Manigan v. State, 6 Div. 242

• Decision Date: 05 May 1981
• Docket Number: 6 Div. 242
• Citation: 402 So.2d 1063
• Parties: Charlie James MANIGAN, alias v. STATE.
• Court: Alabama Court of Criminal Appeals

Page 1063

402 So.2d 1063

Charlie James MANIGAN, alias v. STATE.

6 Div. 242.

Court of Criminal Appeals of Alabama.

May 5, 1981.

Rehearing Denied June 23, 1981.

George H. Jones, Birmingham, for appellant.

Charles A. Graddick, Atty. Gen., and L. Gilbert Kendrick, Asst. Atty. Gen., for appellee.

DeCARLO, Judge.

First degree arson; life.

Birmingham Fireman Kenneth R. Goodwin testified that between 11:30 and 12:00 P.M., on February 24, 1979, he, along with other firemen in his company, answered a call for assistance at a duplex home located at 23-B 1st Place North in Birmingham. He stated one side of the house was well involved in fire with flames shooting from the front door and a window in the front room. Fireman Goodwin stated that the fire was extinguished in fifteen to twenty seconds, and after the smoke cleared, two bodies were discovered inside the house.

Goodwin testified that he had been employed as a fireman for twelve years and had fought hundreds of fires. He said that during the course of his employment, he had received training in identifying the origins and causes of fires. He testified that he knew the characteristics of a flammable liquid fire, which was identified by a specific char pattern in the fire-affected area.

Upon arriving at the scene, Goodwin noticed the front door to the house had been knocked open. He observed the condition of the padlock and hasp after the fire had been extinguished. He stated that the fire inspector was called due to the fire-related fatalities. Goodwin stated that a fire's point of origin is determined by the deepest char pattern left after extinguishing the fire. He testified that in a flammable liquid fire, the point of origin will have a deeper char pattern and as the liquid vaporizes, smaller, less deep char patterns will be found. According to Goodwin, there were two or three points of origin of the fire: in and around the front door; under a window in the front room; and in and around a bed in the middle room. He testified that based on his training, experience, and observation of the scene, the fire was started by a flammable liquid.

On cross-examination, Goodwin stated that he did not know if a time was determined when the fire started. He stated that he did not observe the condition of the back door but he did remember that one the two windows in the front room was shattered. He acknowledged that the broken window could have existed before the fire, and been caused by the water pressure of the hose, or resulted from the fire itself. Goodwin was present when the appellant identified one of the victims as his wife. He stated that the appellant was upset, screaming and, generally out of control.

Birmingham Fireman James Wint testified that he was a member of the second engine company to arrive at the scene. He stated that he found two bodies, one located in the front room on the couch and the second located in the middle room half-on and half-off the bed. Wint determined that both people were dead and stated that they were identified as the appellant's wife and Eula Hughes. Wint said that he did not observe a kerosene lamp on or around the front room mantel. Wint identified the same points of origin of the fire as those previously indicated by Fireman Goodwin. He also found another distinctive char pattern in the middle room on a wall above a dresser. He, too, gave his opinion that the fire was caused by a flammable liquid.

On cross-examination, Wint stated the "possible" point of origin was near the front door although he later clarified his answer and stated that the char pattern there was caused by the fire. He stated that there was no way to determine whether a char pattern found in the house existed prior to the fire. He said that he did not observe the back door but he noticed that all the windows in the house were broken.

Birmingham Fire Marshall Howard Cooper testified that he was senior fire marshall and had been a fire inspector for seventeen years. He stated that the instant fire was reported at 11:43 P.M., on February 24, and that he arrived on the scene approximately fifteen minutes later. He made a preliminary examination to inspect the location of the bodies of the two victims. He stated that Eula Hughes was severely burned, while the defendant's wife suffered only minor burns. He observed the padlock and hasp on the front door and noted that the lock was not open and a portion of the hasp had been pulled out of the door facing. He stated that the nails which formerly attached the hasp to the door facing were not rusted. He noted the same three points of origin of the fire as those explained by Fireman Goodwin, but he testified that the front door area was the primary point of origin.

Cooper stated that a flammable liquid accelerates the growth of a fire and produces a quick heat. He testified that the bed had burned from the top downwards to the floor and the char patterns examined there were consistent with a fire caused by a flammable liquid. Cooper also stated that the house had no gas or electric services at the time of the fire. He said that he found the remains of a kerosene lamp near the mantel in the front room, although no charring of the wood was present in that area.

Cooper stated that his training and experience led him to suspect the use of an accelerant or flammable liquid in an area which is heavily charred but which contains nothing to ignite a fire. He explained that ordinarily the area around a front door is not a point of origin for a fire, because there is usually no material present in that area which would create a deep char pattern upon being ignited.

In a flammable liquid fire, according to Cooper, the char pattern will usually follow the flow of the flammable liquid upon the surface of whatever it was poured. Fire Marshall Cooper gave his opinion that a flammable liquid caused the instant fire.

On cross-examination, Cooper stated that the back door was open when he arrived at the scene and the slide bar lock was broken. He said that tests were preformed on a sample taken from the bottom threshold of the front door and from remnants of clothing found on the body of Eula Hughes in an attempt to determine the presence of a flammable liquid. The test results were negative. He stated, however, that such tests are inconclusive because it is possible for all the flammable liquid to be totally consumed in the fire.

Cooper stated that he was present when the appellant identified the body of his wife. He stated that appellant was restrained from entering the house for a period of time since the fire had not been completely extinguished and the house secured. He described the appellant as emotional and upset.

On redirect examination, Cooper testified that kerosene and gasoline are accelerants and are consumed prior to other materials such as wood. He stated that where there has been extensive burning, evidence of flammable liquids may not be found.

Birmingham fireman, Captain J. H. McQueen, testified that he was a member of the second company that arrived upon the scene. He went to the back door and, finding it locked from the inside, pushed it open with his shoulder. He entered the kitchen and proceeded to the middle room, finding no fire in either. McQueen inspected the damage to the house and said that in his opinion the fire was caused by a flammable liquid.

Chief medical investigator Jay Glass of the Jefferson County Coroner-Medical Examiner's Office testified that he assisted in the autopsies of the appellant's wife and Eula Hughes. He testified that the cause of death for both women was asphyxia due to carbon monoxide poisoning. He stated blood samples from each body were extracted and tested for alcohol content. The results indicated that both women had a .28 blood alcohol level.

Glass testified that the presence of alcohol in the system would result in lowering the amount of carbon monoxide one would need to inhale before losing consciousness.

On cross-examination, Glass stated that only tests for blood alcohol and carbon monoxide levels were performed, and in his opinion, the women were intoxicated at the time of death.

Mrs. Leona Hamilton, the mother of appellant's wife, stated that the house that burned was her residence and she had rented it for about eight years. Her daughter and the appellant had lived there with her for about a year. On the night of the fire, however, Mrs. Hamilton spent the night with friends. She testified that she never had a lock on the front door.

Eddie Davis testified that between 5:00 and 6:00 P.M., on February 24, he was at appellant's residence with appellant's wife. Mr. Davis stated that he and Mrs. Manigan were sitting in the front room talking when appellant entered the house. He testified that both he and Mrs. Manigan were clothed. Mr. Davis said that, upon entering, the appellant said, "What in the hell is going on in here?" Appellant told Davis that he was "going to whip your so and so," and said to his wife, "Bitch, I am going to kill you if it is the last thing I do." Davis and the appellant began to fight and appellant hit Davis with an object and cut his head. Davis stated that he fell off the front porch, and after the fight had ended, walked home. Later in the evening Davis was treated at Cooper Green Hospital for his injuries sustained in the fight. Davis testified that when he was walking away from appellant's residence it was the last time he saw Mrs. Manigan alive.

On cross-examination, Davis stated that he was sitting in a chair and Mrs. Manigan was lying on the sofa when they were talking. He said that he had not been drinking and, as far as he knew, neither had Mrs. Manigan. Davis testified that he remembered having a conversation with Birmingham Police Sgt. F. M. Knight on February 27, 1979, around 2:51 P.M., at his house. He stated that he did not remember telling Sgt. Knight that Mrs. Manigan had her clothes "down." Davis testified that...