on the second series of tests on the sperm fractions from the sock and the undershirt indicated a match to the defendant's DNA profile: one in 64 quadrillion African-Americans would be expected to have the same DNA profile as that found in the sperm fraction. The DNA in the samples from the sock and the undershirt were determined to have come from a single source, male, and not a mixture.
c. Victim no. 3. She also was a regular at 65 Maynard Street, and prostituted herself to support her drug habit. She and the defendant arrived there together between 9 P.M. and 9:30 P.M. on February 10, 1998. The defendant was trying to exchange compact discs for drugs. They left, but returned sometime between 11 P.M. and 11:30 P.M., then left again.
The victim's son discovered her body on the evening of February 11, 1998, in the bedroom of her apartment at Lionel Benoit Road, Springfield, a short distance from Maynard Street. There was no evidence of forced entry. The victim's clothing had been pushed up around her head. The defendant's palm print was identified on a ceramic coffee mug on a dresser in the bedroom.
An autopsy revealed evidence of strangulation, but death was caused by asphyxiation from a sock that was lodged in the victim's airway. Cocaine metabolites were present in her blood. Her anus was dilated, consistent with penetration. The pathologist estimated time of death at between 10 P.M. on February 10, 1998, and 4 A.M. on February 11.
The first series of DNA tests could not exclude the defendant as a contributor of sperm fractions extracted from sperm cells on vaginal and anorectal swabs taken at the autopsy, and on sweatpants, a pillowcase, and a sanitary pad collected in the bedroom. A frequency calculation indicated that one in 490 African-Americans would be expected to share the DNA profile of the sperm fractions from the vaginal swab. The second series of tests produced similar results, but frequency calculations were not performed because the samples comprised a mixture of DNA consistent with the profiles of both the victim and the defendant, and a primary contributor could not be identified.
d. Victim no. 4. The fourth victim's teenage daughter filed a missing person report with the Springfield police on February 19, 1998, after her mother failed to return home the previous night. The teenager had walked around the apartment complex and discovered her mother's car, but it was not parked in the customary place. It had been ransacked, and the keys were on the floor.
At approximately 11 P.M. on February 18, 1998, the defendant, the victim, and a second woman...
To continue reading
Request your trial