Jones v. State
| Decision Date | 20 December 2002 |
| Docket Number | No. 42S00-0103-CR-00154.,42S00-0103-CR-00154. |
| Citation | 780 N.E.2d 373 |
| Parties | Brian E. JONES, Defendant-Appellant, v. STATE of Indiana, Plaintiff-Appellee. |
| Court | Indiana Supreme Court |
Susan K. Carpenter, Public Defender of Indiana, David P. Freund, Deputy Public Defender, Indianapolis, IN, Attorneys for Appellant.
Steve Carter, Attorney General of Indiana, Robin Hodapp-Gillman, Deputy Attorney General, Indianapolis, IN, Attorneys for Appellee. DICKSON, Justice.
The defendant, Brian Jones, was convicted of the September 1997 rape and murder of Brook Baker, a nineteen-year-old student at Vincennes University. The trial court, following the jury's recommendation, sentenced the defendant to life imprisonment without parole. In this appeal, the defendant seeks relief on claims of insufficient evidence, erroneous exclusion of the victim's statement of fear of her landlord, erroneous admission of a detective's testimony regarding a movie scene, and errors in sentencing. We affirm the trial court.
Sufficiency of Evidence
The defendant contends that the evidence is insufficient to sustain his convictions. In reviewing a claim of insufficient evidence, we will affirm the conviction unless, considering only the evidence and reasonable inferences favorable to the judgment, and neither reweighing the evidence nor judging the credibility of the witnesses, we conclude that no reasonable fact-finder could find the elements of the crime proved beyond a reasonable doubt. Winn v. State, 748 N.E.2d 352, 357 (Ind. 2001).
The evidence and reasonable inferences favorable to the judgment are as follows. The victim, Brook Baker, was continuously with other persons from approximately 3:30 P.M. on Saturday, September 6, 1997, until shortly after 1:30 A.M. Sunday morning, September 7. Her lifeless nude body with multiple stab wounds was found on the mattress in the bedroom of her rented home by her younger brother at 8:15 P.M. Sunday evening. A pathologist found that she was likely strangled, but ultimately died from loss of blood after suffering a stab wound to her left breast and eleven stab wounds to her back. Bruising on her wrists, hand, legs, pelvis, and the back sides of her elbows were consistent with a person being physically restrained against her resistance. Police found a knife in soapy water in her kitchen sink, and an analysis of the human tissue attached to the knife revealed that she was a possible contributor to the DNA in the tissue. The defendant had visited Brook Baker's house with friends about three months before her death. He had also had contact with her on at least one other subsequent occasion. On the night of the murder, the defendant was at a party with fraternity brothers at a house two blocks away from the victim's house until about 2:00 A.M., and his friends could not specifically recall whether the defendant returned to their house with them or not. The defendant was seen the day after the murder with a scratch on his face. When initially interviewed by police, the defendant denied ever having sex with Brook Baker, but DNA from semen recovered from vaginal swabs, from the sheet on her mattress, and from under her fingernails was consistent with the defendant's DNA. The defendant had recently rented the movie "Curdled," that depicted a homicide in which a man stabbed a victim numerous times in the back and then cleaned the knife in the victim's kitchen sink.
Acknowledging that the evidence proves that he had intercourse with Brook Baker, the defendant contends that it fails to establish that the intercourse occurred at the time of the murder, that it was compelled by force, or that he was the murderer. He argues that the evidence establishes only suspicion and possibilities, not proof beyond a reasonable doubt. The State responds that the convictions for murder and rape are supported by the circumstantial evidence and resulting reasonable inferences, emphasizing the defendant's DNA on Brook's fingernails and in her vagina, the scratch on the defendant's face the next day, and the similarity of the facts to a scene in a movie the defendant had rented shortly before the murder.
Circumstantial evidence alone may be sufficient to support a conviction. Hubbard v. State, 749 N.E.2d 1156, 1158 (Ind. 2001). Beyond the evidence the State highlights, we further note evidence that the victim's lifeless body was found nude with multiple stab wounds on her back and chest, that the defendant was acquainted with the victim, that he had visited her home, that he was near her home at the probable time of her death, and that the defendant initially lied to investigating police. We conclude that, from the evidence presented at trial, a reasonable jury could find beyond a reasonable doubt that the defendant committed the charged rape and murder.
Exclusion of Victim Statement
The defendant contends that the trial court erroneously excluded a statement made by the victim shortly before she was killed. The night before the victim's body was found in her apartment, a friend had walked her home. As they were walking, the victim's landlord drove by. Upon seeing her landlord, the victim remarked to her friend that he was her landlord and that she was afraid of him. The trial court granted the State's motion in limine regarding this evidence. Shortly before the friend testified, the defendant again raised the issue, and the trial court affirmed its earlier ruling. At trial and on appeal, the defendant asserts that this evidence is admissible because it meets the present sense impression exception to the hearsay rule, Indiana Evidence Rule 803(1).
The trial court has inherent discretionary power on the admission of evidence, and its decisions are reviewed only for an abuse of that discretion. Rubalcada v. State, 731 N.E.2d 1015, 1023 (Ind. 2000); Brewer v. State, 562 N.E.2d 22, 25 (Ind.1990). Rule 803(1) describes a present sense impression as, "A statement describing or explaining a material event, condition, or transaction, made while the declarant was perceiving the event, condition or transaction, or immediately thereafter." (Emphasis added). This rule requires the statement to describe or explain the event or condition during or immediately after its occurrence, and it must be based on the declarant's perception.
There are two hearsay assertions at issue. The victim's first assertion, which identified the person driving by as her landlord, satisfies the exception. The victim, based on her perception, was contemporaneously describing the person driving by. It was error to exclude this statement. However, errors in the admission of evidence are harmless unless the error affects the substantial rights of the parties. Ind. Trial Rule 61. The victim's landlord himself testified that he was her landlord. This evidence was merely cumulative. The exclusion of this assertion was harmless error.
The victim's second assertion, in which she expressed her fear of her landlord, does not satisfy the exception. This assertion does not describe an event contemporaneously perceived. The fact that the victim feared her landlord does not describe or explain an event, condition, or transaction that the declarant was perceiving as she spoke. The trial court did not err in excluding the second statement.1
Admission of Detective's Movie Scene Description
The defendant contends that the trial court erred in allowing a detective to testify about a scene in the movie "Curdled," a video that the defendant rented one week before the murder. He argues that the trial court violated Indiana Evidence Rule 1002 in allowing the detective to testify regarding the movie scene rather than showing it to the jury.
The challenged testimony occurred when the trial court permitted the State to present rebuttal evidence which included the testimony of both Detective Greg Winkler and the owner of a local video rental business. Prior to its ruling, the court heard argument of counsel. The State there contended that during voir dire, opening statement, cross examination, and its case in chief, the defense had raised the issue of identity. The State argued to the trial court that "the defense is saying my guy is too young, too unsophisticated to be able to do this and so ergo somebody else must have done it." Record at 2019. Further asserting that the question of identity is "the centerpiece" of their defense, the State sought to introduce evidence that one week before the murder, the defendant rented a video of the movie "Curdled" that depicts a woman being repeatedly stabbed in the back in her kitchen with a knife which the killer then cleans in the kitchen sink "just eerily similar to the case that we have here today." Record at 2023, 2025. The defense objected, asserting Indiana Evidence Rules 403 and 404(b). Finding that the proposed video rental evidence was relevant and not unfairly prejudicial, the trial court granted the State's request in part, indicating that it would "at least admit some evidence relating to this video tape." Record at 2034.
Now to be honest with you, Mr. [deputy prosecutor], I'm not interested in going blow by blow ... through the plot scene by scene. I'm not sure it's particularly relevant who the stars were, whether they were good looking, but I think evidence of the rental can be introduced and some indication as to a particular scene in the movie and what it depicted is relevant so if you could figure out a way to do this without making this a three or four hour ordeal I would certainly appreciate it.
Id. The court thereafter added: Id.
The State then presented the testimony of the owner of a video rental business who stated that, according to her business records, a video entitled "Curdled" was rented on August 29, 1997,...
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