State v. Jackson

• Citation: 340 N.C. 301,457 S.E.2d 862
• Decision Date: 02 June 1995
• Docket Number: No. 95A94,95A94
• Parties: STATE of North Carolina v. Randall JACKSON.
• Court: United States State Supreme Court of North Carolina

Page 862

457 S.E.2d 862

340 N.C. 301

STATE of North Carolina v. Randall JACKSON.

No. 95A94.

Supreme Court of North Carolina.

June 2, 1995.

Michael F. Easley, Atty. Gen. by Debra C. Graves, Asst. Atty. Gen., for the State.

Nora Henry Hargrove, Wilmington, for defendant-appellant.

LAKE, Justice.

Defendant was tried capitally for the first-degree murder of Kenneth Marese Murphy. The jury returned with a guilty verdict and recommended a sentence of life imprisonment. We find no prejudicial error and accordingly leave defendant's first-degree murder conviction undisturbed.

At trial, the State presented evidence tending to show that in the early morning hours of 27 April 1991, Kenneth Marese Murphy was fatally shot in the chest outside "Faces" nightclub in Wilmington. Earlier that night, Murphy and his friend, Craig Bonds, went to the campus of the University of North Carolina at Wilmington (UNC-W) to attend a dance. George Bragg, who was acquainted with both the defendant and Murphy, testified that after the dance a fight began between Edward DuBose and Javon Elder in the parking lot. When defendant came outside, he pushed Murphy and they also began to fight. Murphy clearly landed the heavier blows. Murphy attempted to walk away, but defendant followed him and they resumed fighting, again with Murphy getting the better of defendant. Security was called, and the fights were broken up. Bragg further testified that after the fighting ended, he went to McDonald's and while he was there, defendant came in, bloody-faced, asking about Murphy's whereabouts. Someone yelled he was at "Faces," and defendant left.

Meanwhile, Javon Elder, Reggie Flowers, Murphy and Bonds sat in or around their cars in the parking lot of "Faces." Defendant drove past and parked his car. He walked toward the four friends, saying, "Ya'll tried to jump me, ya'll tried to jump me." Murphy offered to fight again, but neither he nor the other men advanced toward the defendant and none had a weapon. Defendant ran back to his car and returned with a shotgun. Upon realizing defendant had a gun, Murphy hid behind the front wheel of Elder's Subaru.

As defendant walked toward them, Herbert Randolph, who considered himself a friend to both sides, stopped his yellow pickup truck between the defendant and the foursome. Randolph testified he thought defendant was angry but he could not tell if defendant was intoxicated. He asked defendant to put the gun away, and defendant responded, "One of them is going to die." Just then, Murphy stood up from behind the Subaru, and defendant shot him in the chest. After the shot was fired, Flowers picked up a chrome pipe and he and Bonds considered rushing the defendant but, afraid defendant was reloading, thought the better of it. Defendant turned, jogged to his car and drove away, obeying the traffic laws as he left. Bonds, Flowers and Elder put Murphy in the car and drove to the hospital emergency room.

Dr. Walter Gable, a pathologist, testified the gunshot pellets went through the left side of the heart, the stomach, the pancreas and the bowels. It was Dr. Gable's opinion that the victim, with these types of injuries, could have survived only four or five minutes.

Defendant surrendered to police and was arrested outside his girlfriend's apartment at approximately 9:00 a.m. on 27 April 1991. After being advised of his rights, defendant gave a confession. He related that after the fight at UNC-W, he drove to his girlfriend's house to get his shotgun. After retrieving his gun, he set out to find Murphy, first looking at McDonald's and then at "Faces." Defendant told officers he parked his car, confronted Murphy and his friends and then went back to his car, loaded one shell into the shotgun, and walked back toward Murphy. He talked briefly with Herbert Randolph and "then took aim with the shotgun and shot the guy who was standing on the other side of the car. I shot that one because he was the main one who hit me the most times out at UNC-W." At trial, defendant objected to the admission of the confession. The trial court made findings of fact which included that defendant was read his Miranda rights; that defendant indicated he understood his rights but chose to waive them; that he was not intoxicated, confused or sleepy; that he was coherent and rational; and that he was calm and showed no remorse for the killing. Thus, the trial court concluded as a matter of law that defendant's confession and waiver were made freely, voluntarily and understandingly. Accordingly, the trial court denied defendant's motion to suppress his confession.

After providing officers with his confession, defendant was escorted to jail by Officer Rodney Simmons, who was present during the confession. En route to the jail, defendant was allowed to place one telephone call. Officer Simmons overheard defendant tell the other party on the telephone that he was at the police station, that he had killed a man, that he meant to kill him, and that no one should worry about coming to get him out of jail because that was where he belonged. Officer Simmons did not reveal this information to prosecutors until the fourth day of trial, explaining he did not do so earlier because the statement was essentially a repetition of defendant's confession, which was, of course, known to defendant and disclosed to his counsel months before trial. When the telephone statement was brought to their attention, prosecutors immediately informed the defense. The trial court allowed Officer Simmons to testify as to this telephone statement, over defendant's objection, after providing a three-day continuance to allow the defendant time to prepare for the testimony.

Evidence on behalf of the defendant tended to show that Audrey Barnes was at the dance at UNC-W on 26 April 1991. She saw the fight between defendant and Murphy, but not from its beginning. She stated that there were "a lot of other guys" dragging and kicking defendant, who was helped by only one companion. Similarly, Tareka Caison testified that close to five men jumped defendant that night. Barron Bowens testified that as he and defendant left the party, they noticed one of defendant's friends arguing with someone. As defendant walked toward them, he was hit in the face by another man. Defendant fell down, got back up and tried to walk toward the parking lot. Five other men jumped defendant and started fighting him. Bowens became embroiled in the fight himself when he intervened on defendant's behalf.

Edward DuBose testified he and defendant spent the day of 26 April 1991 together and began drinking around 11:30 a.m. By 4:00 p.m., defendant had consumed from six to nine beers. Defendant drank four or five more beers and close to half a flask of gin by the end of the dance. DuBose testified he argued with Murphy and Bonds outside the dance and that Murphy and Bonds hit defendant when he came to intervene.

Further testimony for the defendant came from Regina Clark, his girlfriend and mother of his son. She saw him around 9:30 p.m. on 26 April 1991 and knew he was drinking because he was "passionate" when he drank. About 2:00 a.m. on 27 April 1991, Clark let defendant into her apartment. He ran upstairs, so she went back to bed and later heard him leave. At 3:00 a.m., after letting defendant in again, Clark heard him moaning in the bathroom and checked on him. His mouth was bleeding, and he had wounds on his hands and other parts of his face. There was blood in the sink. Clark further testified that when she took out the garbage that morning, she noticed a uniformed police officer. She so informed defendant. Defendant dressed and went outside to surrender himself. Clark felt that defendant was still intoxicated.

Dr. Howard Grotsky, a psychologist, testified for the defense that he administered several tests to defendant and obtained a history of the shooting from defendant, Clark and DuBose. Dr. Grotsky testified it was his opinion that defendant was intoxicated and under stress at the time of the shooting. Following the prosecutor's objection to any testimony by Dr. Grotsky regarding defendant's ability to form the specific intent to kill, a voir dire was conducted, after which the trial court sustained the prosecutor's objection and suppressed the balance of the expert's testimony.

Defendant brings forward five assignments of error.

I.

In his first assignment of error, defendant contends the trial court committed reversible error when it suppressed that portion of the opinion testimony of Dr. Grotsky which related to defendant's ability to formulate and carry out plans on the night of the murder. Defendant argues that this expert's testimony in this area was critical to his defense and should have been allowed on the basis that the objection to it more properly went toward weight rather than admissibility. He contends he was thus deprived of the right to present a defense in violation of the state and federal constitutions and our Rules of Evidence. The State counters that this portion of this expert's testimony was so convoluted, contradictory and equivocal that it would confuse rather than aid the jury and was thus properly excluded.

Dr. Grotsky was tendered as an expert witness and was so accepted by the trial court without objection. During direct examination, Dr. Grotsky testified that in developing his clinical evaluation of defendant, he examined him on three separate occasions and administered an intelligence test as well as a personality measure. Dr. Grotsky also interviewed the policemen in contact with defendant at the jail; the defendant's girlfriend, Regina Clark; and defendant's friend, Edward DuBose. The intelligence test revealed defendant had a full scale IQ of 77, placing him, according to Dr. Grotsky, in the borderline category of intelligence between average and retarded. Further, Dr. Grotsky relayed to the jury that he learned defendant had been drinking before the...