Meadows v. State

• Decision Date: 31 March 2003
• Docket Number: No. 49A02-0204-CR-346.,49A02-0204-CR-346.
• Citation: 785 N.E.2d 1112
• Parties: Joshua MEADOWS, Appellant-Defendant, v. STATE of Indiana, Appellee.
• Court: Indiana Appellate Court

785 N.E.2d 1112

Joshua MEADOWS, Appellant-Defendant, v. STATE of Indiana, Appellee.

No. 49A02-0204-CR-346.

Court of Appeals of Indiana.

March 31, 2003.

Kimberly A. Jackson, Marion County Public Defender Agency, Indianapolis, IN, Attorney for Appellant.

Steve Carter, Attorney General of Indiana, Cynthia L. Ploughe, Deputy Attorney General, Indianapolis, IN, Attorneys for Appellee.

OPINION

SULLIVAN, Judge.

Following a jury trial, Joshua Meadows was convicted of two counts of Possession of a Firearm by a Serious Violent Felon (Aiding and Abetting), a Class B felony,¹ and False Informing, as a Class B misdemeanor.² He presents several issues for our review, which we renumber and restate as:

I. Whether the trial court erred in admitting certain evidence;

II. Whether the presence of several uniformed police officers in the courtroom violated his right to a fair trial; and

III. Whether the trial court erred in sentencing.

We affirm the convictions but remand for reconsideration of the sentences.

The facts relevant to this appeal include many issues which were not before the jury due to the nature and circumstances surrounding the crime in which the firearms in question were used. In 2001, Meadows purchased two firearms. On April 23, 2001, he purchased an SKS rifle from an Indianapolis gun dealer. When Meadows went to purchase the SKS, he was accompanied by Allen Dumperth, who had been convicted of robbery and could not legally possess a firearm.³ Meadows filled out the necessary paperwork in order for the purchase to take place, and the store clerk performed the required background check.⁴ Meadows left the store after the sale was put on "delay" status pending a further review by the FBI before the sale could be completed. Meadows and Dumperth returned to the store on April 26 to pick up the SKS after Meadows learned that he had passed the background check. Meadows acknowledged that on several occasions, he and Dumperth shot the SKS for target practice.

On August 22, 2001, Meadows, at the urging of Dumperth, went to purchase a second firearm from a different dealer. Meadows decided to purchase an AK-47 rifle and paid for it with money that he had received from Dumperth. Once again, Meadows filled out the necessary paperwork for the background check to be conducted. The sale was put on "delay" status and Meadows and Dumperth left the store. They returned to pick up the AK-47 a few hours later after Meadows was informed that the background check had been completed.

Sometime shortly after Meadows purchased the AK-47, he gave it to Dumperth. Meadows claimed that he asked Dumperth to return the AK-47, but that Dumperth refused, saying that the AK-47 belonged to him. On September 12, 2001, Dumperth asked Meadows whether he could borrow the SKS for the purpose of target shooting. Meadows gave him the SKS, giving him possession of both of Meadows' firearms.

On September 17, Dumperth was involved in a police chase and shooting in which Deputy Jason Baker of the Marion County Sheriff's Department was shot and killed and a bystander was seriously injured. Dumperth also died during the shootout. Both the SKS and the AK-47 which belonged to Meadows were used in the shooting. The AK-47 was recovered in Dumperth's automobile, and the SKS was found a short distance from where Dumperth's automobile had crashed. Meadows was not personally involved in the shooting and was not in Dumperth's automobile during the chase.

Meadows learned that Dumperth had been involved in the shooting and, on September 18, called 911 to report that his firearms had been stolen. Deputy Thomas George of the Marion County Sheriff's Department went to Meadows' apartment to fill out a report. On September 20, Meadows again called 911 and stated that he believed that his firearms may have been used in the shooting of Deputy Baker. At that time, Deputy Charles Smith was dispatched to Meadows' apartment. Deputy Smith met with Meadows, but did not question Meadows about the firearms because he was instructed by Detective-Sergeant Douglas Scheffel of the Marion County Sheriff's Department that he was to only "make small talk." Transcript at 160. Sergeant Scheffel informed Deputy Smith that he and Detective-Sergeant Mike Perkins would come to Meadows' apartment to interview him.

After arriving at Meadows' apartment, Sergeant Scheffel and Meadows sat in Sergeant Scheffel's car so that some preliminary information could be gathered about Meadows and the purported theft. Meadows then accompanied Sergeant Scheffel and Sergeant Perkins to the Sheriff's Department where he was interviewed in more detail for the purpose of making a taped statement. Sergeant Scheffel was joined by Detective-Sergeant Paul Arkins of the Indianapolis Police Department who was on special assignment to the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms. Meadows confessed that he had lied about the firearms being stolen and admitted that he had given them to Dumperth. Meadows was then advised of his Miranda rights and subsequently signed the advisement of rights form and a waiver of those rights prior to giving a taped statement.

I Admission of Evidence

The admission of evidence is a matter within the sound discretion of the trial court. Hyppolite v. State, 774 N.E.2d 584, 592 (Ind.Ct.App.2002). The decision to admit evidence will not be reversed absent a showing of manifest abuse of discretion resulting in the denial of a fair trial. Id. An abuse of discretion occurs when a decision is clearly against the logic and effect of the facts and circumstances before the trial court. Id. In reviewing the admissibility of evidence, we consider only the evidence in favor of the trial court's ruling and any unrefuted evidence in the defendant's favor. Id.

A. Statement to Police

Meadows asserts that the trial court erred in allowing into evidence the statement which he gave to the police. He contends that he was "in custody" at the time he gave the initial statement which occurred prior to his being advised of his Miranda rights. He further asserts that the taped statement, which was given after he was informed of his Miranda rights, was inadmissible as the "fruit of the poisonous tree."

The Miranda warnings were designed to secure a criminal defendant's right against compulsory self-incrimination. Davies v. State, 730 N.E.2d 726, 733 (Ind.Ct.App.2000), cert. denied by 532 U.S. 945, 121 S.Ct. 1410, 149 L.Ed.2d 352 (2001). A defendant is entitled to receive Miranda warnings when he is subject to custodial interrogation. Id. The prosecution may not use statements which stem from custodial interrogation of the defendant unless it demonstrates the use of procedural safeguards effective to secure the privilege against self-incrimination. Miranda v. Arizona, 384 U.S. 436, 444, 86 S.Ct. 1602, 16 L.Ed.2d 694 (1966). Custodial interrogation occurs when questioning is initiated by law enforcement officers after a person has been taken into custody or otherwise deprived of his freedom of action in any significant way. Id. See also Morales v. State, 749 N.E.2d 1260, 1265 (Ind.Ct.App.2001). If a reasonable person in the same circumstances would not feel free to leave, a criminal defendant is deemed to be in custody. Morales, 749 N.E.2d at 1265.

While Meadows claims that he was in custody prior to the advisement of his Miranda rights, a detailed analysis of when Meadows was "in custody" is unnecessary for resolution of this case because Meadows does not direct this court to the use of any pre-Miranda statements as evidence at trial. Our review of the record also leads us to conclude that any information discussed at trial which was garnered before Meadows received his rights occurred before a reasonable person would conclude that they were in custody. Therefore, the sole issue remaining regarding the use of any statements was whether the taped statement which was given after Meadows was advised of his Miranda rights was admissible. For purpose of this review, we will accept Meadows' contention that information was acquired from him in violation of his rights.⁵ In so doing, we will decide whether the post-Miranda statement was admissible or whether it was the "fruit of the poisonous tree" as Meadows claims, and therefore, inadmissible.⁶

The "fruit of the poisonous tree" doctrine finds its beginning in Wong Sun v. U.S., 371 U.S. 471, 83 S.Ct. 407, 9 L.Ed.2d 441 (1963). As discussed by the United States Supreme Court in Oregon v. Elstad, 470 U.S. 298, 306, 105 S.Ct. 1285, 84 L.Ed.2d 222 (1985), the Wong Sun Court held that evidence and witnesses discovered as a result of a search in violation of the Fourth Amendment must be excluded from evidence. The Elstad Court determined that the "fruit of the poisonous tree" doctrine did not control in a situation in which the "fruit" of a non-coercive Miranda violation is the accused's own voluntary statement. 470 U.S. at 308, 105 S.Ct. 1285. Although the pre-Miranda statement is inadmissible, the admissibility of any subsequent post-Miranda statement turns upon whether the statement was knowingly and voluntarily made. Id. at 309, 105 S.Ct. 1285.

The State bears the burden of proving beyond a reasonable doubt that the confession was voluntary and not induced by violence, threats, promises, or other improper influences so as to overcome the free will of the accused at the time the confession is made. Davies, 730 N.E.2d at 732. In reviewing the voluntariness of a confession, we consider the totality of the circumstances. Id. In so doing, we may consider such factors as police coercion, the length, location, and continuity of the interrogation, and the defendant's maturity, education, physical condition, and mental health. Miller v. State, 770 N.E.2d 763, 767 (Ind.2002). Based upon the totality of the circumstances, we must determine whether the police conduct overbore the defendant's will. Id. at 767-68.

Meadows' sole claim to the involuntariness of his...