State v. Laura Jeanne Taylor
| Decision Date | 17 November 1995 |
| Docket Number | 95-LW-4838,C.A. 14456 |
| Parties | STATE OF OHIO, Plaintiff-Appellee v. LAURA JEANNE TAYLOR, Defendant-Appellant C.A. Case No. 14456. |
| Court | United States Court of Appeals (Ohio) |
MATHIAS H. HECK, JR., Prosecuting Attorney, By: ARVIN S. MILLER Assistant Prosecuting Attorney, 41 North Perry Street, Suite 315, Appellate Division, Dayton, Ohio 45402, Atty. Reg #0016355, Attorney for Plaintiff-Appellee.
RICHARD A. NYSTROM, 1502 Hulman Building, 120 W. Second Street Dayton, Ohio 45402, Atty. Reg. #0040615, Attorney for Defendant-Appellant.
Appellant Laura Jeanne Taylor appeals from her conviction and sentence following a jury trial for one count of burglary, one count of aggravated burglary, four counts of aggravated robbery, one count of murder, two counts of attempted aggravated murder, two counts of aggravated murder, and, following merger, four firearm specifications. Taylor contends that the trial court erred by: (1) admitting into evidence prejudicial and irrelevant testimony concerning crimes with which she was not charged; and (2) failing to grant a motion to dismiss for failure to comply with the statutory and constitutional requirements for a speedy trial. Taylor also contends that she was denied the effective assistance of trial counsel.
This case involves a series of crimes committed during a two and one-half day time span over the Christmas holidays in 1992 in Dayton, Ohio. The crime spree, which involved several teenagers including Laura Taylor, Heather Mathews, Marvallous Keene, and DeMarcus Smith, came to be known as the "Christmas killings." In connection with this series of crimes, Taylor was indicted on multiple criminal charges. All charges against Taylor arose from three specific criminal incidents.
The first criminal incident underlying the charges against Taylor occurred at the home of Joseph Wilkerson on Prescott Street in Dayton. At approximately 3:00 a.m. on December 24, 1992, Heather Mathews was awakened at the apartment at which she was staying by Taylor and Marvallous Keene who asked her if she wanted to participate in a robbery with them. Mathews agreed to participate, and she, Taylor, and Keene went to the home of Joseph Wilkerson, located on Prescott Street in Dayton. When they arrived his house, Wilkerson, who had been told that the group was going to participate in an orgy, let them in and offered them beer. In accordance with the plan, Taylor then lured Wilkerson to the bedroom and pretended to get undressed. Shortly thereafter, Mathews and Keene entered the bedroom and also pretended to get undressed.
Keene then pointed a gun at Wilkerson and ordered him to lay on the bed. Mathews and Taylor tied Wilkerson's hands to the bedposts with a cord. While Keene held Wilkerson at gunpoint, Mathews and Taylor ransacked his home and loaded several items, including a microwave oven, hair dryer, and television, into a red Buick automobile owned by Wilkerson. Mathews and Taylor then returned to the bedroom, and Keene gave the gun to Taylor to hold on Wilkerson. Keene left the bedroom to search for a gun which he believed to be somewhere in the house and shortly returned to the bedroom carrying a small gun. Mathews and Taylor then left the bedroom again to search for additional items to steal. They heard a single gunshot coming from the bedroom. When they returned to the bedroom, they saw Keene standing next to the bed with the gun in his hand. Most of Wilkerson's body was covered with pillows, but his legs were visible and shaking.
Keene handed Taylor the smaller gun which he had found in the house, and she climbed on the bed, aimed the gun at Wilkerson, and pulled the trigger. The gun jammed and did not fire. Keene then handed Taylor the other gun and she shot Wilkerson in the upper portion of his body. His legs immediately stopped moving. The three then left the house, taking the Buick loaded with the stolen items. Testimony revealed that the three, along with DeMarcus Smith and Nick Woodson, returned to the Prescott Street address twice the next day, and eventually stole Wilkerson's other vehicle, a Pontiac Grand Am, from his garage. Police officers later discovered Wilkerson's body in the house, still tied to the bed posts.
The second incident underlying the charges against Taylor involved the killing of Richmond Maddox, Taylor's former boyfriend. During the afternoon of December 25, Taylor twice went to Maddox's home to convince him to meet her at a hotel. Maddox finally agreed to meet Taylor. At Maddox's house, Taylor got into his car with him and they drove toward the hotel. Mathews, Smith, and Keene followed in the stolen Grand Am. After Maddox's car came to a sudden stop, Taylor shot Maddox in the head, and jumped out of his car. Maddox's car then began moving forward and hit a tree. Taylor got back into the Grand Am with the other three. Maddox was later found dead in his car with a bullet wound to the head.
The third incident underlying the charges against Taylor concerns the robbery of a mini-mart, the Shortstop carry-out, located at the corner of Fifth and Williams Streets in Dayton. During the early morning hours on December 26, Taylor Mathews, Keene and Smith decided to rob a store. The group drove around the city in the stolen Grand Am looking for a good location. They eventually decided to rob the Shortstop carry-out. Taylor went into the store to determine how many employees were working. She shortly returned to the car and reported that only two people were working.
The group then decided that Taylor would go in first, followed by Keene and Smith. Mathews stayed in the car with the engine running.
In the store, Sarah Abraham, the store owner, was behind the counter. Two men, Edward Thompson and Jones Pettus, were also in the store. Taylor entered the store and bought a pack of gum and an orange drink. Smith and Keene, both armed, then entered the store. Keene pointed his gun at Abraham and ordered her to turn over the money from the register. Meanwhile, Smith pointed his gun at Thompson and Pettus demanded that they turn over their money. Keene then shot Abraham twice in the head, and Smith shot toward Thompson and Pettus, hitting Pettus. Taylor, Keene, and Smith grabbed the money and ran out of the store. They got back into the car with Mathews and sped away. Abraham died in a hospital several days later from her injuries. Pettus, who was shot in the abdomen, survived the incident after undergoing surgery.
During the early afternoon on that same day, Taylor, Mathews, Keene, and Smith were stopped by police officers. At the time they were stopped, the group was riding in a stolen black Dodge Shadow automobile. They were all placed under arrest.
Taylor, who was sixteen years old at the time of these incidents, was arrested and placed in juvenile detention. On December 29, 1992 two complaints were filed against Taylor in the Juvenile Division of the Montgomery County Court of Common Pleas. In those complaints, she was charged with delinquency by reason of aggravated murder and aggravated robbery in association with Joseph Wilkerson's death. On January 7, 1993, the state filed a motion to transfer the case for prosecution as an adult.
On February 2, 1993, a third complaint was filed against Taylor. That complaint charged Taylor with delinquency by reason of nine counts: burglary, murder, three counts of aggravated robbery, aggravated murder, two counts of attempted aggravated murder, and carrying a concealed weapon. As to the third complaint, the state again filed a motion to transfer the case for prosecution as an adult.
After a hearing, the juvenile court entered a decision on March 18, 1993, finding that the allegations in the three complaints against Taylor were supported by probable cause. In its decision, the court ordered that physical and mental examinations of Taylor, as well as a social history, be completed. Thereafter, following an amenability hearing, the juvenile court entered a decision on April 22, 1993, ordering that Taylor be transferred to the Montgomery County Court of Common Pleas for prosecution as an adult.
On May 14, 1993, Taylor was charged by indictment in the Montgomery County Court of Common Pleas with the following crimes: (1) aggravated burglary of Joseph Wilkerson's house; (2) aggravated robbery of Joseph Wilkerson; (3) aggravated murder of Joseph Wilkerson; (4) burglary of Joseph Wilkerson's house; (5) murder of Richmond Maddox; (6) aggravated robbery of Sarah Abraham; (7) aggravated murder of Sarah Abraham; (8) aggravated robbery of Jones Pettus; (9) attempted aggravated murder of Jones Pettus; (10) aggravated robbery of Edward Thompson; (11) attempted aggravated murder of Edward Thompson; and (12) carrying a concealed weapon. All charges, except for the charge of carrying a concealed weapon, carried firearm specifications. The same indictment included numerous offenses against Taylor's co-defendant, DeMarcus Smith. A plea of not guilty to all charges was subsequently entered on Taylor's behalf.
On June 18, 1993, Taylor filed a motion for a bill of particulars. On June 21, 1993, Taylor filed numerous additional motions, including a motion to sever counts for trial, a motion to transfer the case to the grand jury judge for reassignment, a motion for change of venue, a motion for separate trials of defendants, and a motion to suppress. A hearing on the suppression motion was held on August 5 and September 7, 1993. Both Taylor and the state subsequently filed memoranda in support of their respective positions on the suppression issue.
On December 29, 1993, the state filed a bill of particulars in accordance with Taylor's earlier request. The state also filed memoranda in opposition to the...
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