People v. Smith

• Decision Date: 17 July 2014
• Docket Number: No. 1–10–3436.,1–10–3436.
• Citation: 16 N.E.3d 129
• Parties: The PEOPLE of the State of Illinois, Plaintiff–Appellee, v. Salletheo SMITH, Defendant–Appellant.
• Court: United States Appellate Court of Illinois

16 N.E.3d 129

The PEOPLE of the State of Illinois, Plaintiff–Appellee

v.Salletheo SMITH, Defendant–Appellant.

No. 1–10–3436.

Appellate Court of Illinois, First District, Fourth Division.

July 17, 2014.

Michael J. Pelletier, Alan D. Goldberg, and Carolyn R. Klarquist, all of State Appellate Defender's Office, of Chicago, for appellant.

Anita M. Alvarez, State's Attorney, of Chicago (Alan J. Spellberg, Michelle Katz, and Tasha–Marie Kelly, Assistant State's Attorneys, of counsel), for the People.

OPINION

Justice EPSTEIN

delivered the judgment of the court, with opinion.

¶ 1 A jury convicted defendant Salletheo Smith of first-degree murder, attempted first-degree murder, and armed robbery. The trial court sentenced defendant to consecutive terms of 45 years, 30 years, and 21 years in prison. Smith appeals his conviction and sentence, raising five issues:

(1) he was denied a fair trial where the trial court allowed the State to introduce firearms evidence without laying a proper foundation; (2) his attorney was ineffective for failing to object to the inadmissible firearms evidence; (3) the State deprived him of a fair trial by remarking in closing argument that he “had four years to think about the story” he told the jury; (4) the trial court erred in denying his request for a jury instruction on the lesser offense of involuntary manslaughter; and (5) he should be resentenced on the armed robbery count because the trial court imposed an unconstitutional 15–year firearm enhancement. We find that the State laid an adequate foundation for the admission of the firearms evidence and that defendant's trial counsel was not ineffective for failing to object to that testimony. We also conclude that the prosecutor's remark did not prejudice defendant and that the trial court did not abuse its discretion in denying defendant's request for an involuntary manslaughter instruction. We agree with defendant, however, that he should be resentenced for his armed robbery conviction.

¶ 2 I. BACKGROUND

¶ 3 Felicia Jordan and Kareem Black married in 2000 but separated in 2004. Black moved to Iowa while they were separated. During that time, Jordan began dating defendant. Jordan and defendant lived together for about six months until Jordan moved to Matteson, Illinois.

¶ 4 Jordan testified that, when she moved to Matteson, she broke up with defendant because he became “mean,” “evil,” and “controlling.” According to Jordan, defendant was not happy about breaking up, but he promised to leave her alone. Jordan testified that defendant continued to try to pursue a romantic relationship with her, however. She said that she woke up “a couple times” to find defendant standing in her room at night. Jordan did not call the police after defendant entered her home at night because “he said that he would back off.” Jordan said that she did not give defendant a key to her house, but she gave him a key to her garage so he could store his personal items there. She testified that defendant eventually returned the key to her garage. She also let defendant keep his dog at her house for a brief period of time.

¶ 5 Jordan testified that Black came to visit her on November 7, 2006. In the late evening hours, Jordan borrowed her mother's car and picked Black up from the bus station. Upon arriving at home, Jordan placed an oven rack on the inside of the door so that she could hear if anyone opened it. Jordan testified that she did not tell the police that she put the rack against the door so that she could hear if defendant came in.

¶ 6 Jordan and Black were about to go to bed when she heard a noise outside. Both Jordan and Black were nude. After hearing the noise, Jordan heard someone outside her bedroom door, trying to open it. Jordan tried to push the door shut and she saw that defendant was on the other side of the doorway. Defendant tried to enter the bedroom, but Jordan pushed him back. Meanwhile, Black stood by the window in the bedroom. Defendant forced his way into the room and accused Jordan of cheating on him. He held a black gun with “wood grain around it.”

¶ 7 Jordan testified that defendant fired three shots, hitting Black in the chest. Black fell to the ground and Jordan began to struggle with defendant over the gun. Defendant fired the gun at her while she was on her knees, striking her in the cheek and knocking off part of her earlobe. Jordan testified that one of the bullets defendant shot ricocheted off of the floor of her bedroom and went into the ceiling. She acknowledged that she did not see the bullet ricochet off of the ground and that she did not see the bullet until it was taken out of her ceiling. Jordan testified that defendant fired five shots total. Jordan tried to call the police, but defendant knocked the phone out of her hands. Defendant then tried to stomp on Black while Jordan fought him off.

¶ 8 Jordan testified that defendant then took her mother's keys off of her dresser. Jordan and defendant struggled over the keys as defendant dragged Jordan down the hall. Defendant broke free from Jordan and ran out of the front door of the house. Defendant drove away in Jordan's mother's car—a silver Suzuki XL7—and Jordan called 911. A tape of Jordan's 911 call was played for the jury.

¶ 9 The parties stipulated to the testimony of Corporal Sheets of the Park Forest police department. In the early morning hours of November 8, 2006, Sheets participated in a high speed chase of a silver Suzuki XL7 that concluded outside a forest preserve.

¶ 10 Around 1:50 a.m. on November 8, 2006, Officer Aaron Dobrovitz of the Matteson police department responded to Jordan's house. Upon arriving, Dobrovitz saw that Jordan was bleeding from her right ear and right cheek. Jordan was visibly upset and hysterical. Dobrovitz noticed three fired cartridge cases in Jordan's house: one on the floor of the living room near the hallway, one near the entrance to the bedroom, and another in the bedroom doorway. There was a bullet hole in the ceiling of the bedroom and a cordless phone with the back missing on the floor. Dobrovitz testified that Jordan's front door did not have any damage or signs of forced entry.

¶ 11 In the master bedroom, Dobrovitz saw Black, naked, lying between the bed and the wall, bleeding from a wound

under his left arm. Black was gargling from his mouth and was unresponsive. Dobrovitz waited with Black until the paramedics arrived and took him to the hospital, where he was later pronounced dead.

¶ 12 Dr. Claire Cunliffe of the Cook County medical examiner's office performed an autopsy of Black's body. The State admitted a certified copy of Cunliffe's report in lieu of her live testimony. Black had two gunshot wounds

, one on the left side of his body and another on his upper left arm. Cunliffe recovered “a small caliber, copper jacketed bullet” from Black's chest. According to the report, Cunliffe submitted “the recovered bullet * * * to a representative of the Cook County Sheriff's Police Department” and received a receipt.

¶ 13 Officer Tara Daniels–Davis, an evidence technician with the Cook County sheriff's police department, observed Black's autopsy on November 8, 2006. Davis identified State's Exhibit 5 as “the projectile envelope that [she] received from Dr. Claire Cunliffe.” Daniels–Davis testified that the envelope was sealed when she received it from Cunliffe. The envelope was in the same or substantially the same condition in court as when Cunliffe gave it to her, except for “the taping on the bottom.” Daniels–Davis turned the sealed envelope over to Detective White of the Matteson police department.

¶ 14 Detective Shawn White of the Matteson police department went to the Cook County medical examiner's office on November 8, 2006. White identified State's Exhibit 5 as “the envelope * * * with [a] projective [sic ]” that he received from Officer Daniels–Davis. The envelope was sealed when Daniels–Davis gave it to White. White did not know how many bullets were in the envelope; he was just told that there was a projectile inside of it. White testified that State's Exhibit 5 was in the same or substantially the same condition as when he received it, other than a sticker and some tape that were on the envelope. White took the envelope back to the Matteson police department, after which it was sent to the Illinois State Police crime lab. White testified that the envelope was sealed when it was sent to the Illinois State Police.

¶ 15 Lieutenant Matt Rafferty of the Cook County sheriff's police department testified that, on November 9, 2006, he arrested defendant at a Chicago police station, where he was being held under the name “Brian Jones.” Rafferty showed defendant a copy of a police bulletin with his picture, and defendant told Rafferty his real name.

¶ 16 William Lance Collins testified that, on November 7, 2006, he lived with defendant at 248 Arcadia Street in Park Forest, Illinois. Before Collins went to work that day at 3 p.m., he saw defendant with a “small caliber handgun.” The gun was black with a brown handle. Collins said the gun was a .25–caliber, but also testified that he had no training in firearms and was not sure what type of gun it was.

¶ 17 Collins testified that, after returning from work at 11 p.m. on November 7, he dropped defendant off at a street corner near Jordan's house. Collins said that Jordan was defendant's girlfriend and that defendant was in a good mood that night.

¶ 18 Before the close of the State's case-in-chief, the court admitted State's Exhibit 5 into evidence. Defense counsel did not object.

¶ 19 Defendant testified that he and Jordan made plans for defendant to spend the night at Jordan's house on November 7, 2006. Defendant testified that Jordan had given him a key to her house earlier that day. In preparation, defendant packed a duffel bag with clothing, toiletries, and pornographic movies that he and Jordan had watched together. Defendant also took a pizza from his mother's freezer to bring to Jordan's...