Ellis v. State
| Docket Number | W2023-00203-CCA-R3-PC |
| Decision Date | 25 January 2024 |
| Parties | RONALD P. ELLIS v. STATE OF TENNESSEE |
| Court | Tennessee Court of Criminal Appeals |
Assigned on Briefs at Knoxville December 19, 2023
Appeal from the Criminal Court for Shelby County No. 14-04664 Jennifer Johnson Mitchell, Judge
Ronald P. Ellis, Petitioner, sought post-conviction relief based on ineffective assistance of counsel after this Court affirmed his first degree murder conviction. State v. Ellis No. W2017-01035-CCA-R3-CD, 2018 WL 4584124, at *1 (Tenn Crim. App. Sept. 21, 2018). The post-conviction court denied relief. Petitioner appealed, arguing that trial counsel was ineffective for failing to include proof in the motion to suppress his statement to authorities about whether Petitioner was brought before a judge or magistrate before making his statement and whether Petitioner's cognitive abilities prevented him from adequately waiving his rights. Because the evidence does not preponderate against the post-conviction court's findings and conclusions, we affirm the judgment of the post-conviction court.
Tenn R. App. P. 3 Appeal as of Right; Judgment of the Criminal Court Affirmed
W. Price Rudolph, Memphis, Tennessee, for the appellant, Ronald P. Ellis.
Jonathan Skrmetti, Attorney General and Reporter; Raymond J. Lepone, Assistant Attorney General; Steven J. Mulroy, District Attorney General; and Stacy McEndree, Assistant District Attorney General, for the appellee, State of Tennessee.
TIMOTHY L. EASTER, J., delivered the opinion of the court, in which JILL BARTEE AYERS and TOM GREENHOLTZ, JJ., joined.
Petitioner was convicted of first degree murder in 2017 based on events that took place in 2014 in a Target parking lot in Memphis, during which he shot and killed his ex-girlfriend. Ellis, 2018 WL 4584124, at *1-3. Petitioner was eventually arrested after a police chase in Georgia. Id. Prior to trial, Petitioner filed a motion to suppress his statement and a confession that he made to law enforcement. Id. The trial court denied the motion after a two-day hearing. Id.
On direct appeal, this Court affirmed the trial court's denial of the motion to suppress, specifically addressing Petitioner's complaint that his confession was involuntary because he was not brought before a judge or magistrate during the six days he spent in custody in Georgia. Id. at *8. The panel noted that there was evidence Petitioner was not taken in front of a magistrate, but even if that was true, it was only one factor in determining whether Petitioner's confession and waiver of rights was voluntary. Id. The court affirmed Petitioner's conviction. Petitioner did not file an application for permission to appeal to the Tennessee Supreme Court.
In July 2019, Petitioner filed a pro se petition for post-conviction relief. The postconviction court appointed counsel, who filed an amended petition. Petitioner alleged trial counsel was ineffective in a variety of ways, including failing to adequately argue the motion to suppress.
At the hearing on the post-conviction petitions, trial counsel testified that he was appointed to represent Petitioner at trial. At that time, trial counsel had been practicing law for 14 years, and his practice was 100% criminal. He provided Petitioner with discovery and met with him "multiple times" to discuss the charges against him and the range of punishment. Trial counsel remembered that "[t]he facts in the case against [Petitioner] were overwhelming."
Trial counsel admitted that Petitioner was not arrested and brought to general sessions court because he was "arrested in Georgia and he was indicted not in custody." Trial counsel understood that because of the way Petitioner's case originated, he was "not entitled to a preliminary hearing." Trial counsel acknowledged that Rule 5 of the Tennessee Rules of Criminal Procedure provided for a scenario where a defendant can request to have a case remanded to general sessions for a preliminary hearing, but trial counsel could not recall if he and Petitioner ever discussed this possibility.
Trial counsel explained that he was "risk a[]verse" and tried to settle most cases. Trial counsel recalled that Petitioner "repeatedly asked for the death penalty." Trial counsel explained to Petitioner that there were no aggravating factors in the case so the State would not be seeking the death penalty. Trial counsel tried to get Petitioner to ask for a plea agreement of 40 years to get the State to recognize Petitioner was "serious about settling the case." Trial counsel thought that this might result in a negotiation to a plea that involved some type of lesser included offense and a shorter sentence. Petitioner was not amenable. Trial counsel recalled that the State ultimately offered Petitioner 25 years for a plea to second degree murder. Trial counsel recognized that Petitioner was 53 years of age at the time and that was "not really a great offer[,]" but that it was better than a life sentence. Petitioner did not want to take the offer and outright rejected it. Trial counsel could not recall if Petitioner, at some point closer to trial, asked for a much shorter sentence.
Trial counsel met with Petitioner "a number of times[,]" estimating ten in total. At times, Petitioner was "dissatisfied" with the number of times trial counsel came to visit and "wrote the Board [of Professional Responsibility]" (B.P.R.) to complain about trial counsel's representation.
Trial counsel eventually developed a theory of the case when he realized Petitioner was completely averse to negotiation. Petitioner was a former firefighter with numerous bouts of depression. Petitioner also suffered from alcoholism and wrote a suicide note prior to the events that gave rise to the indictment. Trial counsel intended to try to prove that Petitioner did not have the intent to murder the victim. Trial counsel discussed all of this with Petitioner.
Petitioner told trial counsel that he was taking Ambien at the time of the incident. Trial counsel had Petitioner evaluated by Dr. Charles Walker, a psychiatrist at Vanderbilt University Medical Center. Dr. Walker found Petitioner competent to stand trial, but his report indicated a long-term struggle with depression and an IQ within low average limits. Trial counsel also hired a private investigator as part of his trial preparation.
Trial counsel filed a motion to suppress Petitioner's statement prior to trial. Trial counsel recalled that Petitioner was arrested in south Georgia after a high-speed chase. When Petitioner exited the car, he had a gun. Georgia police had to use a taser on Petitioner. Petitioner told the police he wanted them to shoot him, telling the officers, "after I shot her, I emptied all the bullets out of the gun." Petitioner eventually gave a "long, detailed statement" to Memphis police.
Trial counsel recalled that the motion to suppress was based on the argument that Petitioner "had been arrested and he was not given a probable cause determination by a magistrate or judge" and therefore his due process rights were violated and there was a presumption that the statement was coerced. Trial counsel did not include the findings from Dr. Walker's report in the motion to suppress as a basis to support the motion because he did not think the findings would aid in the success of the motion. In trial counsel's assessment, Petitioner was a 53-year-old professional who "never [had] a lack of understanding" about the trial process and "did not appear . . . to have any comprehension issues." Trial counsel had also filed similar motions in the past that included mental health or IQ issues and found them to be unsuccessful. Trial counsel recalled that the motion to suppress was denied and could not recall if he raised the denial of the motion in the motion for new trial.
Trial counsel recalled that Petitioner requested a change of venue. Trial counsel refused to file the motion. Trial counsel did not think the motion would be successful and did not think it was a wise strategic decision to move the case from Shelby County.
Trial counsel remembered that Petitioner testified at trial. Trial counsel explained that was the "only way" to negate Petitioner's mens rea and get the suicide note and proof about Petitioner taking Ambien into evidence. Trial counsel was cognizant that Petitioner had five prior convictions for domestic assault in Mississippi and did not want those to come in if Dr. Walker testified. Trial counsel spent "a couple different days" helping Petitioner prepare for testifying at trial. Trial counsel could not recall how many witnesses he put on the stand for the defense but recalled at least one witness, Larry Fletcher, Petitioner's supervisor. Trial counsel represented Petitioner on appeal but did not recall how the appellate court ruled on the issues.
Petitioner testified at the hearing. He recalled that he was arrested on "9/11" in Georgia in a "crazy situation" where he was "apprehended on one of the interstates" by "several troopers and police and sheriffs" with guns drawn. Petitioner did not remember a police chase but recalled being "tasered." Petitioner received two cracked ribs and a cracked collarbone during the arrest.
Petitioner testified that he did not meet with a lawyer or appear before a judge after his arrest. His next contact with a person was during an interview with a Memphis detective on September 17. Petitioner was kept in a small cell for 23 hours a day. Petitioner knew why he had been arrested but claimed that no one ever explained his rights until the detective from Memphis came to interview him about the shooting. Petitioner claimed that he was not thinking 100%...
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