State v. Grega

• Citation: 721 A.2d 445
• Decision Date: 10 April 1998
• Docket Number: No. 96-106.,96-106.
• Court: United States State Supreme Court of Vermont
• Parties: STATE of Vermont v. John GREGA.

721 A.2d 445

STATE of Vermont v. John GREGA.

No. 96-106.

Supreme Court of Vermont.

April 10, 1998.

Amended on Motion for Reargument October 7, 1998.

Jeffrey L. Amestoy, Attorney General, and David Tartter, Assistant Attorney General, Montpelier, for plaintiff-appellee.

Charles S. Martin of Martin & Paolini, Barre, for defendant-appellant.

Present GIBSON, DOOLEY, MORSE and JOHNSON, JJ., and ALLEN, C.J. (Ret.), Specially Assigned.

JOHNSON, J.

Following a jury trial, defendant was convicted of aggravated murder, 13 V.S.A. § 2311(a)(8), and aggravated sexual assault, 13 V.S.A. § 3253(a)(1), of Christine Grega, his wife. On appeal, defendant challenges his convictions, arguing that the trial court erred by (1) denying defendant's request for production of the criminal records of the members of the jury pool; (2) seating one member of the jury, over defendant's objection; (3) denying defendant's motion for mistrial and change of venue, following a remark by a member of the jury pool; (4) denying defendant's motion to suppress evidence obtained by police during searches of the condominium in which the victim was murdered; (5) excluding certain evidence that according to defendant supports his claim that someone else murdered his wife; (6) refusing to grant immunity to a defense witness; (7) denying defendant's motion for judgment of acquittal; and (8) denying defendant's motion to preclude the imposition of sentence for his conviction of aggravated sexual assault. Defendant also claims that the trial judge failed to display a proper judicial demeanor and should have been disqualified. We affirm both convictions and his mandatory sentence of life in prison without the possibility of parole for aggravated murder, but vacate defendant's sentence for aggravated sexual assault.

I.

Defendant, a resident of New York, drove to Vermont on September 10, 1994, for a vacation with his wife and young son. The family stayed in a condominium near Mount Snow that they had borrowed from a friend. Defendant later told police that the couple had discussed divorcing, and that one reason for the trip was to get the marriage back on track. According to defendant, the family spent their first two days in Vermont engaging in typical vacation activities.

On September 12, 1994, around 8:30 pm, a police officer responded to an emergency call reporting that a woman had fallen in a bathroom. When the officer entered the Gregas' condominium, he found defendant in the bathroom straddling the victim's body. Defendant was emotionally upset, calling out his wife's name, shaking her, and crying. The victim was lying on her back on the floor of the bathroom, with her head near the door and her feet near the tub. She was nude, but partially covered by a towel and blanket. According to the officer, the victim's body was "purplish, bluish, gray" in color and extremely cold, which surprised him, because the bathroom heater was running and the bathroom was very hot. The officer also noticed bruising on the victim's upper body. The officer concluded from the victim's body temperature and his other observations that it was too late to attempt to resuscitate the victim. A rescue worker who arrived a few minutes later did attempt CPR, unsuccessfully.

An autopsy of the victim revealed blunt trauma injuries to the head, face, neck, trunk, and extremities. The neck area had suffered extensive internal and external injuries. There were also multiple lacerations in the anal/rectal region. The medical examiner concluded that the cause of death was asphyxia, and classified the death as a homicide. A forensic pathologist called by the State testified that the anal injuries were caused by a foreign object about twice the size of a normal penis, such as a fist, pipe, or baseball bat, that was inserted in the rectum with a moderate to severe amount of force.

Police searches of the crime scene and condominium unit revealed additional evidence. The condominium was unusually clean for a crime scene and had apparently been wiped down. There were no signs of a struggle or forced entry. The washing machine was stopped mid-cycle, half-full of soapy water, and contained several towels and some clothing. The clothing, which included a full set of women's clothes and a full set of men's clothes, matched the clothing worn by defendant and the victim in photos taken the day of the murder. The pair of men's shorts was missing a button that was present when the photos were taken. Investigators found money and a pair of keys in the pair of women's blue jeans. A pair of women's underwear, a pair of men's shorts, and a towel found in the washer all tested positive for blood. Forensic testing of the clothing and blood was hindered, however, because the clothing had been soaking in soapy water, which dissolved proteins.

A search of the common trash receptacle for the condominium complex turned up a garbage bag identical to those found inside the condominium unit. The bag contained beer cans, some empty and some full, one of which carried defendant's fingerprints. The garbage also contained paper towels that appeared to be stained with blood, and a panty liner that tested positive for blood. A rescue worker discovered that the toilet in the upstairs bathroom of the condominium was stopped up. The toilet eventually had to be broken to discover the source of the blockage. It contained a wad of paper towels. Investigators also found a piece of cardboard from a box of Marlboro cigarettes stuck to the inside of the toilet.

Defendant spoke with police several times during the investigation. According to defendant's statements the night his wife was killed, he left the condominium with his son in the late afternoon to give his wife a chance to relax. He took his son to a nearby school playground, and then drove around looking for a place to eat. They stopped at an ice cream stand, but it was closed. After about an hour and a half, they returned to the condominium. Defendant was not exactly sure what time they returned, but thought it was around 7:00 pm. He recalled that it was getting dark and his son was sleeping. The door to the condominium unit was unlocked, and he entered quietly, not wanting to disturb his wife if she was napping. He left his son sleeping in the car. He went downstairs to look for his wife and found her in the bathroom. He could not remember whether his wife was partially out of the tub, or whether she was face down or face up. He did remember that the tub was partially full, and that he pulled his wife out of the tub and laid her on the floor. He tried to resuscitate her, and then ran next door to have the neighbors call an ambulance. He brought his son over to the neighbors, and then returned to his wife. At some point he covered his wife up with a blanket.

Later that night, having learned of the victim's anal injuries, an officer questioned defendant about his sexual relations with his wife. At first he stated that he and his wife had sex twice that morning; later in the same interview he stated that they had vaginal sex once in the morning and anal sex once that afternoon, before defendant left with his son. Defendant commented on the large size of his penis, claiming that prostitutes had turned him away because of its size, and stated that his penis may have had blood on it after he withdrew from the anal sex. He permitted the officers to examine his penis, and the officers observed no bruising and saw no blood on his penis or his underwear.

The police questioned defendant again the next evening. When asked about the injuries to his wife's neck, defendant explained that he sometimes grasped his wife's neck during sex, and she would say "stop" if it was too rough. He stated that he did this during sex on the day his wife died. He also said that his wife's head injuries may have been caused by her hitting a wall or the bed during sex.

Defendant gave a final statement to the police the next month, in the presence of his attorneys. His description of the timing of events changed somewhat, with defendant claiming that the episode of anal sex and his trip with his son occurred later in the day than he had originally stated. At this point he also said that he did not have his hands around his wife's neck while having sex with her, and that after sex his wife was in fine condition, not disabled or in pain, and had dressed again in her jeans and golf shirt.

In December, 1994, defendant was charged with second-degree murder of his wife. He pled not guilty. The information was later amended to charge defendant with aggravated murder and aggravated sexual assault. After a lengthy trial, a jury found defendant guilty on both counts. The court sentenced him to life without parole on the aggravated murder charge, and fifty years to life on the aggravated-sexual-assault charge. This appeal followed.

II.

We begin by addressing defendant's claims of error with respect to the jury selection process. Defendant first argues that he was entitled to review the criminal records of potential jurors that were obtained by the State. He relies on V.R.Cr.P. 16, which requires the State to disclose "material or information not protected from disclosure ... that is necessary to the preparation of the defense." The State refused to release the criminal record checks, and the court declined to order the State to do so.

Courts in other jurisdictions have held that the defense should have the same access to criminal record checks of potential jurors that the State has, as a matter of fairness. See, e.g., Tagala v. State, 812 P.2d 604, 612-13 (Alaska App.1991) (collecting cases). We need not reach this issue, however, because defendant has made no showing that he was prejudiced by the State's failure to disclose the results of the criminal record checks. See State v. Jones, 160 Vt. 440, 446, 631 A.2d 840, 845 (1993) ("To establish reversible error under V.R.Cr.P. 16, a defendant...