Lockett v. State
| Decision Date | 28 January 1986 |
| Docket Number | 8 Div. 325 |
| Citation | 489 So.2d 653 |
| Parties | George LOCKETT, alias v. STATE. |
| Court | Alabama Court of Criminal Appeals |
Mark McDaniel, Huntsville, for appellant.
Charles A. Graddick, Atty. Gen., and Victor Jackson, Asst. Atty. Gen., for appellee.
George Lockett was indicted for possession of marijuana and for possession of cocaine. The jury found the appellant guilty of both offenses. He was sentenced to twelve years' imprisonment in the penitentiary.
On the evening of August 22, 1984, Hollis Lowery, a patrol officer with the Huntsville Police Department, received a dispatch on a shooting at 2830C Turf Avenue. When Lowery arrived, a black man ran up to him and said that a black male with a gun was in the apartment.
The glass storm door to the apartment had been broken. The main door was wide open. When Lowery looked into the apartment, he saw a man lying on the floor with a pistol in his hand. The man was not moving so Lowery entered the apartment.
Lowery went over to the man, removed the gun from his hand and checked for any signs of life. There were none. He then checked the apartment and determined no one else was there. In the process of checking the apartment, Lowery saw a seat cover box in the living room. The top was open and Lowery saw a plastic bag with green plant material in the box. He also observed white powder on a piece of paper on the ironing board. A knife was lying beside the white powder as well as some money. Some money was also next to the man's body.
D.O. Sharp of the Huntsville Police Department took photographs of the scene as well as the evidence collected there.
Ray Tielking, supervisor of the organized crime bureau of the Huntsville Police Department, went to the scene that night. The OCB investigates the vice and narcotics cases in the department.
After the homicide investigation concluded, he began his investigation of the scene. At some point, he called Officer Paul Ballance to bring him a Scott Reagent Field Test. He also requested Ballance to collect the evidence that was found.
Listed below is the evidence which was collected from the scene.
(1) White powder lying on piece of paper on ironing board
(2) Knife and pipe packing tool found next to white powder on ironing board
(3) Currency on ironing board
(4) Set of scales found in box on counter
(5) One bottle of manitol, one block of manitol, and one bottle of inositol in kitchen cabinet (inositol is a cutting agent for cocaine)
(6) White powder on piece of paper in butter dish of refrigerator
(7) Brown paper bag with 100 empty manilla envelopes found next to water heater
(1) Crown Royal bag with currency inside found on bedside table
(2) Purse found with four manilla envelopes containing green plant material
(3) Suit case with cashbox containing large amount of currency
(4) Wallet found in pair of pants on floor containing the appellant's driver's license, bank account cards and food stamp certificate
(1) Seat cover box containing large plastic bag of green plant material found in between sofas
(2) Briefcase found on sofa containing loose green plant material
(3) Brief case containing small plastic bag of green plant material
(4) Blue plastic bag which contained 30 manila envelopes of green plant material
(5) Cigarette case containing currency and Ellie Moore's driver's license
(*) Various amounts of currency were found throughout the apartment
The majority of the currency found in the apartment was counted by Ballance. It totaled $13,240.
Ballance turned over the white powder found on the ironing board and in the refrigerator to Martha Odom of the Department of Forensic Sciences. He also gave Odom the large and small plastic bags of plant material, the 34 manila envelopes of green plant material as well as the loose green plant material contained in the briefcase.
Odom analyzed the white powder and determined the substance was cocaine. The total weight of the cocaine was one gram. After examining the green plant material, Odom determined it was marijuana. The total weight of the marijuana was 16.1 ounces or 458 grams.
On the evening of August 22, 1984, Officer Harry Renfroe went to the Huntsville Hospital emergency room on the report of a shooting victim. When he arrived, he learned that the victim was this appellant. At this time, the appellant was not connected to the events at 2830C Turf Avenue. Renfroe asked the appellant what had happened. The appellant said that he had been shot at a house in Norwood. He said a man came to rob "them" and shot him. The appellant then returned fire and shot the man. He said the man's name was Raymond Jude.
Renfroe then called Officer James Parker who was at 2830C Turf Avenue investigating the homicide. He told Parker that the homicide victim might be Raymond Judge. Parker then went to the hospital and talked to the doctor. The appellant was released into police custody that night and transported to the city jail.
When the appellant arrived at the jail, he was advised of his Miranda rights and read a waiver of those rights. The appellant indicated he understood those rights, waived them, and wished to talk. (R. 286-288)
The appellant gave his address as 3015 Holmes Avenue but stated he often stayed with his girlfriend, Ellie Moore, who lived at 2830C Turf Avenue. On the night in question, he went over to Moore's around 8:00. Soon after, his sister, Jeanette Lockett, arrived.
At some point, the appellant went to the bathroom. While there, he heard a knock on the front door. Moore let Raymond Jude and Henry Bradley inside while another man stayed at the door. Both men had sacks which he thought had drugs or drug paraphernalia in them. Jude said he needed money. When Moore looked in the bag, Jude pulled out a gun. The appellant then went into the kitchen and got his gun.
As he reached for the gun, Jude shot him in the back. The appellant turned around and shot Jude and fired again until he fell down. The appellant then ran out the back door and climbed the fence. He then went to a friend's house. This friend, Sarge, took him to the hospital.
When the appellant was asked about the drugs at 2830C Turf Avenue, he stated that they belonged to him and Moore, and he knew that he would get caught someday. He said a man in a black Cadillac would drop off the drugs.
The next morning, Renfroe got the appellant out of jail. He advised the appellant of his Miranda rights and read him the waiver. The appellant said he understood his rights, waived them, and he wanted to talk.
When asked if he could help the police locate Ellie Moore, the appellant said there were a few numbers that he could call, which he did later. Moore had not been located at the time of the trial.
When the appellant was questioned about the events of the previous night, he told Renfroe basically the same story he had told Parker the night before. The appellant also told Renfroe that the drugs in the apartment belonged to him and Moore, and that they sold drugs from the apartment.
At this point, Parker came into the room. The appellant gave a written statement which he wrote out himself.
His statement reads as follows:
Shelia Patton testified that she is employed at SCI in Madison County, Alabama. In August of 1984, Ellie Moore worked in her department at SCI. Moore continued working at SCI until January of 1985. During that time, Patton knew there were warrants out for Moore's arrest, but she never contacted the police. Patton heard Moore talk about the appellant when they worked together. She didn't know where Moore was at the time of trial.
Catherine Acklin, the manager of the Norwood project for the Huntsville Housing Authority, testified that the apartment at 2830C Turf Avenue was rented to Moore on November 22, 1983. Moore lived there with her two children. The apartment was declared vacant on September 12, 1984, and the lease was terminated.
The appellant stated that in August of 1984, he lived with his mother at 3015 Holmes Avenue. Ellie Moore was his girlfriend, and she lived at 2830C Turf Avenue. The appellant stated he would visit Moore at times but never stayed there.
When the appellant would accumulate money, he would take it to Moore for her to keep because he did not trust banks. However, he and Moore did have a joint bank account.
Of the money found at the apartment that night, the appellant said $11,000 or $12,000 of it belonged to him. He testified that he was a professional gambler by occupation and that most of the money came from his gambling winnings. The appellant testified that he received $9,200 from the sale of his house in July of 1982. He also received a $9,225 insurance check following the death of his wife...
To continue reading
Request your trial
- Donahoo v. State, 7 Div. 977
-
Creque v. State
... ... Lockett v. State , 489 So.2d 653 (Ala. Crim. App. 1986), presented circumstances virtually identical to those in this case. In Lockett , Officer Harry Renfroe went to a hospital emergency room following the report that a shooting victim, Lockett, was being treated there. When Officer Renfroe arrived, he ... ...
- Donahoo v. State, 7 Div. 578
-
Nelson v. State
... ... In Lockett v. State, 489 So.2d 653 (Ala.Cr.App.), cert. denied, 479 U.S. 850, 107 S.Ct. 177, 93 L.Ed.2d 113 (1986), this court observed that ... "The appellant's statements to Officer Renfroe in the emergency room were not in violation of Miranda v. Arizona, 384 U.S. 436, 86 S.Ct. 1602, 16 ... ...