Hurst v. State
| Decision Date | 07 March 1978 |
| Docket Number | 3 Div. 525 |
| Citation | 356 So.2d 1224 |
| Parties | Arthur James HURST v. STATE. |
| Court | Alabama Court of Criminal Appeals |
Von G. Memory of Riggs & Memory, Montgomery, for appellant.
William J. Baxley, Atty. Gen. and Milton Belcher, Asst. Atty. Gen., for the State.
Appellant was convicted of murder in the first degree and the jury fixed his punishment at life imprisonment in the penitentiary. He was represented by court-appointed counsel and executed a waiver of arraignment form, and pleaded not guilty and not guilty by reason of insanity. After sentence was imposed, he gave notice of appeal and was furnished a free transcript. Trial counsel was appointed to represent him on appeal.
On August 15, 1975, appellant's counsel filed a motion to have him committed to Bryce Hospital for an evaluation and determination as to his competency to stand trial and to make a determination as to his sanity at the time of the alleged offense. This motion was granted. He was committed to Bryce Hospital on September 15, 1975. He was discharged from Bryce to the custody of the Sheriff of Montgomery County, Alabama on January 16, 1976, as "competent." This discharge report was signed by "G. G. Ochoa, Level 1-A Psychiatrist, with recommendation that he be returned to Court, and is able to cooperate in his defense."
The hospitalization summary from Bryce states, in pertinent part,
Appellant was committed to Bryce Hospital by Honorable Perry O. Hooper, one of the Circuit Judges of Montgomery County, and on January 12, 1976, the Superintendent of Bryce wrote Judge Hooper saying:
Upon appellant's return to Court, trial was begun on May 10, 1976.
Bertha Mae McClain testified that on May 14, and 15, 1975, she lived at 438 North Bainbridge in Montgomery with the deceased, her three children, and appellant, her brother. McClain had lived with the deceased for twelve and a half years and considered him to be her husband. She stated that appellant, at the time of deceased's death had lived with them for approximately six months.
McClain testified that her brother owned a pistol and that he had it for a month before the shooting occurred. Appellant told McClain that he had gotten the gun at Max's Pawn Shop and that he would kill somebody with it.
A few nights before the deceased was killed, McClain testified, she and the deceased had an argument. McClain had bought some "dope" for a "guy" and had brought it home where it was to be picked up. The deceased told McClain that he didn't want any drugs around the children. At this time appellant entered into the argument, exclaiming, The deceased and appellant began to scuffle, but McClain stopped them. The deceased ran and got a wrench and appellant locked himself in the bathroom. Deceased told appellant, "Come out, you ______ , _____ I'm going to kill you." McClain stated that she calmed deceased down and no further trouble resulted that night.
During the late hours of May 14, 1975, or the early morning hours of May 15, 1975, McClain was visiting near her home. One of her children summoned her home. McClain heard shooting, entered her home and found appellant standing at the kitchen table loading a pistol, saying, "Come on, you ______ ______ I'll kill you." She found Leonard Harris lying in front of the stereo in the living room. He had been shot. McClain told appellant to leave Harris alone and then called the police.
Mrs. McClain testified that appellant had been in mental institutions on four occasions. Appellant was committed to Rockland Hospital in New York on two occasions and twice in Bryce.
W. T. Sheriff testified that he was in the Patrol Division of the Montgomery Police Department in May of 1975. He stated that he investigated a shooting incident shortly after midnight on May 15, 1975. Sheriff testified that when he arrived on the scene appellant approached his car with a gun in his hand. Appellant told Sheriff, Sheriff took the gun from appellant and went into the house. There he found Harris dead on the floor, surrounded by a pool of blood. Sheriff summoned an ambulance and the detective division. Shortly afterwards, an ambulance and Officers Rutland and Norton of the detective division arrived on the scene.
Lawrence Rutland testified that he was a detective with the Montgomery Police Department on May 15, 1975. He stated he investigated a shooting at 423 North Bainbridge Street. He received a pistol from Officer Sheriff which he marked and sent to the toxicologist's office.
Out of the presence of the jury, Rutland testified that he read appellant his rights and appellant signed a waiver form at 1:50 a. m. Appellant told Rutland that he understood his rights. At that time appellant gave a written statement which he signed after Rutland read it to him. In pertinent part the statement reads as follows:
Rutland testified that he had no knowledge that appellant had ever been in a mental institution.
Appellant then called Bradley Adams, Ph.D., out of the presence of the jury. Adams testified that he was a clinical psychologist at Bryce Hospital. Adams received a Ph.D., in clinical psychology from the University of Alabama. Over the thirteen years of his employment at Bryce as a clinical psychologist, Adams treated "virtually thousands" of patients.
Adams stated that appellant was under his supervision for approximately one month in December, 1975. The Forensic Evaluation Board at Bryce diagnosed appellant's problem as schizophrenia, paranoid type on November 26, 1975. Having decided that appellant required extended treatment, the Board transferred him to Adams' supervision.
Based on appellant's medical records at Bryce, information from a mental institution in New York, his interactions with appellant, and knowledge of how schizophrenics of the paranoid type "maintain themselves," Adams formed an opinion of appellant's mental condition on May 15, 1975. From the record:
Dr. Adams further testified that a person suffering from the disorder afflicting appellant could give a statement as appellant did in the case. This behavior would be consistent with the delusional system occurring in such persons.
Adams stated that he believed appellant willingly gave his statement to police. However, from the record:
Such a statement, Adams testified, was...
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