State v. Haygood
| Decision Date | 21 November 2018 |
| Docket Number | No. 115,591,115,591 |
| Citation | 430 P.3d 11 |
| Parties | STATE of Kansas, Appellee, v. Donald Ramon HAYGOOD, Appellant. |
| Court | Kansas Supreme Court |
Corrine E. Gunning, of Kansas Appellate Defender Office, argued the cause and was on the brief for appellant.
Jennifer S. Tatum, assistant district attorney, argued the cause, and Mark A. Dupree Sr., district attorney, and Derek Schmidt, attorney general, were with her on the brief for appellee.
Donald Haygood directly appeals his jury-trial convictions for premeditated first-degree murder and criminal possession of a firearm by a convicted felon. He claims the trial court committed reversible error by admitting evidence of his prior domestic violence and by denying his request for jury instructions on the affirmative defense of self-defense and on the lesser-included offense of involuntary manslaughter. Further, he argues the prosecutor's erroneous comments during closing argument warrant a new trial. We disagree and affirm the convictions.
Haygood does not deny that he shot and killed Demetria Mills in the house he shared with his long-time girlfriend, Georgie Stallings, and her 13-year-old son, G.T. The disputed testimony at trial involved the manner in which the events unfolded and the way in which Mills acted prior to the shooting.
As background, Stallings and Mills were long-time close friends. Haygood and Mills were also close; Mills' stepmother was Haygood's adopted mother. The three regularly spent time together. In the time leading up to the shooting, Haygood had been drinking more than usual and using a drug called "Molly," which changed his behavior, making him paranoid and more abusive. Stallings and Haygood would often argue when they were drinking, and approximately two weeks before the shooting, during such an argument, Haygood hit Stallings in the lip, making it swell for a few days. Mills learned of the incident after observing Stallings' swollen lip and was concerned for her friend.
On September 16, 2011, Haygood went to a bar around noon and stayed there until Stallings picked him up about 7 p.m. to retrieve their vehicle from a repair shop. After that errand, the couple returned to the bar and consumed a large amount of alcohol throughout the evening. Haygood also took "Molly." Mills joined them at the bar until shortly before 1 a.m., when the three went to another bar. At approximately 3 a.m., Haygood drove the three back to the house he shared with Stallings. At this point, all three were very intoxicated but were not arguing.
Stallings and Mills entered the house first, awakening G.T., who had been asleep on the couch. The trial testimony of Haygood, Stallings, and G.T. as to what transpired after Haygood entered the house differed in some respects. The common theme, however, is that Mills demanded that Haygood leave the house, prompting an argument between them during which Mills threatened to call 911. The argument culminated with Haygood fatally shooting Mills and leaving the house. Haygood's version had Mills rushing him with a knife or what appeared to be a knife, after having said, "I'm gonna show you." Neither Stallings nor G.T. heard Mills threaten to do anything but call 911; neither saw Mills try to attack Haygood with a knife.
Two Kansas City, Kansas, police officers testified that, at the house following the shooting, Stallings told them that she and Haygood had gotten into an argument; Mills tried to intervene and said she was going to call 911; and at that point Haygood shot Mills. One of the officers also recalled Stallings relating that Mills was privy to the history of domestic violence between Stallings and Haygood.
Haygood was subsequently apprehended at his sister's house, where the police found a Smith & Wesson .40 caliber handgun. A firearm and tool mark examiner testified that a spent casing found at the crime scene and the bullet recovered from Mills' body matched that handgun. The coroner could not determine the range at which the fatal shot had been fired but opined that Mills died instantly and would not have been able to move after she was shot. That would mean that Haygood shot Mills while she was standing at the location in the house where her slain body was depicted in the crime scene photographs.
Over defense objection, the trial court allowed Stallings to testify about the prior domestic violence that resulted in her swollen lip, ruling it was admissible under K.S.A. 2017 Supp. 60-455. G.T. also testified that he recalled the swollen lip, although he did not witness the incident.
At jury instruction conference, the trial court denied the defense request for a self-defense instruction and a lesser included offense instruction on involuntary manslaughter imperfect self-defense, i.e. Haygood committed a lawful act in an unlawful manner. The trial court instructed the jury on the elements of premeditated first-degree murder and the lesser included offenses of second-degree intentional murder and voluntary manslaughter based on imperfect self-defense (unreasonable but honest belief that circumstances existed justifying deadly force in self-defense). The court also instructed the jury on the defense of voluntary intoxication. The jury convicted Haygood of premeditated first-degree murder.
In an unsuccessful motion for new trial, Haygood again objected to the use of K.S.A. 2017 Supp. 60-455 evidence and the failure to give a self-defense instruction. Haygood timely appeals.
Haygood contends that the trial court erred by allowing the State to present evidence of Haygood's prior acts of domestic violence against Stallings as an exception to the prohibition in K.S.A. 2017 Supp. 60-455 against admitting evidence of specific instances of prior crimes or civil wrongs. He argues that the evidence was not relevant to prove a disputed material fact; that it was used to prove Haygood's propensity to commit the crimes charged; and that its prejudicial effect outweighed its limited probative value.
The admissibility of all evidence of other crimes and civil wrongs is governed by K.S.A. 2017 Supp. 60-455. State v. Richard , 300 Kan. 715, 719, 333 P.3d 179 (2014) ; State v. Gunby , 282 Kan. 39, 57, 144 P.3d 647 (2006). K.S.A. 2017 Supp. 60-455 provides in relevant part:
The three-part Gunby test that a trial judge must use in determining whether to admit evidence under K.S.A. 2017 Supp. 60-455, the corresponding appellate standards of review, and the trial judge's duty to provide a limiting instruction are as follows:
The State does not dispute that this issue is preserved for appellate review. Prior to trial, the State filed a "motion to determine admissibility of other crimes evidence," which was granted after a hearing. Subsequently, Haygood was appointed new counsel, who filed an unsuccessful motion to reconsider. At trial, defense counsel objected to the evidence at issue immediately after the evidence was discussed by Stallings. Defense counsel noted his objection was "probably a little late." But the State acknowledged the contemporaneous objection on the record, the trial court ruled on it, and we will review it.
The State points out that while the district court granted its motion to present three incidents of domestic violence between Stallings and Haygood, the State only presented one of the three incidents at trial. In its motion, the State proposed to present the following: (1) two years prior to the homicide, Haygood pushed Stallings, causing her to hit the wall and knock out three of her teeth; (2) several weeks prior to the homicide, Haygood pulled a .40 caliber Smith & Wesson firearm on Stallings, then went outside and shot it; and (3) the week prior to the homicide, Haygood punched Stallings in the mouth, causing her lip to swell. Only the third, swollen lip incident was discussed at trial, albeit one State...
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