State v. Gollehon
| Citation | 864 P.2d 249,262 Mont. 1 |
| Decision Date | 14 December 1993 |
| Docket Number | Nos. 92-156,92-231,s. 92-156 |
| Parties | STATE of Montana, Plaintiff and Respondent, v. William GOLLEHON, Defendant and Appellant. |
| Court | United States State Supreme Court of Montana |
Michael Donahoe and Mark Yeshe, Helena, for defendant and appellant.
Joseph P. Mazurek, Atty. Gen., Jennifer Anders, Asst., Helena, Christopher G. Miller, Powell County Atty., Deer Lodge, John P. Connor, Asst. Atty. Gen. and Sp. Deputy Powell County Atty., Helena, for plaintiff and respondent.
This is an appeal from a verdict and sentence from the Third Judicial District Court, Powell County, finding Gollehon guilty of deliberate homicide by accountability and sentencing him to death. We affirm.
We consider the following issues on appeal:
1. Did the District Court err by allowing State's counsel and co-defendant Turner's counsel to question prospective jurors during voir dire about the possibility of the death penalty being imposed (known as "death qualification")?
2. Did the District Court abuse its discretion by refusing to dismiss or continue the trial because of an alleged discovery violation by the State?
3. Did the District Court abuse its discretion in refusing to allow Gollehon to inquire into evidence of prior crimes committed by one of the State's eyewitnesses?
4. Did the District Court err in denying Gollehon's motion to declare Montana's death legislation illegal and unconstitutional?
5. Did the District Court err by failing to rule, as a matter of law, that no aggravating circumstances existed?
6. Did the District Court err by failing to rule, as a matter of law, that mitigating factors existed and that such mitigating factors were substantial enough to call for leniency?
7. Did the District Court err by sentencing Gollehon to death for the crime of deliberate homicide by accountability?
8. Did the District Court properly refuse to consider Gollehon's argument that death by hanging constitutes cruel and unusual punishment?
9. Should this Court uphold Gollehon's death sentence on automatic review?
While the opinion in State v. Turner, 864 P.2d 235 sets out the facts of the homicide at issue with great detail, we briefly summarize the events of September 2, 1990. Corrections officers Larry Spangberg and Karl Beckerleg were making a routine walk around the track in the exercise yard of the Montana State Prison. A softball game was in progress. As they walked the track which circled the baseball diamond, the officers noticed the players had begun to drift to the side of the yard. As they approached the backstop, they found the badly beaten body of Gerald Pileggi. Two baseball bats lay by his body.
Inmates have exercise time from 1 p.m. to 2:15 p.m. and from 2:15 p.m. to 3:45 p.m. Once in the exercise yard, inmates must stay there until the period is over. At the time of the beating, 250 inmates were in the exercise yard, including prison inmates from the high security section of the prison, known as the "highside." After officers found Pileggi, the yard was "called in" and inmates were searched. Nothing suspicious was found.
Medical personnel were dispatched to the yard. Pileggi was still alive when taken from the yard but was having trouble breathing because of all the blood in his throat. The prison nurse was unable to recognize that the prisoner was Pileggi. Pileggi died while being air-lifted to St. Patrick's hospital in Missoula.
An autopsy performed by Dr. Gary Dale, a State Medical Examiner, revealed that Pileggi had died of multiple injuries to the head and trunk. Dr. Dale was able to identify at least four blows, including a massive blow to the top of the head which caused the skull to cave in and a major blow to the left side of the face which collapsed the left side of the forehead and caused the brain to tear and the eyeball to rupture. Also identified were a blow to the jaw which fractured the upper and lower jaws, a blow to the breastbone, and another to the shoulder. Pileggi's arms had bruises which indicated a struggle had taken place.
The blows to the brain were identified as fatal because they tore the brain. Dr. Dale testified that most of the blows could have been delivered while Pileggi was standing but the blow to the left side of the head was delivered while Pileggi was on the ground. The blow to the left side of the skull collapsed the skull and pulpified the brain.
Following the beating, Pileggi's cell was searched and a calendar containing notations was discovered. Because of this calendar, the investigation centered on three inmates: Douglas Turner, William Gollehon and Daryl Daniels. The notations on the calendar documented confrontations with these individuals, all of whom worked in the "highside" kitchen before they were terminated because of suspected assaults on other inmates.
Correction officials describe an increasing tension in the month before Pileggi's death between kitchen employees who were non-sex offenders and those who were sex-offenders. Of the sex-offenders, several, including Pileggi, were physically beaten by other kitchen inmate employees. The victims would not reveal who was responsible for the injuries.
Pileggi told corrections officers that three inmates had dragged him into the dish room in the kitchen and beat him up, but refused to identify who the three were. Gollehon, Turner and Daniels worked in the dish room. After this incident, the three were removed from the staff, just days before Pileggi's death.
Because of the above incidents and Pileggi's calendar notes, Gollehon, Turner and Daniels were removed from their cells and their cells were searched. In Gollehon's cell, officials found a pair of prison pants, with blood on them, and a towel stuffed into a pillow case. The bottoms of the pant legs had been ripped off and officers could see blood spatters on the remaining part of the pants. The towel also had blood on it. A forensic serologist was unable to verify that the blood was Pileggi's.
Gollehon, Turner and Daniels were placed in maximum security. A number of inmates were interviewed but no one would give the names of those responsible for the beating death of Pileggi, despite the large number of inmates in the yard when Pileggi was murdered. In January 1991, an eyewitness came forward and agreed to testify in exchange for his guaranteed safety. This led to the filing of charges against Gollehon and Turner.
The inmate, J.D. Armstrong, testified that he was playing baseball in the exercise yard the day Pileggi was beaten. Armstrong testified that he was approached by Gollehon who asked him which baseball bat was used the least. Armstrong testified that he suspected Gollehon was going to start a fight with Pileggi because Gollehon had indicated that he was going to "mess him up." Armstrong also testified that he saw Gollehon confront Pileggi with a baseball bat as Pileggi came around the track to the baseball field backstop.
Armstrong noted that the two struggled for control of the bat just prior to Turner's arrival at the scene. Armstrong saw Turner hit Pileggi on the left side of his face, after which Pileggi fell to the ground. Armstrong testified he then saw Turner and Gollehon each deliver four or five more blows before throwing the bats onto Pileggi's body.
Armstrong testified that as soon as the other inmates realized what was happening they quickly left the baseball diamond. Armstrong told Gollehon afterwards that he should do something about his pants because they were blood spattered. Gollehon responded with profanity, according to Armstrong.
Another inmate, William Arnot, corroborated Armstrong's testimony. He further testified that he did not see Daryl Daniels in the exercise yard on that day.
A defense witness testified that nine or ten inmates were involved and that after they pulled away, he saw a man lying on the ground. He testified he could not recognize any of the inmates. Other witnesses testified that they were playing with, or had seen, Gollehon and Turner playing horseshoes at the time of the beating. Another witness testified that Armstrong was not on the softball field the day of Pileggi's death but was playing dominoes with him in the gym.
On January 10, 1991, an information was filed in Powell County District Court charging Gollehon and Turner with deliberate homicide for the beating death of Pileggi. On May 17, 1991, the information was amended to charge the defendants jointly with deliberate homicide or, in the alternative with deliberate homicide by accountability. Prior to trial the State gave notice to defendants that it would seek the death penalty in the event of a conviction. Following a joint trial, the jury found each defendant guilty of deliberate homicide by accountability.
A separate sentencing hearing was held for Gollehon on February 27, 1992. The District Court determined that leniency was not warranted because the mitigating factors did not sufficiently outweigh the aggravating circumstances. On March 19, 1992, Gollehon was sentenced to death by hanging because he had not exercised his option to choose death by lethal injection. Gollehon appealed and the District Court stayed Gollehon's execution pending resolution of this appeal. While Turner presents us with only three issues on appeal, Gollehon puts forth nine issues for resolution.
Did the District Court err by allowing State's counsel and co-defendant Turner's counsel to question prospective jurors during voir dire about the possibility of the death penalty being imposed (known as "death qualification")?
Before voir dire began, Gollehon made an oral motion in limine requesting the court to prohibit the State from asking jury panel members to declare their beliefs concerning the death penalty. Gollehon's argument was that Montana juries do not participate in the sentencing portion of trial and, therefore, questioning the members...
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