State v. Daniels
| Decision Date | 29 July 1994 |
| Docket Number | No. 506A90,506A90 |
| Citation | 337 N.C. 243,446 S.E.2d 298 |
| Court | North Carolina Supreme Court |
| Parties | STATE of North Carolina, v. John Dennis DANIELS. |
Michael F. Easley, Atty. Gen., by Steven F. Bryant, Sp. Deputy Atty. Gen., for the State.
Malcolm Ray Hunter, Jr., Appellate Defender by Benjamin Sendor, Asst. Appellate Defender for defendant-appellant.
Defendant was properly indicted for and found guilty at a capital trial of murder in the first degree of his aunt, Isabelle Daniels Crawford; common law robbery of Ms. Crawford; assault with a deadly weapon with intent to kill inflicting serious injury against his wife, Diane Daniels; assault with a deadly weapon against his neighbor, Glenn Funderburke; and attempting to burn a dwelling house. He was also indicted for assault with a deadly weapon inflicting serious injury against his son, Jonathon Maurice Daniels, but the jury only found defendant guilty of assault with a deadly weapon against his son. His conviction of first-degree murder was based on theories of both felony murder and premeditation and deliberation. The jury then heard evidence relating to sentencing for first-degree murder, after which the jury found the existence of three aggravating circumstances and eleven mitigating circumstances and recommended that the defendant be put to death. The trial court sentenced defendant to death for first-degree murder, to a consecutive term of twenty years' imprisonment on the combined assault convictions, and to a consecutive term of ten years' imprisonment for attempting to burn a dwelling house. Judgment was arrested on the common law robbery conviction. We find no error in either the guilt-innocence phase of defendant's trial or in his capital sentencing proceeding. Therefore, we affirm the death sentence.
Evidence presented by the State in the guilt phase, which included defendant's Mirandized statement following his arrest, tended to show the following:
By 3:00 p.m. on 17 January 1990, defendant, John Dennis Daniels, had consumed two beers. Later, he consumed a fifth of wine and became "somewhat drunk." In the late afternoon or early evening, defendant went to the home of his seventy-seven-year-old aunt, Isabelle Daniels Crawford, to ask for money and to ask if Crawford would permit defendant's wife, Diane, and his twelve-year-old son, Maurice, to stay with Crawford. Defendant was behind on his rent, and he was having marital problems. Upon arrival at Crawford's house, defendant asked Crawford for money and asked her to take in his wife and son. Crawford did not give defendant any money and told defendant that she intended to phone his mother. Defendant told Crawford not to call his mother and then punched Crawford in the mouth, knocking her to the floor. Defendant, using an electrical cord he wrapped around his aunt's neck three times, strangled Crawford and dragged her body to the back of the house. He located Crawford's purse, removed $70.00 to $80.00, and left. In his pretrial statement, defendant stated,
After purchasing some cocaine, defendant walked around Charlotte and then returned to his home around 10:30 p.m. At home, he spoke briefly with his wife, Diane, and smoked some cocaine in their bathroom. After smoking the cocaine, defendant left the bathroom, holding a hammer. He approached his wife, who was lying on the bed in their bedroom, and began striking her in the head with the hammer. A struggle ensued during which defendant lost the hammer. Responding to defendant's wife's cries for help, their son, Maurice, joined the altercation. The fight moved into the hallway, where defendant hit his wife on the head The Daniels' neighbor, Glenn Funderburke, was aroused by the commotion and went outside. Funderburke discovered defendant's son, Maurice, in his yard and took him into Funderburke's house. He then phoned the police and went to defendant's house to investigate. Upon entering defendant's house, Funderburke noticed flames near defendant. Defendant, holding a knife, threatened to kill Funderburke if Funderburke did not leave. Funderburke immediately returned to his home and again phoned the police.
with a kerosene heater. Defendant then chased his wife and son into the kitchen and den as defendant's wife attempted to get out of the house. Once in the den, defendant got a rock out of the aquarium and struck Maurice with it; defendant then found the hammer and hit Maurice in the head with it. Defendant's wife and son were finally able to run out the front door. Defendant pursued his wife outside and again hit her in the head with the hammer; he then returned to his house.
At about 12:30 a.m., Charlotte Police Officer Thomas Griffith arrived on the scene, joining two other officers and a fire truck that had already arrived. Griffith observed the house on fire. After extinguishing the fire, the firemen brought defendant from the house and gave him oxygen. After defendant refused further medical treatment, Officer Griffith told defendant that he was going to jail for assault. At about 12:50 a.m., Griffith left the scene with defendant and proceeded toward the Law Enforcement Center.
In the car, defendant repeatedly urged Griffith to go to "Mint Street." When Griffith asked defendant why he was making this request, defendant responded: "I think I might have killed my aunt." Griffith then changed course slightly, followed defendant's directions, and at 12:55 a.m. arrived at the house identified by Daniels. After knocking on the back door and receiving no response, Officer Griffith entered the home. Inside, Griffith found a trail of blood beginning in a hallway. Following the trail to a bedroom, Griffith found Crawford's lifeless body lying face down on the floor, with a cord wrapped around her neck. A wastebasket was overturned, and the carpet disturbed; the remaining contents of the house were intact.
Griffith then took defendant to the Law Enforcement Center, arriving at 1:15 a.m. After smoking a cigarette and using the bathroom, defendant was placed in a room and given a pen and paper, which he had requested. A few minutes later, defendant returned the paper, requesting that it be sent to the Governor. On it he had written:
Dear sir
I'm not crazy
What I did was premediated! [sic]
John D. Daniels
I do not want a trial
I do not want my family around
I do not want news report [sic]
Shortly after receiving this letter, Griffith heard a noise in the room. He entered the room to find defendant on the floor with the drawstring from his pants around his neck. Another string was attached to a filing cabinet that was four feet, three inches high. Defendant was not injured.
At 2:00 a.m., Investigator Robert A. Holl arrived at the Center and spoke with Griffith. The two men took defendant to an interview room, and Holl left to investigate the crime scene. Holl returned between 4:30 a.m. and 4:45 a.m. Holl advised defendant of his Miranda rights, and at 5:05 a.m., defendant waived his rights by signing a waiver form. Holl proceeded to interview defendant. The interview, which concluded at 6:00 a.m., yielded a confession that detailed the events of the night before. After being taken to jail, defendant was committed to Dorothea Dix Hospital for two weeks. He was then returned to jail to await trial.
Dr. James Sullivan, the Mecklenburg County medical examiner and an expert in forensic pathology, performed an autopsy on Crawford. His examination revealed that Crawford had bled from the nose and mouth, her left eye was bruised, her lip was cut and bruised, and her nose was broken. There were also two contusions to her frontal scalp. There were abrasions on the sides and back of her neck and indications that the victim Defendant's evidence was largely directed to showing a lack of premeditation and deliberation and an inability to understand his rights before making his confession. It tended to show as follows:
had been dragged. Crawford also had bruises on her right arm and hand which were consistent with defensive-type wounds.
Lieutenant G.W. Bradshaw of the Mecklenburg County Sheriff's Department, the shift supervisor at the intake center on 17 and 18 January, saw defendant at 7:15 a.m. on 18 January when Holl and other officers brought defendant to the intake center. Pursuant to jail policy, Bradshaw had refused to accept defendant because of information given to Bradshaw indicating potential suicidal tendencies. Bradshaw requested that Public Defender Isabel Scott Day seek an emergency commitment of defendant to allow for a mental evaluation. Bradshaw and defendant spoke during the morning, but defendant did not always seem to understand what Bradshaw was saying. Mrs. Day spoke with defendant in Bradshaw's presence, but at times defendant did not respond to her.
Dr. William Tyson, a clinical psychologist, testified as an expert in clinical and forensic psychology. He interviewed defendant for one and one-half to two hours, administered psychological tests, and reviewed material from previous evaluations of defendant. According to Dr. Tyson, defendant had a chronic and pervasive mixed personality disorder, marked by unstable moods and behavior. Defendant was dependent on cocaine and alcohol and had a history of abusing and experimenting with drugs, including amphetamines, LSD, heroin, and tranquilizers. His substance abuse aggravated his personality disorder. As a result of these problems, defendant's emotional and social development skills were those of an eleven- or twelve-year-old child. According to Dr. Tyson, defendant's ability to think or evaluate his behavior would have been compromised to the point of being "inconsequential."
Psychiatrist John N. Bolinsky, Jr., also testified as an expert in psychiatry. Dr. Bolinsky had...
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