People v. Thompson
| Decision Date | 20 February 2014 |
| Citation | 985 N.Y.S.2d 428,2014 N.Y. Slip Op. 01205,22 N.Y.3d 687,8 N.E.3d 803 |
| Parties | The PEOPLE of the State of New York, Respondent, v. Paul THOMPSON, Appellant. |
| Court | New York Court of Appeals Court of Appeals |
OPINION TEXT STARTS HERE
Lynn W.L. Fahey, Appellate Advocates, New York City (Warren S. Landau of counsel), for appellant.
Daniel M. Donovan, Jr., District Attorney, Staten Island (Anne Grady and Morrie I. Kleinbart of counsel), for respondent.
Defendant vigorously urged the second grand jury in this case to have the People call a particular witness to testify. After the two prosecutors presenting the case noted the vagaries of defendant's request and asserted that the witness's testimony would be irrelevant, the grand jurors voted on defendant's request in accordance with CPL 190.50(6) and declined to hear from the witness. Subsequently, the grand jury voted for an indictment supported by legally sufficient evidence establishing reasonable cause to believe that defendant had publicly executed a rival drug dealer on a street corner in Staten Island. Defendant was then tried and convicted of second-degree murder by a jury of his peers.
Defendant now seeks reversal of his conviction and dismissal of the indictment on grounds of prosecutorial misconduct, insisting that the prosecutors' commentary on his proffer to the second grand jury effectively compelled the grand jury to surrender all independent discretion in the matter and thus impaired the integrity of the proceedings. Of course, we are highly concerned about prosecutorial overreach in the grand jury context, and the prosecutors here should have shown greater sensitivity to defendant's request and the grand jurors' concerns. However, in light of the totality of the circumstances that arose in the second grand jury proceeding, we conclude that the prosecutors' actions did not impair the integrity of that proceeding or otherwise warrant dismissal of the indictment.
After defendant's arrest on suspicion of murdering Rasheem Williams in the Stapleton neighborhood of Staten Island, the People presented weapon possession charges against him to a grand jury. The People planned to call a witness (hereinafter Jane Doe) to testify in the grand jury proceeding that she had seen defendant shoot Williams. However, prior to the grand jury presentation, Jane Doe received anonymous threats. When she subsequently testified, Jane Doe gave a description of the shooter somewhat consistent with defendant, but she told the grand jurors that she had not seen the shooter's face. As Jane Doe would later inform the People, she was too scared to identify the shooter to the first grand jury. The People also presented the testimony of an eyewitness (hereinafter John Doe) who knew Williams. Defendant testified on his own behalf. The grand jury declined to indict defendant on the weapon possession charges.
Subsequent to the first grand jury proceeding, another Stapleton resident (hereinafter James Doe) was detained by the police in an unrelated case. James Doe informed the police that he had seen defendant, who was accompanied by someone resembling defendant's friend Shawn Berry, shoot Williams to death. Upon learning this information, the People filed weapon possession and murder charges against defendant and Berry, and with the court's permission, they submitted the new charges to a second grand jury, proceeding on the theory that defendant had killed Williams in retaliation for Williams's alleged prior shooting of defendant.
At the second grand jury presentation, the People, represented by two assistant district attorneys, called James Doe to the stand. James Doe testified that he had seen defendant, as well as a man whose appearance was consistent with Berry's and a third man with light skin, lying in wait for Williams in a car. Defendant and the light-skinned man got out of the car, and defendant shot Williams in the head and then fled with the light-skinned man.
Williams's friend, John Doe, testified that, on the morning of the murder, he was near the corner where Williams was gunned down, and he heard a scream. John Doe saw a light-skinned black or Hispanic man running in his direction but on the opposite side of the street. The man wore a black hoodie, black “cotton fall gloves,” dark pants and dark blue or black shortcut Timberland boots. The man was holding a white shirt with a three-inch gun barrel sticking out of it. John Doe saw part of the man's face, which had “blotchy” light and dark skin indicative of vitiligo. The man ran toward the location where defendant was later arrested. Returning his attention to the corner, John Doe noticed that his friend, who had the same first name as Jane Doe, was there.
Berry testified that he had been moving out of his old residence at the time of the crime, and he requested that the grand jurors call two witnesses to corroborate his alibi. The grand jurors did not immediately respond to his request, and they asked him some follow-up questions.
Defendant testified and maintained his innocence. According to defendant, he had been merely running an errand near the scene of Williams's murder when the police arrested him. The grand jury actively questioned defendant about his relationship with Berry, the details of his errand, his interactions with the police and the description of the shooter that the police had provided to him. The grand jurors also inquired as to whether defendant had blotchy skin at the time of the murder.
After the grand jurors' questioning, defendant was excused, but he soon returned to the grand jury room to make an additional statement. Defendant told the grand jury that there was a missing female eyewitness to the shooting. The lead prosecutor asked defendant how he knew of the witness in light of his denial that he had been at the scene of the crime when it occurred. Defendant started to answer, but the prosecutor cut off his explanation on a hearsay objection. Defendant complained:
The prosecutor asked defendant how he knew that, and defendant said, “She was brought—they told me there was a witness to the crime.” When the prosecutor inquired as to the relevance of the witness's testimony, defendant answered, “Because if you, the District Attorney know there's a witness that witnessed this crime and the witness is not—is saying it's not me—.” The following discussion ensued:
“[Prosecutor]: Do you know that she testified to that Mr. Thompson, because I have to instruct this Grand Jury if you are speculating as to whether or not she testified that somebody else did the crime, that is not relevant for their consideration.
“[Prosecutor]: Do you know what her name is?
The prosecutor asked defendant whether he had spoken to the witness and had learned about her testimony in the grand jury, and defendant said, “You would know—.” The prosecutor interjected, “I wouldn't know, because I don't have any idea who you're talking about.” In response to further queries about the witness, defendant said that he was not sure whether the witness's last name was Jane Doe's last name or the other last name he had mentioned, but he knew her first name was the same as Jane Doe's first name. Defendant acknowledged that he had never spoken to her and had no idea what she would say. Defendant also claimed that the detectives at the police precinct had told him about the missing witness to the crime, “[Jane Doe] or [Jane Doe's first name with the other last name].” Defendant again told the grand jurors that they had the power to compel the appearance of “Mrs. [Jane Doe's last name] or [the other last name],” and that “[s]he will tell you I'm not the shooter, as I told you.” Defendant was then excused for the second and final time.
Noting that John Doe had also mentioned someone with the same first name as Jane Doe, a grand juror asked if the grand jury could hear her testimony. The prosecutor “instruct[ed] [the grand jurors] that it is not relevant at this time based on the evaluation of the evidence and witnesses.” When the grand juror professed not to understand this, the prosecutor repeated that the proposed evidence was not relevant, and she stated, “It's in our purview to decide that.” The grand juror retorted, “[i]t doesn't make sense.”
A grand juror asked, “Can we vote as to having that witness come in?” This exchange then occurred:
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