State v. Lambright

Decision Date28 September 1983
Docket NumberNo. 5594,5594
Parties, 41 A.L.R.4th 1165 STATE of Arizona, Appellee, v. Joe Leonard LAMBRIGHT, Appellant.
CourtArizona Supreme Court

Robert K. Corbin, Atty. Gen. by William J. Schafer, III and Barbara A. Jarrett, Asst. Attys. Gen., Phoenix, for appellee.

Thomas G. Martin, Tucson, for appellant.

CAMERON, Justice.

Defendant, Joseph Leonard Lambright, was tried before a jury and convicted of first degree murder, A.R.S. § 13-1105, kidnapping, A.R.S. § 13-1304(A)(3), and sexual assault, A.R.S. § 13-1406. In addition, the kidnapping and sexual assault were found to have been dangerous felonies, involving the infliction of serious physical injury, A.R.S. § 13-604. Defendant was sentenced to death for the murder, to 21 years imprisonment for the kidnapping, and to 21 years imprisonment for the sexual assault, to be served consecutively to the sentence for kidnapping. The case was automatically appealed to this court pursuant to Rules 26.15, 31.2(b), Arizona Rules of Criminal Procedure, 17 A.R.S.; we have jurisdiction pursuant to Art. 6, § 5(3) of the Arizona Constitution, and A.R.S. §§ 13-4031 and 13-4035.

The issues we must decide on appeal are:

I. Does the use of a dual jury procedure at trial constitute reversible error? II. Did the trial court lack venue over the homicide charge?

III. Were defendant's statements voluntary?

IV. Was it error to allow an official of the Pima County attorney's office to testify regarding the grant of immunity to an accomplice?

V. Did the trial court err in failing to give one of the defendant's proffered jury instructions?

VI. Is the Arizona death penalty statute unconstitutional?

VII. Is the statutory aggravating circumstance of killing in an "especially heinous, cruel, or depraved manner" unconstitutionally vague?

VIII. Is there a right to have a jury participate in sentencing where the death penalty is imposable?

IX. Is it unconstitutional to place the burden of proof of mitigating circumstances on the defendant?

X. Does this court find in its independent review that the death penalty was appropriate in this case?

XI. Is the death penalty in this case proportionate to the disposition of other similar cases?

The facts necessary to a determination of this appeal are as follows. In February and March, 1980, Joseph Lambright, Robert Smith, a friend of Lambright's, and Kathy Foreman, Lambright's girlfriend, took a cross country driving trip. Beginning in Texas, where they resided, they first drove to Florida, returned to Texas, and continued on to Arizona. The trip was financed with muggings or purse-snatching and some occasional work. During the trip Lambright and Foreman were sexually involved, and frequently had intercourse in Smith's presence; sometimes this occurred in the car while Smith was driving.

When the group arrived in Arizona, they camped in the mountains outside Tucson. Lambright and Foreman again engaged in intercourse in the presence of Smith, and Smith became angry. He complained that Lambright had all the sex he wanted. Lambright asked why Smith "didn't go out and find somebody." Smith said it "wasn't so easy" and began walking off. The two men then walked away together and talked for several minutes.

The next day, 11 March 1980, the three went into Tucson and were having coffee at a Hobo Joe's restaurant, when Smith once again indicated he wanted a woman. At this point Foreman left to use the restroom. As she was returning, she testified that she overheard Lambright saying to Smith that Lambright "would like to kill somebody just to see if he could do it." When Foreman inquired moments later what was going on, Lambright told her that they were going to go out and find somebody for Smith.

Lambright drove the group around Tucson for some time, and at approximately 3:30 p.m. they saw a young woman, the victim Sandy Owen, hitchhiking. They stopped and picked up the victim, who seated herself in the unoccupied back seat and said she wanted a ride to the food stamp office. They drove to the food stamp office, but when they arrived there they did not permit Ms. Owen to leave the car. Instead Lambright drove to the back of the building, got out of the car and jumped into the back seat with Ms. Owen. He told her to "shut up and be quiet and she wouldn't get hurt."

Smith got out of the front passenger's seat and into the driver's seat. He pulled the car away and began looking for the freeway. Foreman turned around and saw that the victim looked frightened, and appeared to be trembling. Foreman asked the victim how to get to the interstate. Smith told the victim to shut up, because she would not tell them the truth. They found Interstate 10, and proceeded northwest toward California. Lambright searched through the victim's purse, found a bottle of pills, and asked what they were for. The victim stated they were part of a mental therapy she was undergoing. At some point Owen stated that she needed to use a restroom. They pulled the car off to the side of the interstate, and told her she could relieve herself behind some trees. Lambright had the victim take her shoes off so she would be unable to get away, and had Kathy Foreman accompany her to make sure she did not try to run. The group got back into the car, now with Lambright driving and Smith in the back seat. Smith put a blanket and some clothes over the rear windows, and proceeded to rape the victim. When he had finished he snickered and said she had small breasts.

The car proceeded through Pinal County, turned off the interstate, and proceeded to some isolated mountains. Ms. Owen asked if her captors were going to release her, and they told her they would take her back and let her go. They left the car at the end of a dirt road and walked part way up one of the mountains to a level area, arriving near dusk. After building a fire, Lambright and Foreman had intercourse, and a few feet away Smith again raped the victim.

Smith then began choking Ms. Owen. She collapsed, and Smith retained his grip on her as she fell. Lambright stated the woman had to be killed, or else she could press charges for kidnapping and rape. Lambright took Foreman's knife out of its sheath and began stabbing the victim in the chest and abdomen, twisting the knife around inside of her. Smith held one of the victim's arms while she was being stabbed, and Foreman held the other arm. Foreman testified that after the stabbing Smith unsuccessfully tried to break Ms. Owen's neck by twisting her head. Then Lambright, Foreman or both began cutting deeply into the victim's neck with the knife; Foreman claimed that only Lambright cut the victim's neck, Smith claimed that it was done by both Lambright and Foreman, and Lambright claimed he could not remember who used the knife during the killing. The victim remained alive, and was at least semi-conscious, as she attempted to raise herself up on one arm. Lambright picked up a large rock and hurled it at her head. Foreman testified that as he threw the rock he yelled "Die, bitch."

Jewelry was taken from the victim's body, and then rocks were piled on top of her. Lambright, Smith, and Foreman returned to the car and washed the blood off their hands. As they got back into the car and began driving to San Diego, the group engaged in a macabre celebration, playing a tape of music entitled "We Are the Champions." When they arrived in San Diego, they pawned a wedding ring belonging to Ms. Foreman. They continued on to Anaheim, California, to Las Vegas, Nevada, and then returned to Texas, where they were apprehended approximately a year later after a tip to police from someone who had been told about the crime. Each of the three persons made statements to the police.

The Pima County Attorney's Office decided to charge Lambright and Smith for their participation in the crimes, and to grant immunity to Foreman in return for her testimony. Lambright and Smith were extradited to Pima County and tried for kidnapping, sexual assault, and first degree murder. The case was assigned to the Honorable Michael V. Brown of the Pima County Superior Court. In light of the defendants' confessions, which were not totally interlocking, and the appearance of potentially antagonistic defenses, Judge Brown severed the cases of Lambright and Smith. Because most of the evidence was relevant to both defendants, however, the judge decided to hold a single "dual jury" trial, in which two separate juries were empaneled, each to decide the guilt or innocence of only one defendant, and each permitted to hear only evidence admissible against that one defendant. The defendants were each convicted of first degree murder, kidnapping, and sexual assault, and both appeal their convictions and sentences. We examine Robert Smith's convictions and sentences in State v. Smith, filed this day, 137 Ariz. ---, 673 P.2d 17. In the instant case we consider the convictions and sentences of Joseph Lambright.

I. DUAL JURIES

In the pre-trial stages it appeared to the trial judge that this case could present problems under the doctrine of Bruton v. United States, 391 U.S. 123, 88 S.Ct. 1620, 20 L.Ed.2d 476 (1968). Bruton prohibits the introduction of a defendant's statements to incriminate a codefendant in a joint trial, where the declarant is unavailable for cross-examination due to the assertion of his fifth amendment right to silence. In the instant case, the state intended to use statements of both Smith and Lambright at trial, and each of these statements incriminated both the declarant and the codefendant. Moreover, although the statements were substantially "interlocking," which might have allowed their admission under the exception to Bruton created in Parker v. Randolph, 442 U.S. 62, 99 S.Ct. 2132, 60 L.Ed.2d 713 (1979), the confessions did not overlap in all respects. After considering the confessions, and finding it impractical to attempt to edit out the portions incriminating the...

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