State v. Coburn

• Decision Date: 23 December 1987
• Citation: 221 N.J.Super. 586,535 A.2d 531
• Parties: STATE of New Jersey, Plaintiff-Respondent, v. William Richard COBURN, Defendant-Appellant.
• Court: New Jersey Superior Court — Appellate Division

Page 586

221 N.J.Super. 586

535 A.2d 531

STATE of New Jersey, Plaintiff-Respondent, v. William Richard COBURN, Defendant-Appellant.

Superior Court of New Jersey Appellate Division.

Argued Nov. 30, 1987.

Decided Dec. 23, 1987.

Charles M. Moriarty, Oakhurst, for defendant-appellant (Falvo, Bonello, Moriarty & Steiger, attorneys)

Linda K. Calloway, Deputy Atty. Gen., for plaintiff-respondent (W. Cary Edwards, Atty. Gen., attorney).

Before Judges J.H. COLEMAN, O'BRIEN and HAVEY.

The opinion of the court was delivered by

COLEMAN, J.H., P.J.A.D.

The significant question raised in this appeal is whether Miranda ¹ warnings are required when a suspect who has not been arrested is questioned by a police officer at a location reported to the police as the scene of a killing. The trial judge held that Miranda warnings are not required. We agree and affirm.

A Monmouth County Grand Jury indicted defendant for the murder of Madga Lewis, ² a/k/a Maria Lewis, contrary to N.J.S.A. 2C:11-3 (Count One); second degree possession of a handgun for an unlawful purpose, contrary to N.J.S.A. 2C:39-4a (Count Two); third degree possession of a handgun without a permit, contrary to N.J.S.A. 2C:39-5b (Count Three); possession of over 25 grams of marijuana and possession with intent to distribute marijuana, contrary to N.J.S.A. 24:21-19a(1) (Count Four) and N.J.S.A. 24:21-20a(4) (Count Five); and unlawful possession of a knife, contrary to N.J.S.A. 2C:39-5d (Count Six).

Defendant filed motions to suppress the use of the gun, marijuana and his oral statements as evidence. These motions were denied. At the conclusion of a jury trial, defendant was found guilty on all counts except unlawful possession of a knife. After merging Count Two with Count One, defendant was sentenced to a custodial term of life with 30 years of parole ineligibility for the murder. Under Count Three defendant was sentenced to a concurrent term of nine months. After merging Count Five with Count Four, defendant was sentenced on Count Four to a concurrent term of six years. A total penalty of $1,025 was assessed payable to the Violent Crimes Compensation In this appeal, defendant contends that:

Board. Defendant has appealed. We now affirm except as to the sentence on Count Three.

POINT I

THE COURT ERRED BY PERMITTING DEFENDANT'S STATEMENTS TO BE ADMITTED INTO EVIDENCE.

1. THE DEFENDANT'S INTERROGATION SHOULD HAVE BEEN SUPPRESSED UNDER MIRANDA.

A. PRE-MIRANDA STATEMENTS SHOULD HAVE BEEN SUPPRESSED.

B. IT IS PLAIN ERROR TO ALLOW DEFENDANT'S POST-MIRANDA WARNING STATEMENTS INTO EVIDENCE SINCE HE WAS INCAPABLE OF MAKING A KNOWLEDGEABLE WAIVER.

2. DEFENDANT'S INTERROGATION DOES NOT FIT UNDER THE "PUBLIC SAFETY EXCEPTION" OF NEW YORK v. QUARLES.

3. THE RULE OF LAW ENUNCIATED IN NEW YORK v. QUARLES SHOULD NOT BE FOLLOWED BY NEW JERSEY COURTS.

POINT II

THE TRIAL COURT ERRED BY ALLOWING THE MARIJUANA FOUND UNDERNEATH DEFENDANT'S BED TO BE INTRODUCED INTO EVIDENCE.

1. MRS. POLHEMUS' CONSENT WAS IMMATERIAL SINCE SHE LACKED AUTHORITY TO GIVE CONSENT.

2. MRS. POLHEMUS' CONSENT WAS NOT GIVEN VOLUNTARILY.

3. THE RECORD DOES NOT CLEARLY SHOW THAT MRS. POLHEMUS GAVE CONSENT.

POINT III

IT WAS PLAIN ERROR TO ALLOW THE MEDICAL EXAMINER TO TESTIFY ABOUT GUN DISTANCES.

A. THERE WAS NO SHOWING THAT THE MEDICAL EXAMINER WAS QUALIFIED TO TESTIFY ON GUN DISTANCES FROM INFLICTED WOUNDS.

B. THE MEDICAL EXAMINER'S TESTIMONY CONCERNING FIRING DISTANCES SHOULD NOT HAVE BEEN ALLOWED SINCE IT FELL OUTSIDE THE SCOPE OF DISCOVERY.

POINT IV

THE TRIAL JUDGE ABUSED HIS DISCRETION BY PERMITTING THE STATE TO INTRODUCE PHOTOGRAPHS OF THE DECEASED'S BODY.

POINT V

THE TRIAL JUDGE ERRED BY NOT PERMITTING DEFENDANT TO INTRODUCE RELEVANT PHOTOGRAPHIC EVIDENCE.

POINT VI

THE PROSECUTOR COMMITTED PLAIN ERROR WHEN HE DEMONSTRATED THE GUN BEFORE THE JURY AND TOLD THEM THAT IT

COULD NOT BE FIRED A SECOND TIME WITHOUT MANUALLY COCKING IT.

POINT VII

THE TRIAL COURT ERRED IN DENYING THE DEFENDANT'S MOTION FOR A NEW TRIAL.

The victim, who was defendant's girlfriend, was murdered on December 29, 1984. Defendant shot her in his van. The gunshots were heard by Peter Rice as he waited in his automobile for the victim to return from defendant's van. After the shooting, defendant went to the home of his former wife, Joyce Coburn. Defendant told Joyce he had killed his girlfriend with a gun which was in his van. Joyce called Carole Stavola, one of defendant's sisters, to ask her to come over. Stavola and her friend, Claire Tyluki, went to Joyce's home. Joyce then drove her son to her parent's home which was about five minutes away. Upon arrival, she told her parents what the defendant had confided to her. Unbeknownst to Joyce her father called the Ocean Township Police Department. He reported to the police that someone had been killed at his daughter's home at 18 Brown Place.

In response to the phone call Ocean Township Patrolman Neil Ingenito was dispatched to 18 Brown Place. He testified at the Miranda hearing that upon his arrival he observed a van in the driveway and thereupon entered the home through the kitchen door. A male, later identified as defendant, was sitting at the kitchen table with Claire Tyluki; Carole Stavola was standing nearby. Twice the patrolman asked "what happened" but there was no response. He got the impression that those in the room did not know what he was talking about or why he was there. Officer Ingenito telephoned headquarters for supplemental instructions. Patrolman Thompson advised Ingenito to speak to or locate an individual named "Coburn" because that person had told his ex-wife, "I just killed my girlfriend, now, I'm going to kill--."

Ingenito then asked the only male in the room if he was Coburn and defendant said yes. Ingenito described his questioning of defendant as follows:

After I got off the phone with Patrolman Thompson, I asked Mr. Coburn if he had been talking to his ex-wife and he said yes. I then asked him, "Did you tell your ex-wife that you just killed your girlfriend." And his response was, "I did it." And I said, "You did what, you talked to your wife or killed your ex--talked to your ex-wife and killed your girlfriend?" He said, "I killed my girlfriend."

Ingenito then asked defendant "Where did this happen?" Defendant said that he did not remember. Ingenito asked defendant where was the gun and defendant said it was in the van. The officer testified that he asked where was the gun just to make sure it was not within the reach of defendant. Ingenito further testified that defendant made a statement that was not in response to a question. Defendant said that "he was going to take his kids to the movies that day but he decided to go over his girlfriend's house and they had an argument and he shot her and he said when he shot her she fell into the well of his van."

A .22 caliber gun containing two spent shells was seized from inside the van in a brown leather holster. Blood stains were observed inside the van. The body was not found in the van because defendant disposed of it in a wooded area. Defendant was then arrested and taken to police headquarters. At the police station defendant was given Miranda warnings which he said he understood. During the questioning that ensued, defendant was visibly upset, but gave responsive, coherent answers to many questions. He informed the officers that his girlfriend's name was "Maria," that she lived in the Asbury Park projects, building 5, apartment 2, that she was Puerto Rican, and that "I know she's dead because I killed her." He said they were sitting in the van in the parking lot at her residence when he shot her. Based on defendant's statement and his description of the route he had taken to dispose of her body by dragging it into the woods, the officers called the Tinton Falls Police Department to assist in locating the body. The body was found in a wooded area near a reclamation center. An autopsy revealed that the victim died from two gunshot wounds caused by bullets fired from the gun removed from defendant's van.

Meanwhile, Joyce Coburn's father, Rudolph Wunch, telephoned the police station a second time with additional information concerning marijuana at the home of defendant's sister, Helen Pohlemus, with whom defendant resided. Detective Miller advised Pohlemus, who was at the police station, that the police were informed there was a large quantity of marijuana under defendant's bed in her home. The detective told Pohlemus that the police wanted to retrieve the marijuana and that she had the right to refuse. Mrs. Pohlemus consented to admit the officers into her home to seize the marijuana. Patrolman Glenn Harrington accompanied Mrs. Pohlemus to her home, where she took him directly to defendant's bedroom. The officer looked under the bed and pulled out a brown grocery bag near the foot of the bed. The bag contained 150 clear plastic bags of a substance subsequently determined by laboratory analysis to be 201.6 grams of marijuana.

Defendant testified on his own behalf at trial. His version of events which led up to the shooting was substantially different from that offered by the State. As to the killing, defendant testified that he went to the victim's apartment on December 29, 1984, because he wanted to get rid of the marijuana seized from under his bed before his sister found it. He said the marijuana belonged to Lewis. He spoke to the victim's roommate who told him Lewis was not home. He then asked the roommate to go with him to the movies. The roommate agreed and told him to come back in an hour to allow her time to get ready. While sitting in his van trying to decide whether to go home and change his clothes, he saw Lewis walk out of the building with Peter Rice. He talked with Lewis for a few minutes in his van. Lewis then exited the van, walked over to Rice where she remained for five or ten minutes and returned in a "completely different" mood. He said Lewis was angry and told...