State v. Adremy Dennis
| Decision Date | 08 May 1996 |
| Docket Number | 96-LW-2537,17156 |
| Parties | STATE OF OHIO, Appellee v. ADREMY DENNIS, Appellant C.A. |
| Court | Ohio Court of Appeals |
DECISION
This cause was heard upon the record in the trial court. Each error assigned has been reviewed and the following disposition is made:
Adremy Dennis ("Dennis") appeals from his convictions on one count of aggravated murder, with death penalty specifications for felony murder and course of conduct; one count of attempted aggravated murder; three counts of aggravated robbery; and one count of unlawful possession of a dangerous ordnance. He was sentenced to death on the aggravated murder count. We affirm Dennis's convictions and sentence.
During the late evening of June 4, 1994, or early morning of June 5 1994, Dennis and a friend, Lavar Anderson ("Anderson"), armed with guns, stopped Dean Pizer ("Pizer") in an alley near West Market Street and South Highland Avenue in the city of Akron. Dennis and Anderson demanded money and told Pizer, Pizer, believing that he would indeed be killed, slid down a hill and escaped. As he did 'So, he heard a gunshot to the left of him and heard a trash can or some other object being hit.
At the same time, Kurt Kyle ("Kyle") and a friend, Marty Eberhart ("Eberhart"), were talking in Kyle's driveway at 818 Bloomfield Avenue, a few blocks from where Pizer had been accosted. Eberhart was seated in his car, and Kyle was standing outside the car, when Eberhart heard what he believed was a firecracker or an M-80 go off nearby. About three minutes later, Dennis and Anderson approached. Anderson, wearing a green and orange Miami Hurricanes jacket pushed a .25 caliber semi-automatic handgun into Eberhart's neck, slid the hammer back, and demanded money. Eberhart reached under his seat for his wallet Anderson retrieved from the wallet and returned it to Eberhart.
During the robbery of Eberhart, Dennis, wearing a three-quarter length black overcoat, approached Kyle and demanded money. Kyle, whose money was in his house, began searching his pockets and told Dennis that he had no money on him. Dennis pulled out a sawed-off shotgun, held the gun no more than a few inches from Kyle's head, and fired, killing Kyle almost instantly.
On June 21, 1994, Dennis was indicted on one count of aggravated murder, in violation of R.C. 2903.01(B), with two death specifications, in violation of R.C. 2929.04(A)(5) and (A)(7), and one firearm specification, in violation of R.C. 2941.141; one count of attempted aggravated murder, in violation of R.C. 2903.01(B) and 2923.02, with firearm specification, in violation of R.C. 2941.141; three counts of aggravated robbery, in violation of R.C. 291 1.01(A)(1), each with firearm specification, in violation of R.C. 2941.141; one count of unlawful possession of a dangerous ordnance, in violation of R.C. 2923.17, with firearm specifiCation, in violation of R.C. 2941.141, and physical harm specification, in violation of R.C. 2941.143. Dennis pleaded not guilty to all charges.
Prior to trial, Dennis moved the court for several orders, including orders (1) prohibiting the state from using peremptory challenges to exclude jurors who express concerns about capital punishment; (2) prohibiting any evidence bearing on the character of the victim or on victim impact; (3) prohibiting evidence of other crimes, wrongs, or acts committed by Dennis; (4) permitting an individual sequestered voir dire; (5) authorizing fiends to enable the hiring of defense investigators and experts; (6) suppressing statements made by Dennis and evidence seized from a home at 371 Grand Avenue; (7) dismissing, as unconstitutional, that portion of the indictment that elevated the potential penalty for aggravated murder to death; and (8) severing for trial those counts of the indictment charging the attempted aggravated murder and aggravated robbery of Pizer.
Following a heating, the court: (1) ordered that Dennis be permitted to employ the services of a clinical psychologist to assist in his defense; (2) denied the motion to suppress; (3) denied the motion to sever the counts related to Pizer; (4) denied the motion to dismiss that portion of the indictment allowing the death penalty; and (5) deferred ruling on the other motions until trial.
Dennis was tried to a jury which found him guilty of all charges. The jury also recommended imposition of the death penalty on the aggravated murder charge, finding that the aggravating circumstances of the crime outweighed the mitigating factors presented by Dennis. The court agreed and sentenced Dennis to death.
Dennis filed a timely notice of appeal and asserts twenty-one assignments of error.
In his first assignment of error, Dennis claims that the trial court erred in admitting his confession into evidence because the state failed to demonstrate at the suppression hearing that he knowingly, intelligently, and voluntarily waived his rights. He suggests that, because he had smoked marijuana prior to waiving his rights, he did not understand the implications of his actions.
Dennis was arrested on June 8, 1994, free days after Kyle's murder, and was brought to the Akron Police Department at 10:15 p.m. where he was immediately read his Miranda rights. Lieutenant Offret of the Akron Police Department testified at the suppression hearing that each question on the Miranda waiver form was read to Dennis; and Dennis answered, in response to each question, that he understood. The Miranda waiver statement, signed by Dennis at 10:30 p.m., was introduced into evidence, and a copy of Dennis's recorded statement was played before the court. On the tape, Dennis stated that he had finished the ninth grade, that he understood the English language, that he was not under a doctor's care, that he had not taken any medications that day, and that he had not consumed any alcOhol that day. Dennis did state, however, that he had smoked two marijuana cigarettes an hour or two before being brought to the police station. Dennis further stated that he was fully aware of what was going on and that no pressure or coercion of any kind had been used against him. Lieutenant Offret stated that he believed that Dennis understood the questions posed to him and was not murder the influence of marijuana.
Dennis did not testify at the suppression hearing, nor did he otherwise present any evidence.
A defendant's waiver of certain constitutional rights and his subsequent confession must be made voluntarily, knowingly, and intelligently. Miranda v. Arizona (1966),_____384 U.S. 436, 444, 16 L.Ed.2d 694, 707. When a defendant challenges his alleged waiver of rights and moves to suppress a statement made by him, the burden is on the state to prove, by a preponderance of the evidence, that the waiver and statement were voluntary. Lego v. Twomey (1972), 404 U.S. 477, 489, 30 L.Ed.2d 618, 627; State v. Melchior (1978), 56 Ohio St. 2d 15, 25. A reviewing court must examine the totality of the circumstances in which the waiver and statement were made and determine whether the waiver and statement were the result of official coercion or improper inducement. State v. Slagle (1992), 65 Ohio St.3d 597, 600, certiorari denied (1993), 510 U.S. ____ 126 L.Ed.2d 72. Among the circumstances that may be considered by the court are "the age, mentality, and prior criminal experience of the accused; the length, intensity, and frequency of interrogation; the existence of physical deprivation or mistreatment; and the existence of threat or inducement." Id.
There is no evidence in the record that Dennis was coerced into waiving his right to counsel or that his statements to the police were involuntary. Dennis had been at the police station only fifteen minutes before signing the Miranda waiver and was not interrogated prior to that time. There was no evidence that he was physically deprived or mistreated. Dennis stated during the taped interview with police that he had not been coerced into waiving his rights and that he understood what was transpiring. Although Dens may have smoked two marijuana cigarettes an hour or two before questioning, Lieutenant Offret testified that Dennis was not impaired. We have reviewed the audio tape of the questioning and find no evidence that Dennis's mental faculties were impaired or that he was unable to knowingly, intelligently, and voluntarily waive his rights.
Based upon the foregoing, the trial court did not err in finding that Dennis's statements to police should not be suppressed.
Dennis's first assignment of error is overruled.
In his second assignment of error, Dennis argues that evidence taken from 371 Grand Avenue, the residence of Anderson and Anderson's mother, Shirley Morgan ("Morgan") was seized in violation of Dennis's right to privacy. The evidence included a .25 caliber semi-automatic handgun, a 20-gauge shotgun, seven 20-gauge shotgun shells, a...
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