People v. Bolinski

• Decision Date: 01 April 1968
• Docket Number: Cr. 2781
• Citation: 67 Cal.Rptr. 347,260 Cal.App.2d 705
• Court: California Court of Appeals Court of Appeals
• Parties: The PEOPLE of the State of California, Plaintiff and Respondent, v. Dennis Ray BOLINSKI, Defendant and Appellant.

Page 347

67 Cal.Rptr. 347

260 Cal.App.2d 705

The PEOPLE of the State of California, Plaintiff and Respondent, v. Dennis Ray BOLINSKI, Defendant and Appellant.

Cr. 2781.

Court of Appeal, Fourth District, Division 2, California.

April 1, 1968.

Hearing Denied May 29, 1968.

[260 Cal.App.2d 709] James L. Kellam, Riverside, for defendant and appellant.

Thomas C. Lynch, Atty. Gen., William E. James, Asst. Atty. Gen., and Richard Tanzer, Deputy Atty. Gen., for plaintiff and respondent.

OPINION

TAMURA, Associate Justice.

Following a jury trial defendant was found guilty of first degree murder and the penalty was fixed at life imprisonment. Defendant appeals from the judgment of conviction, order denying new trial and order denying a motion for reduction of sentence. The latter two orders being nonappealable, the appeals therefrom must be dismissed. ¹

The charge arose out of the disappearance of August 20, 1965, of one Paul Morrow Taylor, a relief manager for Western Union, who was then stationed at Palm Springs. No one has seen him or heard from him since and, according to the record and evidence before us, his body has never been found.

Defendant contends that corpus delicti was not established and that certain extrajudicial statements were received in evidence in violation of the rules enunciated in Miranda v. State of Arizona, 384 U.S. 486, 86 S.Ct. 1602, 16 L.Ed.2d 694. We have concluded that prima facie proof of corpus delicti was established but that certain extrajudicial statements made by defendant should have been excluded and that the judgment should therefore be reversed.

Paul Marrow Taylor was a 51-year old bachelor who was described as heavy-set with reddish hair and weighing about 185 pounds. He had a sister, Mrs. Maude Gruber, who resided in Pacific Grove, California. Mr. Taylor used his sister's address as his permanent address and received all of his mail there. As a relief manager he was assigned to various Western Union offices throughout the state and spent little time at his sister's home. However, she did see him at least once every four or five months. Mrs. Gruber last saw him in June 1965 and has not heard from him since August 20, 1965.

For the month of August, 1965, Mr. Taylor had been assigned to the Western Union office in Palm Springs. He had taken a room at a Palm Springs motel and had paid a month's rent in advance.

On August 20, 1965, at about 4:30 p.m., as he left the office, he remarked to Mrs. Eastman, a clerk, 'Well, I guess I'll go.' Mrs. Eastman said, 'Yes, have fun,' to which Mr. Taylor replied, 'Well, you're the one who should have fun, you're off this weekend, I have to work.' He was in a good mood and did not appear to be upset in any way. When he failed to appear for work the following morning efforts were made to locate him but they proved fruitless. Neither his sister nor any of his associates or friends have seen him or heard from him since that afternoon.

An examination of the office cash and records revealed that everything was in order. His weekly pay voucher was found in the office uncashed. Company records revealed that on the date of his disappearance he was only twelve days short of qualifying for a company retirement pension of $130.50 per month. His motel room was found to be undisturbed and in order; his shaving gear, toilet articles, personal effects and clothing were still in the room.

Mr. Taylor owned a 1964 Oldsmobile. He was a numismatologist and collector of $2 bills.

A check of service stations in the area revealed that between 9:30 a.m. and 5:30 p.m. of August 20 a credit card purchase for Mr. Taylor's automobile was made in Indio and that sometime between 10:00 p.m. and 8:00 a.m. of August 21 a purchase was made in Needles. A handwriting expert testified that the signature 'Paul Taylor' on the invoice for the Indio purchase was Mr. Taylor's signature but that the signature 'Paul Taylor' on the Needles invoice was not his signature.

Defendant was 18 years of age at the time of the alleged offense. On August 4, 1965, he called Mrs. Gloria Myers who lived in Costa Mesa and who had known defendant for approximately 6 years and stated that he was in Costa Mesa with his wife and had no money or place to stay. Mrs. Myers permitted defendant and his female companion, whom he introduced as his wife, to remain at her home for approximately two weeks. During that period defendant on several occasions displayed a revolver which he possessed.

On August 12 or 13, at Mrs. Myers' request, defendant left the Myers home leaving the girl behind. When Mrs. Myers learned that she was a juvenile and not his wife, she called the police and had her taken to juvenile hall. Mrs. Myers had several telephone conversations with defendant after his departure concerning the girl and the fact that the police were seeking an interview with him.

After leaving Mrs. Myers' residence defendant called a friend, Timothy McVicar, whom he had known for approximately 10 or 11 years and who lived in Orange, California. Defendant stayed at the McVicar home until August 20. During that period he displayed the revolver which, according to McVicar, defendant kept in an attache case.

On his way to work on August 20 at about 1:00 or 1:30 p.m. McVicar dropped defendant off at the Riverside Freeway on-ramp in Orange. Defendant said he was going back to Illinois. He was wearing a shoulder holster and carrying a piece of luggage.

On August 21, 1965, between 12:30 and 2:00 a.m. David Gerberding was hitchhiking at the outskirts of Kingman, Arizona. Defendant, driving Mr. Taylor's Oldsmobile, stopped and gave Gerberding a ride. Defendant stated that he was going to the east coast and that the car belonged to his father who was in a San Diego hospital. Gerberding noted that whenever they stopped to purchase gasoline defendant used a credit card and that defendant paid for his meals with $2 bills. The signatures on the invoices for gasoline purchases for the Trylor automobile made on the route taken by defendant were the same as the signature on the invoice for the purchase made in Needles.

On Sunday, August 22, at about 10:00 a.m. defendant and Gerberding arrived in Vandalia, Illinois, pulled into a combination gas station and restaurant and parked by the gas pumps. Defendant, as he had done during the entire trip, attempted to pump his own gas but the pump was locked. The two went into the restaurant where they were told that the station would not be open for about an hour. They decided to have lunch and placed their orders. Meanwhile State Trooper Morton who had been observing the pair pulled up in his patrol car and entered the restaurant. Upon seeing the trooper defendant became nervous, insisted on cancelling their orders and leaving the restaurant. Upon defendant's insistence, they cancelled their order and left, entered the car, and defendant 'took off like a bat out of Hades.' Trooper Morton overtook them and stopped them. As Morton approached the vehicle defendant told Gerberding to put the credit cards into the glove compartment. Morton asked for and received defendant's driver's license and upon noting that the name on his license did not correspond with that shown on the registration certificate asked defendant to explain the discrepancy. Defendant said the car belonged to his uncle. Morton then escorted defendant and Gerberding to the county courthouse, radioed California authorities for a stolen vehicle check on the vehicle and upon receiving a 'no stolen report,' released the two. Meanwhile, however, Morton telephoned the police department in Pacific Grove and requested that it check at the address shown on the registration certificate to determine whether the vehicle had been stolen. Upon receiving a report that Mr. Taylor's sister had been contacted and that she had stated that Mr. Taylor had not reported to work for two days and that she had never heard of defendant Bolinski, Morton radioed ahead and defendant was stopped and taken into custody. Gerberding testified that upon their initial release, defendant drove at speeds ranging from 80--100 miles per hour.

Morton examined the Taylor vehicle and found that the trunk was filled to capacity. It contained among other items several suitcases under one of which he found a billfold containing approximately $500 in bills, consisting mostly of $20's and $2's. He also found $25 or $26 in the glove compartment, mostly in $2 bills. A search of defendant's person and of the car failed to reveal any revolver.

Charles R. Wood, an F.B.I. agent, interviewed defendant on August 22 and 23 in the county jail in Vandalia, Illinois and obtained from him a signed statement which was received in evidence and read to the jury. In the written statement defendant stated in substance: On the evening of August 18 while he was hitchhiking he was picked up by one Paul Taylor who was driving a 1964 Oldsmobile. They went to Las Vegas where defendant obtained some $2 bills and drove around the Boulder Dam area several times. Taylor said he was from Pacific Grove and that he worked for the government and did considerable travelling. Defendant told Taylor he was trying to get back to Ohio, that he and his wife lived in California, that she became pregnant, 'got mixed up' and returned to her parents. Taylor offered him the use of his car and credit cards to enable him to get back to Ohio. Defendant dropped Mr. Taylor off at a housing development in Pacific Grove with the understanding that he would return the vehicle to the address shown on the registration certificate on the completion of his mission. In trying to reach Route 66, defendant lost his way, travelled north of Las Vegas and into Kingman, Arizona, where he picked up Gerberding. They drove straight through to Vandalia, Illinois, stopping only for gas and meals. During the entire trip he used Mr. Taylor's credit cards.

Although there is no direct evidence as to what transpired...