Dalcin v. New York
| Decision Date | 13 July 2006 |
| Docket Number | No. 04-CV-6073 (VEB).,04-CV-6073 (VEB). |
| Citation | 438 F.Supp.2d 176 |
| Parties | Shad DALCIN, Petitioner, v. The State of NEW YORK, Respondent. |
| Court | U.S. District Court — Western District of New York |
Shad Dalcin, Elmira, NY, pro se.
Benjamin A. Bruce, New York State Office of the Attorney General, Charles D. Steinman, Rochester, NY, for Respondent.
DECISION AND ORDER
Petitioner, Shad Dalcin ("Dalcin"), proceeding pro se, filed a petition for a writ of habeas corpus pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 2254 challenging his conviction in Livingston County Court on charges of burglary and larceny. The parties have consented to disposition of this matter by the undersigned pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 636(c).
The conviction here at issue stems from an incident that occurred between 10:00 p.m. on December 13 and 4:00 a.m. on December 14, 2000, in which Dalcin allegedly entered the home of his former girl-friend, Amy Browne ("Browne"), and took fifty dollars from her purse and the keys to a car she had rented. Dalcin then allegedly stole the rental car. The indictment charged Dalcin with second degree burglary (N.Y. Penal Law § 140.25(2)); fourth degree grand larceny (N.Y. Penal Law § 155.30(8)), and petit larceny (N.Y. Penal Law § 155.25).
At trial, Connie Watkins ("Watkins"), Browne's mother, testified that she knew Dalcin as her daughter's ex-boyfriend and the father of their two children with Browne. Watkins had taken her daughter to rent a car on December 13, 2000. T.223-24.1 The following morning, at approximately 4:00 a.m., Watkins drove her car to her daughter's house so that Browne could drop off Watkins' son at work. T.225. When she arrived at the Browne residence, Watkins observed that the rental car was not in the driveway and that there was a bicycle off to the side of the driveway. Id. Watkins proceeded to wake up Browne and advise her that the rental car was missing. T.226.
Watkins then went to look for the police. T.227. Upon encountering a state trooper, Watkins advised him that someone had taken her daughter's rental car. T.228-29. Later, on her way to work, as she was driving down Oak Street, Watkins observed Dalcin standing by the rental car, which was parked by the side of the road. T.230-32. Dalcin was the only person in the area. T.230. Watkins exited her car and started swearing at Dalcin and asking him what he was doing. T.233-34. Dalcin asked Watkins if he was going to be arrested, to which she responded "probably." T.234. Watkins had Dalcin get into her car and they returned to Browne's residence. T.235. During this encounter, Watkins asked Dalcin where the keys to Browne's car were, to which Dalcin responded that the keys were in the car. Id.
Watkins testified that she had known the petitioner for thirteen years and had seen him in various states of intoxication. She stated that she did not believe that he was intoxicated at the time she observed him on December 14, 2000. T.236-38.
Avon Police Officer Michael Miller ("Miller") testified that he was working from 10:00 p.m. on December 13 to 6:00 a.m. on December 14, 2000. At approximately 4:00 a.m. on December 14, Miller was contacted by the state police and notified that they had been flagged down by a citizen (i.e., Watkins) who had reported a stolen vehicle. T.260-61. Upon arriving at Browne's residence, Miller observed a bicycle lying in the snow just west of the house. T.261. Miller subsequently saw Dalcin exiting Watkins' car, at which time Miller asked him to have a seat in the back of his patrol car. T.263. When asked about Dalcin's physical condition, Miller testified that he observed vomit on Dalcin's pants and that, in his opinion, Dalcin was intoxicated. T.264-65.
Browne testified that she had a relationship with Dalcin for ten years, between 1988 and 1998. Dalcin, who was the father of Browne's two children, also lived at her house between the summer of 1997 and December, 1998. T.271. Browne testified to a number of crimes committed by Dalcin against her: On September 19, 1996, Dalcin came home drunk and assaulted Browne. T.272-73. In July, 1998, Dalcin broke into Browne's home, a crime for which he was convicted. T.275. Browne also testified with respect to an incident on December 24, 1998, when the petitioner stole Watkins' car, another crime for which he was convicted. Id. On July 3, 1999, Dalcin again broke into Browne's residence. T.277-79. On January 12, 2000, Dalcin came to Browne's house wielding a knife. T.279.
Browne testified that, while she and Dalcin were living together, he had a set of keys to both the front and back doors of the house. However, Dalcin later claimed that he had lost the key to the back door and because of this did not return it to her when she evicted him. T.284.
Brown explained that on December 13, 2000, her car required warranty work and she rented a new Hyundai Elantra while her car was in for service. T.285. Browne drove the rental car to her home, parked it in the driveway and locked it. T.289. The keys to the car were placed in her purse and put on the counter. Id. Browne locked the doors to the house and went to bed between 9:30 and 10:00 p.m. T.289-90. At 4:00 a.m., she was awakened by her mother, who asked her where the car was since it was not in the driveway. T.290. Browne stated that she observed that the car was missing. Id. She called the police and, while waiting for them to arrive, checked her purse. T.289-90. The car keys were missing from her purse, as was fifty dollars. T.291.
Brown testified that there were no signs of forced entry. Id. She related that she observed a bicycle in the driveway, which she identified as belonging to Dalcin. T.292. According to Browne, she had not given Dalcin permission to enter her home or to take the keys, money or car. T.293.
Browne then identified a letter which Dalcin had written to a woman named Virginia Legno ("Legno"), with whom Dalcin had resided following the termination of his relationship with Browne. T.294-97. The letter was written by Dalcin while in jail following his arrest on the instant charges. T.301. In the letter, Dalcin admitted to walking by Browne's residence on the night in question and stealing the car that was in the driveway and running it into a tree, believing that it was Legno's car. T.302. Browne identified a photograph of the car taken after it was recovered, which showed that it had sustained damage subsequent to the time she had left it in her driveway. T.306.
Avon Police Chief John Braisington ("Braisington") testified that he was on duty on December 14, 2000 and that he knew Dalcin. T.331. At approximately 9:14 a.m., Braisington had a conversation with Dalcin wherein he stated that he wanted to know what kind of deal there might be with regard to the incident involving the theft of Browne's rental car. T.332. According to Braisington, Dalcin's responses were logical and he appeared to be aware of his surroundings. T.333-34.
Avon Police Officer John Carney ("Carney"), an evidence technician, testified that on December 14, 2000, he processed the rental vehicle that was recovered on Oak Street. T.336. Carney identified several pictures of the driver's side interior of the car, which showed that the dashboard and floor were covered with vomit. T.338-39. Carney also identified a picture of a car owned by Legno in December of 2000 and testified that her car and the car rented by Browne appeared to be similar. T.340-41.
Following the close of the prosecution's case, trial counsel called two witnesses in support of a defense of intoxication. The first was Legno, who testified that she observed Dalcin drinking in a bar on December 13, 2000, and that she told the bartender not to give him any more because he had had too much to drink. T.347-48. According to Legno, Dalcin was intoxicated when he left at 10:00 p.m. T.349, 365. The second defense witness was Heather Vonglis ("Vonglis"), who was a bartender at the bar where Dalcin was drinking on December 13, 2000. T.375-76. In Vonglis's opinion, Dalcin was intoxicated, so she cut him off and told him to leave the bar. T.378. Larry Dalcin, the petitioner's father, testified for the defense that he had never seen the bicycle that was found outside the Browne residence on December 14, 2000, at the petitioner's apartment. T.369-70.
The jury returned a verdict convicting Dalcin as charged in the indictment. T.478-79. On October 16, 2001, Dalcin was sentenced to concurrent terms of imprisonment, the longest of which was ten years on the burglary charge. Dalcin appealed his conviction to the Appellate Division, Fourth Department, of New York State Supreme Court, urging that reversal was warranted upon the following grounds: (1) the trial court committed reversible error in permitting the prosecution to introduce evidence of the petitioner's prior crimes against Browne and her family; (2) the verdict sheet impermissibly contained references to penal law classifications; and (3) the sentence was unduly harsh and excessive. On December 30, 2002, the Fourth Department unanimously affirmed Dalcin's conviction. People v. Dalcin, 300 A.D.2d 1129, 751 N.Y.S.2d 891 (4th Dept. 2002). The New York Court of Appeals denied leave to appeal. People v. Dalcin, 99 N.Y.2d 627, 760 N.Y.S.2d 108, 790 N.E.2d 282 (N.Y.2003). This habeas petition followed in which Dalcin raises the same grounds for relief that he raised on his state-court direct appeal. For the reasons set forth below, the petition is dismissed.
To prevail under 28 U.S.C. § 2254, as amended in 1996, a petitioner seeking federal review of his conviction must demonstrate that the state court's adjudication of his federal constitutional claim resulted in a decision that was contrary to or involved an unreasonable application of clearly established Supreme Court precedent, or resulted in a decision that was based...
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