Jamison v. Superintendent
| Decision Date | 14 December 2015 |
| Docket Number | 10-CV-3440 (MKB) |
| Parties | WILLIE JAMISON, Petitioner, v. SUPERINTENDENT, AUBURN CORRECTIONAL FACILITY, Respondent. |
| Court | U.S. District Court — Eastern District of New York |
Petitioner Willie Jamison, proceeding pro se, brings this petition for a writ of habeas corpus pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 2254 alleging that he is being held in state custody in violation of his federal constitutional rights. Petitioner's claims arise from a judgment of conviction after a jury trial in the New York State Supreme Court, Nassau County, for rape and sodomy in the first degree, criminal possession of stolen property in the fifth degree, assault in the third degree and unlawful imprisonment in the second degree. Petitioner was sentenced to concurrent determinate prison terms of twenty-five years for the rape and sodomy convictions and one-year terms for the stolen property, assault and unlawful imprisonment convictions. Petitioner appealed his conviction to the New York Supreme Court Appellate Division, Second Department ("Appellate Division"), raising seven claims: (1) insufficient evidence as to three of the charges or the verdict was against the weight of evidence; (2) improper application of New York's rape shield law; (3) improper admission of "prompt outcry" evidence; (4) improper witness coaching; (5) improper exclusion of testimony as to Petitioner's good character; (6) improper limiting of defense counsel's summation; and (7) the imposition of a harsh and excessive sentence. The Appellate Division rejected these claims and affirmed Petitioner's convictions. People v. Jamison, 857 N.Y.S.2d 623 (App. Div. 2008). On August 19, 2008, the New York Court of Appeals denied leave to appeal. People v. Jamison, 11 N.Y.3d 737 (2008). Petitioner moved in the Appellate Division for a writ of error coram nobis, claiming that his appellate counsel was ineffective for not arguing on appeal that a violation of Batson v. Kentucky, 476 U.S. 79 (1986), occurred during jury selection. On September 22, 2009, Petitioner's writ of error was denied. People v. Jamison, 885 N.Y.S.2d 428 (App. Div. 2009). In the instant application, Petitioner raises five of the seven claims raised on direct appeal as well as a sixth claim: that the People's challenge to the only African-American male prospective juror violated his rights under Batson. For the reasons set forth below, the petition is denied.
The evidence at trial established that on March 22, 2003, at approximately 3:45 AM, in Nassau County, New York, the twenty-year-old complainant was stopped at a traffic light when Petitioner got into her car. (Trial Tr. ("Tr.") 426-28, annexed to Resp't Decl. and Mem. of Law in Opp'n ("Resp't Opp'n") as Docs. 11-27, Docket Entry No. 9; Resp't State Br. 2-3, annexed to Resp't Opp'n as Ex. 3.) Petitioner asked the complainant to drive him to the train station, and the conversation between them was initially amiable. (Tr. 430.) Petitioner subsequently redirected her to drive to a parking lot on the way to the train station. When the car arrived at the parking lot, Petitioner would not allow the complainant to leave the car and he removed her pants and underwear, put his mouth on her vagina, put his penis into her vagina, and choked her, punched her repeatedly, bit her and threatened to kill her. (Tr. 430-43; Resp't State Br. 3-4.)Petitioner subsequently left the car, taking the complainant's cell phone with him. (Tr. 446; Resp't State Br. 5.) As a result of the assault, the woman's eyes were swollen partially shut, her neck and hand were bruised and the orbital bone below her left eye was fractured. (Tr. 1199-1202, 1216-17; Resp't State Br. 6-7.)
On the same day as the assault, Petitioner was arrested for possession of the stolen cell phone. After receiving Miranda warnings, he was questioned at the local police precinct where he gave a statement admitting that he had hit and had sex with the complainant.1 (Tr. 999-1011, 1416-1424; Resp't State Br. 9-10.) Petitioner was charged with sodomy in the first degree, rape in the first degree, sexual abuse in the first degree, criminal possession of stolen property in the fifth degree, assault in the third degree and unlawful imprisonment in the second degree. (Resp't Opp'n ii.)
At trial, the complainant testified that at approximately 1:00 AM on Saturday March 22, 2003, she went to Bogart's Bar in Nassau County, New York, with a friend, Jacqueline Gonzalez, and two cousins, where they danced and drank several alcoholic drinks. (Tr. 423-25.) At about 3:00 AM, they left the bar, and while en route to see her former boyfriend, the complainant drove Gonzalez and one of her cousins home. (Tr. 425-26, 514-15.) At approximately 3:45 AM, after the complainant had dropped off Gonzalez and her cousin, she was stopped at a traffic light when Petitioner approached her car, asked her to take him to the train station, took a seat on the passenger side of her car without her permission and preventedher from leaving the car. (Tr. 426-29, 544-46, 554, 558-59, 561.) Petitioner then directed her to drive to a parking lot at Northeast Park in Freeport, New York. (Tr. 432, 977-78.) She testified that Petitioner closed the door each time she tried to get out of the car, (Tr. 434-35, 605, 610), touched and put his tongue in her vagina, (Tr. 438-39, 441-42, 471, 665, 668, 683), put his penis in her vagina, (Tr. 443, 471-72, 682, 687), punched her repeatedly in the face, (Tr. 435, 437-38, 605-09, 615-16), choked her, (Tr. 620), threatened to kill her, (Tr. 617-18), and bit her hand, (Tr. 614-15).
Jahaira Galvin, the complainant's best friend, testified that the complainant telephoned her at 5:00 AM and told her that a man had entered her car and beaten her up. (Tr. 748-49.) The complainant went to Galvin's home, and upon seeing that the complainant was disheveled, rattled and had bruises on her face, Galvin took her to the police station. (Tr. 753.) Later that day, the complainant told Galvin that she had been raped and played a cell phone message that had recorded part of the incident for Galvin and Gonzalez. (Tr. 756, 783, 789.)
Gonzalez testified that she went to the bar with the complainant at approximately 1:00 AM, that the complainant dropped her off at her home at approximately 3:30 AM, that she accompanied the complainant and Galvin to the Freeport police station, that she observed the complainant's injuries at this time, and that she saw the complainant again later that same day at which time the complainant told her she had been raped and played the cell phone recording. (Tr. 833-39, 842-44.)
Diana McCauley, a paramedic, testified that on March 22, 2003, the complainant had injuries to her face, extreme swelling around her eyes and fractures in the facial area, and she reported that she had been beaten and sexually assaulted. (Tr. 928-29, 949-51.) In apre-hospital report, McCauley noted that the complainant had been sexually assaulted without full penetration and subjected to oral sexual assault. (Tr. 947.)
Dr. David Menges testified that he examined the complainant at the hospital and took samples for the sexual assault evidence collection (the "Rape Kit"). He testified that the complainant had bruised eyes, one of her eyes was partially swollen shut, her left hand and neck were bruised, and there was a bite mark on her hand and a substance on her forearm resembling gum. (Tr. 1200-04.) There were no signs of vaginal trauma. (Tr. 1205). The Rape Kit included oral swabs and smears, the complainant's underwear, fingernail scrapings, head and pubic hairs, anal and vaginal swabs and smears, dried secretions found on the complainant's arm and shirt and a buccal specimen. (Tr. 1202-03, 1205-07).
Dr. Christopher Zieker, a resident in ophthalmology, testified that he examined the complainant on the same day and noted swelling and bruising around her eyes and found that the orbital bone below her left eye was fractured. (Tr. 1223-1225.) Analysis of the Rape Kit indicated that Petitioner was a minor contributor to the mixed sample from the vaginal swab. (Tr. 1309-10; 1313-14; 1316-18).
Petitioner testified that the sex was consensual and the assault only happened because Petitioner "started freaking out and hitting" him after her phone rang. (Tr. 1402-12.)
On May 11, 2004, Petitioner was found guilty of sodomy in the first degree, rape in the first degree, criminal possession of stolen property in the fifth degree, assault in the third degree and unlawful imprisonment in the second degree. (Tr. 1614-1616; Resp't State Br. 15.) On June 29, 2004, he was sentenced, as a second felony offender, to concurrent determinate terms ofimprisonment of twenty-five years and five years of post-release supervision on the sodomy and rape convictions, and concurrent terms of one year each on the remaining convictions. (Sentencing Mins. 21, 25, annexed to Resp't Opp'n as Doc. 10; Resp't State Br. 15.) He was also assessed fees and a permanent order of protection was entered on behalf of the complainant. (Sentencing Mins. 26; Resp't State Br. 15.)
Petitioner appealed his judgment of conviction to the Appellate Division claiming; (1) insufficient evidence or the verdict was against the weight of evidence; (2) improper application of New York's rape shield law; (3) improper admission of "prompt outcry" evidence; (4) improper witness coaching; (5) improper exclusion of testimony as to his good character; (6) improper limiting of defense counsel's summation; and (7) an excessive sentence. (Pet'r State Br. 25-61.) On April 29, 2008, the Appellate Division affirmed the judgment of conviction and sentence. Jamison, 857 N.Y.S.2d at 623. The Appellate Division found that the insufficient evidence claim had not been preserved for appellate review and concluded that the evidence was, "in any event,"...
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