Martin v. State

• Decision Date: 22 August 2003
• Docket Number: CR-99-2249.
• Citation: Martin v. State, 931 So.2d 736 (Ala. Crim. App. 2003)
• Parties: George MARTIN v. STATE of Alabama.
• Court: Alabama Court of Criminal Appeals

931 So.2d 736

George MARTIN v. STATE of Alabama.

CR-99-2249.

Court of Criminal Appeals of Alabama.

May 30, 2003.

Rehearing Denied August 22, 2003.

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Vader Al Pennington, Mobile, for appellant.

William H. Pryor, Jr., and Troy King, attys. gen., and David R. Clark, asst. atty. gen., for appellee.

WISE, Judge.

The appellant, George Martin, was convicted of murder made capital because it was committed for pecuniary gain. See § 13A-5-40(a)(7), Ala.Code 1975. Specifically, the jury found that Martin, a former Alabama State Trooper, killed his wife, Hammoleketh Jackson Martin, in order to collect approximately $377,000 of life insurance proceeds from a number of policies. The jury, by a vote of 8-4, recommended that Martin be sentenced to life imprisonment without the possibility of parole. However, the trial court overrode the jury's recommendation and sentenced Martin to death.

Martin does not challenge the sufficiency of the State's evidence presented in support of his conviction. However, because this case involves the imposition of the death penalty, we have reviewed the evidence, and we find that it is sufficient to support Martin's conviction for capital murder. Nevertheless, a summary of the crime and Martin's participation therein is in order. We quote from the trial court's written findings of fact, taken from its sentencing order:

"On October 8, 1995, officers of the Mobile Police Department and firefighters from the Mobile Fire Department were called to the scene of a vehicle fire in the vicinity of Willis Road and Highway 90 in an isolated area of South Mobile County. They arrived on the scene at approximately 11:30 p.m.

"Upon arriving at the scene, police and firefighters observed a 1991 Ford Escort burning and viewed what appeared to be charred human remains inside the vehicle. The medical examiner was summoned and testified that he observed the head of the victim lying on the driver's side and the rest of the remains situated on the right front seat. Due to the immense heat from the still smoldering vehicle and the absence of light, the remains were not removed until the following morning. The medical examiner testified that parts of the body were not intact. Both arms and shoulders had virtually fallen off the torso, and so the remains had to be removed in pieces. At autopsy, these remains weighed only approximately 24 pounds. The manner of death was determined to be homicide; the cause of death was determined to be body burns (100%) and smoke inhalation. Moreover, the victim was alive at the time the fire started in the car.

"The investigation revealed that the fire was intentionally set. According to the evidence, the fire started in the right rear passenger compartment and spread forward. The minimal damage to the front of the vehicle precluded any conclusion that the impact of the car with a tree in the area could have started the fire; rather, the evidence was uncontroverted that the scene was consistent with a staged wreck.

"A traffic homicide investigator from the Alabama Department of Public Safety testified that he examined the vehicle and the scene in question. He conducted speed calculations of a vehicle and analyzed the kind of force that would have been necessary to cause such a fire. He concluded that the fire was not an accident and the collision of the vehicle with a tree did not produce sufficient force to start the fire.

"Martin, when initially notified by officers of the Mobile Police Department that his car had been found with a body in it stated that he had last seen his wife at approximately 8:00 or 8:30 p.m. that evening. He stated she left the house without telling him where she was going and that he fell asleep watching a football game on television. He initially stated that he had awakened at approximately 1:00 or 1:30 in the morning and, after noticing that his wife was not home, decided to go look for her.

"The State introduced evidence of several inconsistencies in Martin's various statements. Among the inconsistencies, were the time that he awoke to discover his wife missing, that the victim carried a gasoline can in her automobile with her because the gas gauge did not work, and that a BIC lighter found at the scene was used by his wife, the victim, as a flashlight because the dome light in her car did not work. The evidence also established that the defendant was less than honest when questioned about the existence of life insurance policies insuring the life of his wife, Hammoleketh Martin. Though the defendant acknowledged the existence of a policy insuring his wife's life for $200,000, he lied when he stated there were no other policies. In particular, another policy insuring the life of Hammoleketh Martin for $150,000 was introduced into evidence and, according to the State's evidence, this amount was collectible only if Hammoleketh Martin died in a passenger vehicle.¹

"The State also introduced evidence of a Traffic Accident Investigation Report prepared by Martin approximately one year prior to the death of his wife. The report involved a traffic accident in which an automobile left the road, hit a tree, and burst into flames. The State contended that the report of his incident, which was the defendant's version of what occurred, was strikingly similar to the occurrences of one year prior.

"The State linked the evidence of the insurance proceeds with the purported financial difficulties of the defendant. According to the prosecution's testimony, Martin's financial condition had deteriorated to the point where he was approaching bankruptcy."

(C. 125-26.)

Martin resigned his position as a state trooper in 1996 and later moved to Texas. However, the police continued to investigate the incident. In 1999, the police arrested Martin and charged him with murder made capital because it was committed for pecuniary gain. Martin was extradited to Alabama to stand trial. While incarcerated and awaiting trial, Martin told another inmate that he had killed the victim.

Standard of Review

In every case where the death penalty is imposed, this Court must review the record for any plain error, i.e., for any defect in the proceedings, whether or not the defect was brought to the attention of the trial court. Rule 45A, Ala.R.App.P., provides:

"In all cases in which the death penalty has been imposed, the Court of Criminal Appeals shall notice any plain error or defect in the proceedings under review, whether or not brought to the attention of the trial court, and take appropriate appellate action by reason thereof, whenever such error has or probably has adversely affected the substantial right of the appellant."

As this Court stated in Hall v. State, 820 So.2d 113, 121-22 (Ala.Crim.App.1999), aff'd, 820 So.2d 152 (Ala.2001), cert. denied, 535 U.S. 1080, 122 S.Ct. 1966, 152 L.Ed.2d 1025 (2002):

"The standard of review in reviewing a claim under the plain-error doctrine is stricter than the standard used in reviewing an issue that was properly raised in the trial court or on appeal. As the United States Supreme Court stated in United States v. Young, 470 U.S. 1, 105 S.Ct. 1038, 84 L.Ed.2d 1 (1985), the plain-error doctrine applies only if the error is `particularly egregious' and if it `seriously affects the fairness, integrity or public reputation of judicial proceedings.' See Ex parte Price, 725 So.2d 1063 (Ala.1998), cert. denied, 526 U.S. 1133, 119 S.Ct. 1809, 143 L.Ed.2d 1012 (1999); Burgess v. State, 723 So.2d 742 (Ala.Cr.App.1997), aff'd, 723 So.2d 770 (Ala.1998), cert. denied, 526 U.S. 1052, 119 S.Ct. 1360, 143 L.Ed.2d 521 (1999); Johnson v. State, 620 So.2d 679, 701 (Ala.Cr.App.1992), rev'd on other grounds, 620 So.2d 709 (Ala.1993), on remand, 620 So.2d 714 (Ala.Cr.App.), cert. denied, 510 U.S. 905, 114 S.Ct. 285, 126 L.Ed.2d 235 (1993)."

Although Martin's failure to object at trial will not preclude this Court's review of an issue in this case, it will, nevertheless, weigh against any claim of prejudice he makes on appeal. See Dill v. State, 600 So.2d 343 (Ala.Crim.App.1991), aff'd, 600 So.2d 372 (Ala.1992), cert. denied, 507 U.S. 924, 113 S.Ct. 1293, 122 L.Ed.2d 684 (1993).

A number of the issues Martin raises on appeal were not first brought to the trial court's attention. Accordingly, this Court's review of those matters is limited to the application of the plain-error doctrine.

Guilt-Phase Issues

I.

Martin argues that the trial court erred in allowing Pamela Carey, a friend of the victim's, to testify about a conversation between her and the victim that took place a few days before the victim's death. Carey testified that a few days before the victim's death, the victim appeared troubled, and she expressed concerns about Martin's behavior. She gave Carey her mother's name and telephone number and told Carey that if she did not hear from her in three or four days or if she heard something about her being missing, to telephone her parents and tell them "he did it." (R. 1244.) The victim's comments upset Carey, and she told the victim, "don't say that." According to Carey, the victim then said, "He might not do it, he loves me, George loves me." (R. 1242-45.)

Specifically, Martin argues that allowing Carey to testify regarding her conversation with the victim violated the hearsay rule. He cites as authority for this convention this Court's decisions in Hargrove v. State, 368 So.2d 335, 337 (Ala.Crim.App. 1979) ("Statements and declarations of a deceased are not competent evidence for or against an accused in a murder prosecution unless made in his presence, or unless they are admitted in evidence as part of the res gestae or constitute dying declarations."), and Freeman v. State, 505 So.2d 1079, 1085 (Ala.Crim.App.1986) (same). Initially, we note that those cases were decided before the adoption of the Alabama Rules of Evidence. Moreover, in subsequent decisions, the Alabama Supreme Court...