Jones v. State

• Decision Date: 31 August 1998
• Docket Number: No. 24832.,24832.
• Parties: Donald Allen JONES, Petitioner, v. STATE of South Carolina, Respondent.
• Court: South Carolina Supreme Court

332 S.C. 329

504 S.E.2d 822

Donald Allen JONES, Petitioner, v. STATE of South Carolina, Respondent.

No. 24832.

Supreme Court of South Carolina.

Heard October 3, 1995.

Decided August 31, 1998.

Rehearing Denied October 7, 1998.

John H. Blume and Teresa L. Norris, both of Center for Capital Litigation; and South Carolina Office of Appellate Defense, Columbia, for petitioner.

Attorney General Charles Molony Condon and Assistant Deputy Attorney General Donald J. Zelenka, Columbia, for respondent.

ON WRIT OF CERTIORARI

TOAL, Justice:

We granted a petition for writ of certiorari from Donald Allen Jones to review the question of the denial of his right to effective assistance of counsel. We affirm the circuit court's order of dismissal.

FACTUAL/PROCEDURAL BACKGROUND

In October 1983, Donald Allen Jones broke into the residence of Ned and Geraldine Plyler, while they were away. He stole some money from the house. When the Plylers returned, Jones attacked them, killing Mr. Plyler and then raping Mrs. Plyler.

Jones was arrested and tried. He was convicted of murder, armed robbery, criminal sexual conduct, housebreaking, grand larceny, and kidnapping, and was sentenced to death. His convictions and sentence were affirmed by this Court in State v. Jones, 288 S.C. 1, 340 S.E.2d 782 (1985). The United States Supreme Court vacated this judgment in Jones v. South Carolina, 476 U.S. 1102, 106 S.Ct. 1943, 90 L.Ed.2d 353 (1986), in light of Skipper v. South Carolina, 476 U.S. 1, 106 S.Ct. 1669, 90 L.Ed.2d 1 (1986). The case was remanded for a new sentencing proceeding in which Jones would be allowed to present evidence of his future adaptability to life in prison. At the resentencing, Jones was again sentenced to death. On direct appeal from his resentencing, Jones argued, inter alia, the trial judge erred in refusing to submit as a statutory mitigating circumstance that the murder was committed while he was under the influence of mental or emotional disturbance. See S.C.Code Ann. § 16-3-20(C)(b)(2) (Supp.1996). This Court found there was no evidence presented which indicated, at the time of the murder, Jones was under the influence of mental or emotional disturbance and, therefore, concluded the trial judge properly refused to charge the statutory mitigating circumstance. State v. Jones, 298 S.C. 118, 378 S.E.2d 594 (1989), cert. denied, 494 U.S. 1060, 110 S.Ct. 1534, 108 L.Ed.2d 773 (1990).

In 1990, Jones filed an application for Post-Conviction Relief ("PCR"). After an evidentiary hearing, the circuit court issued an order of dismissal. Jones's Rule 59(e) motion to alter or amend the final order was denied. He then filed a petition for writ of certiorari, and this Court granted certiorari to review one question. This question is divided into two parts:

1. Was Jones denied the right to effective assistance of counsel at his resentencing proceeding as a result of trial counsel's failure to adequately investigate and present relevant mitigating evidence regarding his impoverishment, the neglect and abuse to which he was subjected, his severe mental illness, and his neurological impairment?

2. Was Jones denied the right to effective assistance of counsel as a result of trial counsel's introduction of evidence that Jones had previously been sentenced to death?

LAW/ANALYSIS

A. MITIGATING EVIDENCE: SOCIAL HISTORY AND MENTAL IMPAIRMENT

Jones argues that he was denied the right to effective assistance of counsel during his resentencing proceeding because his attorneys failed to thoroughly investigate and present mitigating evidence regarding his mental impairments. Specifically, Jones argues resentencing counsel were ineffective because they failed to adequately investigate his social history, obtain his mental records, and provide this information to his one expert witness, Dr. Diane Follingstad. He further claims counsel were ineffective because they did not obtain the neurological testing specifically recommended by Dr. Follingstad. Jones maintains a complete picture of his mental condition would have established he was suffering from a mental or emotional disturbance at the time he committed the murder and, thereby, entitled him to a charge on the additional statutory mitigating circumstance. See S.C.Code Ann. § 16-3-20(C)(b)(2) (the murder was committed while the defendant was under the influence of mental or emotional disturbance).

Under the test for ineffective assistance of counsel enunciated in Strickland v. Washington, 466 U.S. 668, 104 S.Ct. 2052, 80 L.Ed.2d 674 (1984), the petitioner must establish that counsel's representation fell below an objective standard of reasonableness. Then he must show that the deficient performance prejudiced the defense. When a defendant challenges a death sentence, prejudice is established when "there is a reasonable probability that, absent [counsel's] errors, the sentencer—including an appellate court, to the extent it independently reweighs the evidence—would have concluded that the balance of aggravating and mitigating circumstances did not warrant death." Id. at 695, 104 S.Ct. at 2069, 80 L.Ed.2d at 698. "A reasonable probability is a probability sufficient to undermine confidence in the outcome." Id. at 694, 104 S.Ct. at 2068, 80 L.Ed.2d at 698.

Even if we assume in the present case that counsel's representation fell below an objective standard of reasonableness, Jones fails the prejudice prong of the Strickland test. We find that there is not a reasonable probability that, absent the errors, the sentencer would have concluded that the balance of aggravating and mitigating circumstances did not warrant death. In deciding whether Jones was prejudiced, we must bear in mind the strength of the government's case and the aggravating factors the jury found, as well as the mitigating factors that might have been presented if Jones had been provided effective assistance of counsel. See Stafford v. Saffle, 34 F.3d 1557, 1564 (10th Cir.1994), cert. denied, 514 U.S. 1099, 115 S.Ct. 1830, 131 L.Ed.2d 751 (1995). The bottom line is that we must determine whether or not Jones has met his burden of showing that it is reasonably likely that the jury's death sentence would have been different if counsel had presented additional information about Jones's mental condition. In making this determination, we must consider the totality of the evidence before the jury.¹ See Strickland, 466 U.S. 668, 104 S.Ct. 2052, 80 L.Ed.2d 674. In this case, the jury was presented with overwhelming evidence of Jones's guilt and of the aggravating circumstances surrounding the murder. During the resentencing proceeding, testimony revealed how Jones, a former employee of the Plylers, broke into their home on October 11, 1983. After entering onto the property, he stole some money from the home and, while there, shot the Plylers' three dogs. When the Plylers eventually returned, Jones was standing on the porch. He approached Mr. Plyler, demanded money, and then from a few feet away, shot him with a shotgun. Mr. Plyler took a few steps and slumped forward on his face. Jones demanded that Mrs. Plyler remove the money that was in her husband's pocket. When she failed, Jones removed the money himself. Despite Mrs. Plyler's plea that he not shoot again, Jones shot Mr. Plyler in the head two more times with a pistol.

He then grabbed Mrs. Plyler by the elbow, took her inside, and sexually assaulted her at gunpoint in various rooms in the house for approximately two hours. At one point, he informed her he had killed her dogs and threatened to kill her son. Jones left Mrs. Plyler blindfolded, gagged, and tied to a bed. She heard him start her pickup truck, then immediately turn it off. Jones returned to the house; he told Mrs. Plyler he was checking to see if she was attempting to escape. Jones then drove away in the truck. Mrs. Plyler testified she untied herself and escaped from her home. For twenty minutes she worked her way in the dark over a barbed wire fence and through a pasture, towards a neighbor's home. Mrs. Plyler saw Jones return in the pickup truck; he appeared to enter the Plylers' home. He then left the home and drove the pickup truck back and forth, apparently in search of Mrs. Plyler. At one point, Jones stopped the vehicle and turned off its lights within fifteen feet of where Mrs. Plyler was hiding. Eventually, Jones drove off, and Mrs. Plyler was able to reach a neighbor's home. She reported the events to police. Jones was soon thereafter arrested. He was identified by Mrs. Plyler, who knew him prior to these incidents. Moreover, physical evidence linked him to the crime. His palm prints were found inside the Plylers' residence.

In mitigation, Jones presented six witnesses who were familiar with his background. These included a school teacher, four family members, and a psychologist. Jones's third grade teacher stated that Jones had difficulty retaining skills and that he was in special education classes. Jones's aunt also testified on his behalf about his childhood and stated that Donald smiled inappropriately, although his behavior generally was not unusual. In his later years, he would wear shorts in the winter and a coat during the summer. While in jail, he would respond to letters from family members by rewriting and returning the correspondence he had received.

Jones's mother testified to other unusual behavior by Jones. On two occasions, he engaged in "tearing [his mother's] house up." He would sometimes take a bath using big buckets. He would sit on the side of the bridge and "look like he was just in a deep wonder." He began doing these things after his sister's death. Another of Jones's aunts testified that he was a happy and obedient child. While in prison, Jones also answered her letters by sending the same letter back. Moreover, Jones's uncle testified on his behalf. Thus, extensive evidence was presented at the resentencing hearing about Jones's family and social...