Laird v. Horn, CIVIL ACTION NO. 99-2311 (E.D. Pa. 9/5/2001)
| Decision Date | 05 September 2001 |
| Docket Number | CIVIL ACTION NO. 99-2311. |
| Parties | Richard Laird, Petitioner, v. Martin Horn, Commissioner, Pennsylvania Department of Corrections; Gregory White, Superintendent of the State Correctional Institution at Pittsburgh; and Joseph P. Mazurkiewicz, Superintendent of the State Correctional Institution at Rockview, Respondents. |
| Court | U.S. District Court — Eastern District of Pennsylvania |
Currently before the court is the petition for a writ of habeas corpus filed by Richard Laird ("Laird" or "petitioner"). Laird, along with co-defendant Frank Chester ("Chester"), was convicted of first degree murder, kidnapping, and a number of other offenses on May 19, 1988 in the Court of Common Pleas of Bucks County, Pennsylvania. The jury returned a verdict of death on May 21, 1988; on July 19, 1989, the trial court sentenced petitioner to death and to a consecutive sentence of 10 to 20 years on the kidnapping charge.
For the reasons that follow, Laird's petition for a writ of habeas corpus will be granted in part and his first degree murder conviction and death sentence will be vacated and set aside without prejudice to the right of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania to grant petitioner, within 180 days, a new trial on the first degree murder charge and, if petitioner is found guilty, a new sentencing on that charge, and/or a sentencing on the convictions as to which the trial court did not impose sentence. The petition for a writ of habeas corpus will be denied in all other respects.
The facts underlying petitioner's conviction, as summarized by the Pennsylvania Supreme Court on direct appeal, Commonwealth v. Chester, 526 Pa. 578, 586-90, 587 A.2d 1367, 1371-72 (1991) ("Chester"), are as follows:
The deceased, Anthony Milano ("Milano," the "deceased" or "decedent") arrived at the Edgely Inn on December 14, 1987 some time after 11:15 p.m. in a 1976 Chevrolet Nova registered in the name of Rose Milano, decedent's mother. Petitioner and Chester had been at the tavern at the Edgely Inn for quite some time prior to Milano's arrival. Both petitioner and Chester had exhibited quarrelsome and aggressive behavior prior to the deceased's arrival — Chester had threatened to assault one of the male guests at the establishment; petitioner was loud and argumentative. At one point during the time the three men were in the tavern, petitioner and Chester taunted Milano as to his masculinity.
At approximately 1:30 a.m. on December 15, Officer Charles McGuigan ("Officer McGuigan") responded, with two fellow officers, to a report of a stolen car found in the parking lot of the Edgely Inn. They began their investigation by interrogating the customers at the Edgely Inn. During that investigation, Officer McGuigan observed Chester, Laird and decedent at the bar. Officer McGuigan requested identification from each of these individuals and was satisfied that they were not involved in the car theft. At approximately 2:10 a.m., while he was still in the parking lot, he observed the deceased, Chester and Laird leave the Edgely Inn together. This testimony was confirmed by the two officers who responded with Officer McGuigan to the stolen car complaint. The three men were last observed leaving the parking lot of the Edgely Inn in the Chevrolet Nova with Milano driving.
On the evening of December 15, 1987, Officer McGuigan responded to a report of a car fire. When he arrived at the scene, he observed a vehicle ablaze and assisted in extinguishing the fire. The vehicle was identified as the 1976 Chevrolet Nova registered in the name of Rose Milano, decedent's mother. A search of a wooded area adjacent to where the automobile was located resulted in the discovery of the body of the deceased. The body was lying face up with the left eye partially open, contusions in the facial area, and multiple slashings of the neck and throat. Police records established that Rose Milano had reported the deceased as a missing person when he failed to return to the family home in the early morning hours of December 15.
A postmortem examination revealed that decedent had been assaulted about the face and had sustained lacerations about the face, throat, neck, and shoulder. A pathologist concluded that Milano had been kicked and/or punched in both the right and left temple areas and the chin; a hairline fracture at the base of the skull resulted from a blunt instrument striking decedent's head; the lacerations were made by a sharp instrument, consistent with a utility knife; the slashings were hard enough and deep enough to sever the fifth and sixth vertebrae and were too numerous to count; and decedent aspirated on his own blood for five to ten minutes before expiring.
The fire marshal for the township testified that in his opinion, the Milano vehicle fire was deliberately and intentionally ignited. In addition, the Commonwealth presented evidence to establish that at approximately 4:00 a.m., December 15, Chester and Laird approached, on foot, the apartment of a friend of Chester's — Richard Griscavage ("Griscavage"). Griscavage's apartment was located less than a mile from the murder scene. Griscavage testified that both were visibly agitated and covered with blood. Chester attempted to explain their condition by stating that there had been a fight and "the dude is dead." Griscavage took both men to Laird's apartment where they attempted to remove and conceal their bloody clothing. The Commonwealth also produced other witnesses to whom petitioner and Chester made incriminating statements and actions that reflected their complicity in the murder.
The Commonwealth also produced a transcript of a telephone call between Chester and Laird, during which Laird suggested that Chester leave town, recommended ways Chester could pass a polygraph examination, and commented on the Commonwealth's inability to prove a case without evidence. Both defendants testified at trial and admitted to being at the scene.
On May 19, 1988, Petitioner Laird and his co-defendant Chester were convicted of first degree murder in the Court of Common Pleas of Bucks County; the jury returned a verdict of death against both defendants on May 21, 1988. In addition to first degree murder, petitioner and Chester were convicted of second and third degree murder; kidnapping, 18 Pa. Cons. Stat. Ann. § 2901; aggravated assault, 18 Pa. Cons. Stat. Ann. § 2702; unlawful restraint, 18 Pa. Cons. Stat. Ann. § 2902; false imprisonment, 18 Pa. Cons. Stat. Ann. § 2903; conspiracy, 18 Pa. Cons. Stat. Ann. § 903; and possession of an instrument of crime, 18 Pa. Cons. Stat. Ann. § 907. Chester, 526 Pa. at 586 n. 1, 587 A.2d at 1371 n. 1. Petitioner filed post-verdict motions in the trial court on May 31, 1988, which were denied by opinion and order dated June 29, 1989.
On July 19, 1989, the trial court sentenced petitioner to death on the first degree murder charge and to a "consecutive sentence of not less than 10 nor more than 20 years" on the kidnapping charge. Sentencing Tr. at 6 (July 19, 1989). It does not appear that petitioner was sentenced on any other crimes of which he was found guilty. The Pennsylvania Supreme Court affirmed petitioner's conviction and sentence on direct appeal on March 20, 1991. Chester, 526 Pa. 578, 587 A.2d 1367. Laird filed a petition for writ of certiorari to the United States Supreme Court on June 18, 1991; it was denied by order dated October 7, 1991. Laird v. Pennsylvania, 502 U.S. 849 (1991).
Petitioner then filed a pro se petition for collateral review pursuant to the Pennsylvania Post Conviction Relief Act ("PCRA"), 42 Pa. Cons. Stat. Ann. § 9541, in the Bucks County Court of Common Pleas on July 22, 1993. The Court of Common Pleas appointed counsel to represent petitioner and an amended petition was filed on January 12, 1995. That court held an evidentiary hearing regarding some of the claims raised in the PCRA petition on May 25, 1995 and concluded the hearing on April 1, 1996. New counsel entered an appearance on July 19, 1996 and additional testimony in support of the petition was heard January 21-28, 1997. The Court of Common Pleas issued an opinion and order denying PCRA relief on September 2, 1997. The Pennsylvania Supreme Court affirmed the order. Commonwealth v. Laird, 555 Pa. 629, 726 A.2d 346 (1999) ("Laird").
Petitioner filed a pro se Petition for Writ of Habeas Corpus Under 28 U.S.C. § 2254 on May 5, 1999. Counsel was thereafter appointed and on September 7, 1999, a counseled Petition for Writ of Habeas Corpus was filed. A supporting Memorandum of Law was filed on December 17, 1999. On February 18, 2000, respondents filed their answer to the petition. A reply was filed on March 23, 2000.
The counseled Petition for Writ of Habeas Corpus superseded the pro se petition. Accordingly, in this Memorandum, the Court will only address the claims raised in the counseled petition. For the reasons that follow, the petition will be granted in part.
A federal writ of habeas corpus may not be granted to a person incarcerated pursuant to a state court judgment unless he or she has first exhausted the remedies available in state court. As amended by the Antiterrorism and Effective Death Penalty Act ("AEDPA"), 28 U.S.C. § 2254 provides that "[a]n application for a writ of habeas corpus on behalf of a person in custody pursuant to the judgment of a State court shall not be granted unless it appears that — (A) the applicant has exhausted the remedies available in the courts of the State. . . ." 28 U.S.C. § 2254(b)(1) (Supp. V 1999).
To satisfy this exhaustion requirement, the petitioner must "afford each level of the state courts a fair opportunity to address the claim." Doctor v. Walters, 96 F.3d 675, 678 (3d Cir. 1996); see McCandless v. Vaughn, 172 F.3d 255, 260 (3d Cir. 1999)....
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