Hamel v. Warden
| Decision Date | 06 April 2023 |
| Docket Number | Civ. DLB-19-3280 |
| Parties | JASON HAMEL, Petitioner, v. WARDEN, et al., Respondents. |
| Court | U.S. District Court — District of Maryland |
Self-represented petitioner Jason Hamel filed a timely petition for writ of habeas corpus pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 2254, challenging the validity of his state court convictions. ECF 1 & 3. The respondents filed an answer to the petition asking the Court to deny it as meritless. ECF 19. The Court ordered the respondents to provide supplemental records. ECF 22. The respondents provided the records in their possession. ECF 23. Hamel subsequently provided additional, sealed transcripts. ECF 25.[1] No hearing is necessary. See Rule 8(a), Rules Governing § 2254 Cases in the U.S. Dist Cts.; 28 U.S.C. § 2254(e)(2). For the following reasons, Hamel's petition is denied. A certificate of appealability shall not issue.
On the evening of June 20, 2008, Kevya Bluitt was shot and killed in the 800 block of Battery Avenue in Baltimore, Maryland. ECF 19-1, at 22. The case went “cold” until police received a tip that led to Hamel's arrest. Id. at 33. On April 23, 2012, Hamel was indicted for first degree murder and related firearm offenses. Id. at 4. From January 30 through February 6, 2013, Hamel was tried by a jury sitting in the Circuit Court for Baltimore City. ECF 23-2 - 23-8.
During the State's opening statement, the prosecutor mentioned Hamel's wife, Amber Hamel, in explaining why the case took so long to get to trial:
ECF 23-4, at 63 (emphasis added). During a bench conference at the end of the opening statement, defense counsel objected to the State's reference to Amber Hamel, a witness with marital privilege, and the implication that Hamel's wife identified him and caused the case to be reopened. Id. at 65-68. Defense counsel requested a mistrial. Id. The court denied the request (subject to renewal). Id. at 68. The State later conceded that Detective Alston could not mention Mrs. Hamel. ECF 23-6, at 39-40.
The State produced ten witnesses during its case-in-chief. See ECF 19-1, at 22. First, Officer Scott Lawrence provided a general description of the crime scene on June 20, 2008. See ECF 23-4, at 76-78. Dr. Jack Titus, the Chief Medical Examiner who performed Bluitt's autopsy, testified that the cause of death was a gunshot wound to the chest and the manner of death was a homicide. Id. at 121. Dr. Titus testified that a single bullet entered Bluitt's chest, hit his pulmonary artery, then continued seven inches upward and to the right before exiting his body and entering his right arm. Id. at 113. He also testified that the lack of evidence of soot or stippling on Bluitt suggested that the gun was more than 18 to 24 inches away when he was shot. Id. at 122.
Four bystanders took the stand. Joyce Setmeyer testified that while sitting on a porch on the corner of Battery Avenue and Montgomery Street, she saw a young, Caucasian man pace by Federal Hill Park, interact with a man in a small blue car, then get in the car. Id. at 132, 135. She later saw the car move, heard a firecracker sound, and then saw the man who had been pacing run past her. Id. at 140-42. She described him as having a medium build and short black hair and clarified that she believed he was a “very light skinned” African American man. Id. at 145-46.
Another bystander, Stacy Winters, testified that she was driving down Battery Avenue and had to pass a dark, double-parked, four-door car. ECF 25-3, at 73. As she did so, she saw a man come from the park, shoot into the passenger side, and leave. Id. at 74. She described him as who wore jean shorts and had brown hair. Id. at 74-75.
A third bystander, Eva Stone, testified that she was walking her dog on the corner of Churchill and Battery when she heard a loud noise, saw a man standing near a dark blue, four-door car, and heard him say, “Get him out of the car.” Id. at 87-88. After she saw the car drive away, she walked over to a man lying in the road and performed chest compressions. Id. at 88.
Finally, Michael Brassert testified that he saw a double-parked car on Battery Avenue, which he described as a two-door car with a hatchback. Id. at 182, 195. He saw a man walk from the park toward the car and then lean into the passenger side. Id. at 200. He heard a loud noise and then saw the man run past him with his left hand stationary at his side. Id. at 183-84, 186. He described the man as tall and slim with short, dark hair and wearing a short-sleeved shirt and shorts. Id. at 185. Three years later, he identified Hamel from a photo array as the man he had seen that night. Id. at 189.
Homicide Detective Alston took the stand and testified that he obtained still photographs from a security camera the night of the shooting that showed “the blurred image of what appears to be a Caucasian male right in the middle of Montgomery Street” as well as a dark-colored sedan trying to leave the area on Churchill Street. ECF 23-6, at 69. He testified that the case went cold until he received new information that led him to interview three of Hamel's acquaintances. Id. at 56-57. Detective Alston did not mention Amber Hamel during his testimony. See id.
Three of Hamel's acquaintances also testified. Darryl Robinson testified that he, Bluitt, and another man named Jason Johnson set up a drug deal with Hamel. ECF 23-5, at 14-15. The men intended to sell Hamel 4.5 ounces of cocaine in exchange for $5,000 but decided to rob Hamel instead. Id. Robinson testified that he was in the car with Bluitt at the time of the shooting, saw Hamel outside of the car, and heard a gunshot, but did not see or know who fired the weapon. Id. at 21, 35. However, he testified that on September 23, 2011, he was interviewed by Detective Alston and identified Hamel through a photo array: Id. at 29-30. On re direct examination, the State played a video recording of Robinson's statement to police from that day. Id. at 66. On that video recording, and contrary to Robinson's testimony, he stated that he saw Hamel “point[] the gun, and he shot one time.” Id. at 66. On cross-examination, Robinson again stated that he did not see Hamel shoot the gun. Id. at 69.
David Bennett testified that he dropped Hamel off at Federal Hill Park on the evening of June 20, 2008. Id. at 104. He later saw Hamel walk out of the park towards a dark-colored car and pull out a handgun from his waistband. Id. at 107. He heard a gunshot. Id. Bennett testified that later, while he was at the police station waiting to speak with Detective Alston, Hamel called him and threatened to hurt him if he shared any information. Id. at 110. After his interview, Bennett went to Hamel's home with Crystal Staggs, where Hamel again threatened Bennett. Id. at 114. Bennett testified that when he was interviewed again in 2011, he identified Hamel from a photo array, stating: Id. at 123.
Crystal Staggs, Bennett's girlfriend, also testified about the evening of the shooting. She stated that she saw Hamel after Bennett got home and Hamel apologized to her but did not indicate what he was apologizing for. ECF 23-6, at 16. Bennett told Staggs that it was a “drug deal gone bad, that I guess they were trying to do a deal, and something went wrong.” Id. at 18. Staggs stated that she spoke to the police a year before trial, identified Hamel in a photo array as someone she knew, and wrote, Id. at 21, 24. She also identified Hamel on the record, indicating that he looked the same on the date of trial as in 2008. Id. at 27. Staggs described Hamel as tall, while describing Bennett as chunkier and short with lighter skin. Id. at 28. Staggs stated that the two men were “opposites every way around.” Id.
On February 6, 2013, the jury returned guilty verdicts on second degree murder and the related firearm offenses. ECF 23-8, at 6-7. On March 19, the court sentenced Hamel to a total of fifty years' imprisonment. ECF 23-9, at 18.
Hamel timely appealed to the Court of Special Appeals, which affirmed his conviction on November 14, 2014. ECF 19-1, at 57. On ...
To continue reading
Request your trial