Eaglin v. State, SC06-760.

• Citation: 19 So.3d 935
• Decision Date: 04 June 2009
• Docket Number: No. SC06-760.,SC06-760.
• Parties: Dwight T. EAGLIN, Appellant, v. STATE of Florida, Appellee.
• Court: United States State Supreme Court of Florida

19 So.3d 935

Dwight T. EAGLIN, Appellant, v. STATE of Florida, Appellee.

No. SC06-760.

Supreme Court of Florida.

June 4, 2009.

As Revised on Denial of Rehearing October 8, 2009.

James Marion Moorman, Public Defender, and Robert F. Moeller, Assistant Public Defender, Tenth Judicial Circuit, Bartow, Florida, for Appellant.

Bill McCollum, Attorney General, Tallahassee Florida, and Stephen D. Ake, Assistant Attorney General, Tampa, Florida, for Appellee.

PER CURIAM.

This case is before the Court on appeal from judgments of conviction for first-degree murder and sentences of death. We have jurisdiction. See art. V, § 3(b)(1), Fla. Const. For the reasons set forth below, we affirm Eaglin's convictions and sentences.

FACTS

Dwight T. Eaglin, who was serving a life sentence for murder when the crimes occurred in this case, was convicted of the June 11, 2003, murders of correctional officer Darla K. Lathrem and inmate Charles Fuston. The conviction and death sentence of codefendant Stephen Smith, who was tried separately for the murder of Lathrem, was affirmed by this Court and rehearing was denied. See Smith v. State, 998 So.2d 516 (Fla.2008), cert. denied, ___ U.S. ___, 129 S.Ct. 2006, 173 L.Ed.2d 1101 (2009) (No. 08-8829). A third codefendant, Michael Jones, pled guilty to first-degree murder and received a life sentence. Id.

The evidence at trial established that in 2003, the Charlotte Correctional Institution was undergoing a renovation of the inmate dormitories. That same year, Eaglin, Smith, and Jones, who were part of a group of inmates permitted to participate in the renovation process, began planning an escape attempt. With regard to the escape plans, the inmates constructed an escape ladder and a metal tool that would hook to the outer lights of the prison, but the tool was destroyed a month before the attempted escape. Eaglin blamed Fuston and John Beaston, another inmate, for destroying the tool.

Two inmates, Kenneth Christopher Lykins and Jesse Baker, testified to what they heard about the escape plans. Lykins testified that he overheard Eaglin, Smith, and Jones talking about their upcoming escape. Specifically, Eaglin stated that he would kill Fuston before he left because "he didn't like the way he disrespected him." Lykins also overheard Eaglin state that he would kill anyone who tried to stop him from doing what he was going to do. On cross-examination, Lykins, a twelve-time convicted felon, was impeached with an affidavit in which he denied knowing anything about the escape or the killing of Lathrem and Fuston. He explained this prior inconsistency by stating he had been concerned with his own safety.

Jesse Baker, another inmate and nine-time convicted felon, also testified to overhearing the escape plans. He specifically heard Eaglin, Smith, and Jones stating that "they would kill any bitch that got in their way." Further, Baker testified that Eaglin wanted to "straighten" Fuston, which indicated an intent to kill. Baker was impeached with the fact that he suffered from severe depression and was previously housed in the psychiatric dorm and the crisis unit of the prison.

Additional testimony from correctional officers working at the time of the escape attempt established that on June 11, 2003, Eaglin was observed attempting to jump on the outer-perimeter fence of the prison. When officers responded to the scene, Eaglin was sprayed with chemical agents and subdued. Thereafter, Officer Lathrem was found in a mop closet, huddled in a fetal position with injuries to her head area. A medium-sized sledgehammer was located near her body. Fuston was located in another cell lying on the floor with blood coming from underneath his head. He was unconscious but still breathing at that time. Beaston was found conscious in a secured cell with a large wound in the middle of his forehead. Beaston was the only surviving victim of the attacks.

The morning after the attempted escape, Eaglin was questioned regarding the murders. Eaglin stated he wanted the "chair," and that he "tried to kill those three people." Eaglin also admitted that he tried to "jump the fence."

With regard to the injuries suffered by the victims, the medical examiner, Dr. R.H. Imami, testified that Lathrem's injuries included a hemorrhage in her right eye, two injuries on the right side of her head, and injuries on her face. Dr. Imami found no evidence of defensive wounds or injuries and concluded that skull and brain injuries were the cause of Lathrem's death. The cause of these injuries was heavy, blunt force trauma. Dr. Imami opined that Lathrem was struck at least three times and that any of the blows would have caused her death. Finally, Dr. Imami stated that she believed the sledgehammer entered into evidence caused the injuries.

Dr. Imami also conducted the autopsy of Fuston. Fuston had injuries to the right and left sides of his face and head, the back of his head, and his mouth, in addition to skull fractures caused by blunt trauma. In total, Fuston suffered three to four fatal blows. Dr. Imami did not see typical defensive wounds but she observed a small skin scrape on the back of Fuston's left hand. She opined that the scrape could have been caused when he fell or during subsequent medical intervention. Ultimately, Dr. Imami concluded that skull and brain injuries by blunt-force trauma to the head were also the cause of Fuston's death and that the trauma was caused by a hammer.

Upon the testing of evidence obtained during the investigation of the murders, Lathrem's DNA was discovered on the sledgehammer that was near her body. Both Lathrem's and Fuston's DNA were located on the pants Eaglin wore on the day of the murder. Lathrem's DNA was also located on Eaglin's left boot. On cross-examination, defense counsel referred to earlier testimony of a corrections officer who testified that he assisted in removing Lathrem's body from the mop closet and then escorted Eaglin to the visiting park. The crime laboratory analyst conceded that this scenario presented the possibility of cross-contamination between Lathrem's blood and Eaglin's clothes. She also stated that she did not analyze every item sent to her but she matched the DNA profile of Lathrem to DNA found on codefendant Smith's right shoe.

The defense presented no witnesses but moved for a judgment of acquittal, which was denied by the court. The jury convicted Eaglin of the first-degree murders of Lathrem and Fuston.

During the penalty phase, the State presented evidence of Eaglin's prior violent felony for which he was incarcerated at the time of these murders. Michael Marr, an assistant state attorney, testified that he had previously prosecuted Eaglin for the first-degree murder of John Frederick Nichols, Jr., who died from multiple stab wounds. On January 10, 2001, Eaglin was sentenced to life imprisonment without the possibility of parole for that murder. The State also presented three victim impact witnesses regarding Officer Lathrem.

The defense presented the testimony of witnesses Daryl McCasland, Lance Henderson, Greg Giddens, James Aiken, and Eaglin himself. The theme of the mitigation presentation was that the conditions at the correctional facility contributed to the occurrence of the crime. McCasland a senior prison inspector, testified that he had several administrative concerns regarding the prison, including the lack of key control. Lance Henderson, a corrections officer working at Charlotte Correctional, testified that he had filed an incident report prior to the murders regarding his concerns about the limited number of officers on duty for the nighttime work detail. Henderson believed the working environment was unsafe.

Greg Giddens, a corrections officer at Charlotte Correctional at the time of the murders, testified that he was also concerned about his safety. He voiced his concerns to the officer in charge. Giddens also stated that the classification of certain inmates was downgraded so they could be in the open population or assigned work detail.

Finally, James Aiken, president of a prison consulting firm, testified that the incident at the prison was facilitated by a failure of systems. He also stated that the classification of Eaglin was not handled properly and that several inmates had access to tools useful for escape activity and for causing violence. The inmate accountability, security staffing, and monitoring systems also failed.

Before Eaglin's testimony, defense counsel notified the court that they would not be presenting mental mitigation or mitigation evidence as to Eaglin's childhood. Eaglin then testified that he had been in prison since 2001. He stated that the guards would beat and kill inmates. He also stated that after the murders he was kept in a cell for thirty-four days in boxer shorts with no toilet paper, soap, or toothpaste and the assistant warden told him that he would die in that cell.

The jury recommended that Eaglin be sentenced to death for both murders by a vote of eight to four on each murder. Following a Spencer¹ hearing, the court entered its sentencing order. The court found the following aggravators as to the murder of Lathrem: (1) the capital felony was committed by a person previously convicted of a felony and under sentence of imprisonment; (2) Eaglin had a prior violent felony conviction; (3) the murder was committed for the purpose of avoiding or preventing a lawful arrest or effecting an escape from custody; (4) the murder was cold, calculated, and premeditated (CCP); and (5) the victim was a law enforcement officer engaged in the performance of legal duties (merged with escape from custody). As to the murder of Fuston, the trial court found: (1) the capital felony was committed by a person previously convicted of a felony and under sentence of imprisonment; (2) the defendant had a prior violent felony conviction; and (3) the murder was CCP. In mitigation, the court found after reviewing a...