State v. Klaus, 51290

• Decision Date: 12 May 1987
• Docket Number: No. 51290,51290
• Citation: State v. Klaus, 730 S.W.2d 571 (Mo. App. 1987)
• Parties: STATE of Missouri, Plaintiff-Respondent, v. Carol Jean KLAUS, Defendant-Appellant.
• Court: Missouri Court of Appeals

Page 571

730 S.W.2d 571

STATE of Missouri, Plaintiff-Respondent, v. Carol Jean KLAUS, Defendant-Appellant.

No. 51290.

Missouri Court of Appeals Eastern District.

May 12, 1987.

Rehearing Denied June 9, 1987.

Robert B. Ramsey, Clayton, for defendant-appellant.

William L. Webster, Atty. Gen., Elizabeth A. Levin, Asst. Atty. Gen., Jefferson City, for plaintiff-respondent.

PUDLOWSKI, Presiding Judge.

Defendant, Carol Jean Klaus, appeals her convictions on one count each of second degree murder, in violation of Section 565.021 RSMo 1986, and armed criminal action, in violation of Section 571.015 RSMo 1986. She was sentenced to twenty-five years on the second degree murder count and three years on the armed criminal action count; the sentences to be served consecutively. The victim was defendant's former husband, Richard Klaus [Richard], a Pine Lawn ¹ police officer.

On appeal, defendant alleges that the trial court erred in five respects. Defendant's first contention is that the trial court erred in submitting the case to the jury because the state failed to prove defendant intended to murder Richard or that her actions were the cause of his death. Secondly, defendant contends that the trial court erred in refusing to allow David Guckas, a family therapist who had worked with both the defendant and Richard to testify that Richard had admitted to him that he had threatened and harassed defendant, and was trying to "drive her crazy." The victim's statements were, according to the offer of proof, made only shortly before the incident which gave rise to the charges on which defendant was convicted.

Defendant next argues that the trial court erred in failing to award her a new trial because of prosecutorial misconduct. She alleges that the prosecutor allowed false and misleading testimony to stand uncontradicted. She also alleges that the prosecutor failed to provide her attorney with exculpatory information and that the prosecutor argued improperly in closing argument.

Defendant fourthly contends that the trial court abused its discretion in finding no prejudice and therefore failing to order a new trial where a juror had spoken to a spectator once during the trial. Finally, defendant argues that the trial court abused its discretion in failing to grant a new trial on the basis of newly discovered evidence that was presented or offered to the trial court at the time of the hearing on defendant's motion for a new trial. We affirm the judgment of the trial court.

In addressing defendant's first point on appeal, we note

[i]n assessing the sufficiency of the evidence, we must accept as true all evidence and inferences that tend to support the verdict and disregard all evidence and inferences to the contrary. Our inquiry is limited to whether the evidence, viewed in the light most favorable to the state, is sufficient to support the verdict.

State v. Bolder, 635 S.W.2d 673, 679 (Mo. banc 1982) (citations omitted).

Defendant and Richard were divorced in 1985. The couple had three children; a twelve year old daughter, and a teenage daughter and son who were born to defendant's previous marriage, but had been adopted by Richard. After the divorce, pursuant to a custody agreement between the parties, defendant had custody of the teenage daughter. The other two children were in Richard's custody.

All three children, however, spent Christmas with their mother. On December 28, 1985, all three of the children were still with the defendant. Maureen Leach, a friend of defendant's at the time of the events herein, testified that on December 28, defendant informed her that Richard was willing to give her permanent custody of both the younger daughter and the son and she was making the arrangements for the custody change.

On New Year's Eve, defendant told Leach that she was concerned about the possibility that Richard might change his mind about relinquishing custody. On January 2, 1986, defendant reported to Leach that she had spoken to an attorney. She also told Leach that she had called Richard to inform him that the attorney had stated that if all three of the children were living with her, the court would order Richard to make some type of child support payments. She indicated that Richard was angry about that fact and had told her that she had "screwed up."

Defendant called back later and told Leach that Richard was coming after the two children over whom he had legal custody. Later, she called Leach a third time and asked her to keep the oldest daughter, who was in defendant's legal custody, while she took the other two children to South Dakota where her parents and sister lived.

Defendant returned from South Dakota on January 6, 1986. On January 7, she told Leach that she had spoken to her attorney and he had advised her to return the children to Richard. Leach testified that during this conversation, defendant stated that she was "fed up with things" and that she "couldn't take it any more." Leach also testified that defendant told her then that she was going to run over Richard with her car and that she was going to hide her identification before she did so.

On January 8, 1986, Richard and his girlfriend, Marie Harris went to the St. Charles County Prosecutor's Office to obtain a warrant for defendant's arrest on the basis of her interference with child custody. The two had gone to pick up the children on January 2, and had found no one home. Marie Harris testified that they visited the house approximately every other night between the second and the eighth and never found anyone home. She also testified that Richard had called the children's schools and had been informed that they had not been in school since the Christmas/New Year's break. On the eighth, after obtaining a promise that a warrant would be sought, Richard drove to the St. Charles house in another attempt to find defendant.

Defendant and the older daughter intended to stay at Maureen Leach's house, but on the eighth, they went back to their house to pick up a few things. While they were there Richard and Marie Harris came by, checking to see if anyone was home. Defendant and the daughter hid until they thought that Richard and Harris had given up and left. They then left, but defendant sighted Richard's car in the rearview mirror and according to her testimony tried to out run him. She pulled into River Bend Estates a subdivision under construction in her neighborhood, allegedly because her daughter had indicated that it was connected to a highway on the other side. Richard followed her into the subdivision. The street that she had turned on, according to her testimony, deadended and when she turned around, Richard's car was across the road.

Defendant told her daughter to exit the car and run. Defendant gave her a glass containing some type of liquid and told her to throw the contents at him and then run if he started to follow her.

Richard's car door was open and he was standing in the door when defendant turned around, and he allegedly motioned to her and called to her requesting that she get out of the car and talk to him. Marie Harris testified that defendant then stated that she had previously warned Richard that the next time she saw him she would kill him. Defendant denied that statement. Harris testified that Richard had put in a call before to his Pine Lawn police dispatcher, requesting that his dispatcher inform the St. Charles County Police that he needed assistance. When Richard reached for the radio to respond to a message in response to that first call, defendant, according to Harris' testimony, gunned the motor on her car and drove into the driver's side of Richard's car, where he was standing outside the door, at approximately fifty miles per hour. The door fell on the back of Richard's leg partially severing the leg.

Defendant then stopped, exited her vehicle and walked over to where Richard was laying on the ground. Defendant then went back to her car and returned with a butcher knife, with which she attempted to stab Richard numerous times. He suffered several lacerations before subdivision construction workers, who had heard the commotion, and Marie Harris were able to get the knife away from her.

Defendant then returned to her car and twice attempted to run over Richard again before leaving the subdivision. However, the construction workers were able to get Richard off to the side of the road.

Defendant left the subdivision alone, returned home and called Leach. Leach testified that defendant was anxious, but not hysterical. She asked Leach to find her daughter and to get her an attorney because she had just run over Richard. That call was made before 3:00 p.m. At about 3:00 p.m. or shortly after that, defendant called the St. Charles police. She failed to tell the officers where Richard was, but requested that they come to her home.

Defendant did not have her purse, or any identification with her when she was arrested. She later told Maureen Leach that it was under the couch and Leach then retrieved it for her, while she was in jail awaiting trial.

Richard was taken first to St. Joseph's Hospital in St. Charles and was then transferred immediately to St. Louis University Hospital. Surgery was done in an attempt to save the leg. On January 15, however, the doctors determined that amputation was necessary and on January 16, the amputation was performed. The injury had, however, caused a blood clot to form in Richard's leg and unknown to the doctors, a piece of that clot had broken off and on January 25, that clot reached Richard's heart. He died of a cardiac arrest as a result of the clot.

Defendant pled self-defense and defense of another. She alleged that she had been a battered wife and that since the divorce Richard had harassed her. She testified that when she saw that the road was blocked and he was waiting for her, she believed her own life and that of her daughter were in danger unless she "stopped" R...