State v. Lopez
| Decision Date | 21 June 2007 |
| Docket Number | No. 29,803.,29,803. |
| Citation | 164 P.3d 19,2007 NMSC 037 |
| Parties | STATE of New Mexico, Plaintiff-Petitioner, v. Stephanie LOPEZ, Defendant-Respondent. |
| Court | New Mexico Supreme Court |
Gary King, Attorney General, Joel Jacobsen, Assistant Attorney General, Santa Fe, NM, for Petitioner.
Liane E. Kerr, Liane E. Kerr, L.L.C., Albuquerque, NM, for Respondent.
{1} Defendant Stephanie Lopez was convicted by a jury of negligently permitting child abuse resulting in death or great bodily harm, and negligently permitting child abuse not resulting in death or great bodily harm, contrary to NMSA 1978, Section 30-6-1 (2001). Defendant was tried with four codefendants facing various charges as a result of the death of Defendant's five-month-old daughter, Baby Briana. Prior to trial, Defendant made a motion to sever her trial from that of her codefendants. She asserted that her right to confrontation would be violated in a joint trial if the custodial statements of her codefendants were admitted as evidence. Defendant's motion was denied. At Defendant's trial, the district court admitted into evidence the statements made by her codefendants while they were in custody. On appeal, the Court of Appeals held that the admission of the codefendants' statements resulted in a violation of Defendant's Sixth Amendment right to confrontation and that this constitutional error was not harmless. The Court of Appeals reversed Defendant's conviction and remanded her case with the instruction that Defendant be tried separately. The State petitioned this Court to review the Court of Appeals' Opinion. We granted certiorari on the State's petition and reverse the Court of Appeals' Opinion as it applies to Defendant, Stephanie Lopez.
{2} Baby Briana died on July 19, 2002. At the time, Defendant lived with Baby Briana's father, Andrew Walters (Father), in the mobile home of Father's mother, Patricia Walters (Grandmother). Defendant and Father shared one bedroom of the mobile home with Baby Briana, the couple's eighteen-month-old son, Andy Jr., and Defendant's twin brother, Steven Lopez (Uncle).
{3} On the morning of July 19, 2002, Defendant made a 911 call to report that Baby Briana had stopped breathing. Defendant and Father administered C.P.R. on Baby Briana until paramedics arrived and transported her to the hospital. When Baby Briana arrived in the emergency room she had bruises and bite marks on her body and head, and she appeared lifeless. After unsuccessful attempts to resuscitate her, Baby Briana was pronounced dead.
{4} Defendant's statement to the attending physician and nurse in the emergency room indicated that Baby Briana's injuries were the result of Baby Briana falling out of bed. However, the forensic pathologist who testified at Defendant's trial stated that Baby Briana's injuries were not the result of Baby Briana falling out of bed. The autopsy of Baby Briana revealed that she died from cranial cerebral injuries. She had bruising and scraping injuries throughout her head, as well as on her upper forehead. She had numerous human bite marks all over her body and head, fifteen in total. There were extensive injuries to Baby Briana's head and fatal injuries to her brain. She had bleeding within the membranes around the brain as well as around the nerves of her eyes. The autopsy revealed that Baby Briana's skull was fractured in two places, on two different bones, and that the fractures were 5-7 days old. An examination of the membranes around the brain showed the presence of both old and new blood, indicating that Baby Briana had received a separate brain injury in the past. Baby Briana's optical nerves were filled with both fresh and old blood which meant that she had been violently shaken on at least two occasions. Baby Briana suffered two rib fractures on the right side of her chest several weeks before her death. She also had bucket handle fractures on both her right and left thigh bones as well as a fracture through the top of her left arm. These injuries were the result of her limbs being forced, twisted, or yanked. Baby Briana's anus and vagina were also injured. Baby Briana's death was characterized as a homicide.
{5} In the course of the investigation of Baby Briana's death, police interviewed Defendant, Father, Uncle, and Father's Brother, Robert Walters. Defendant was interviewed on July 19, 2002. In her statement to police, Defendant said that a couple of days prior to Baby Briana's death, Defendant had observed Father throwing Baby Briana up in the air and saw her "come down." Defendant said that she told Father not to do that because he was going to hurt the child. Defendant attributed the bruising on Baby Briana's head to the fact that Baby Briana rolled off the bed a few days prior to July 19, 2002. Defendant stated that on the night of July 18, 2002, she was in her bedroom of the mobile home with Father, Uncle, Andy Jr., and Father's brother Robert Walters. Defendant said that she had two to three beers prior to falling asleep at approximately 10:00 p.m. Father and the two uncles remained awake. When Defendant woke up at 9:45 a.m., Baby Briana was bruised, pale, and not breathing. Defendant said that she and Father were worried about Baby Briana's condition so they called Grandmother and then called 911. The 911 call was made at 10:20 a.m. Defendant stated that the bruising and other markings on Baby Briana's body were not there when she went to bed the night before. Defendant's explanation as to the bruising documented by medical personnel was that Father had said maybe Uncle threw Baby Briana up in the air. Defendant stated that she had seen Father throw Baby Briana up into the air but she said she had not seen it occur on the night of July 18, 2002. Defendant stated that she had seen Father throw Baby Briana into the air and saw her head hit the ceiling in the bedroom approximately three times. Defendant also said that maybe Uncle threw Baby Briana up into the air as well. In explaining the bite marks, Defendant said that she had seen her son bite Baby Briana.
{6} Father was also interviewed by police on July 19, 2002. In his statement to police, Father admitted to throwing Baby Briana in the air. He stated that he had done it four days prior to her death and that on the night of July 18, 2002, he said that he threw her up into the air two or three times and that her head hit the ceiling. Father also stated that Uncle threw Baby Briana in the air.
{7} During the police interview, Father recounted his activities from the night of July 18, 2002. He said he got off work at 5:00 p.m. and arrived home around 6:00 p.m. Sometime around 8:00 p.m., he picked up Uncle at work and they purchased a case of beer. They returned to their house and spent the rest of the night in their room with Mother, Baby Briana, and Andy Jr. He said he went to sleep between 12:30 and 1:00 a.m. and checked Baby Briana around 3:00 a.m. He then got up around 7:00 a.m., played with Baby Briana, and gave her a blanket, and changed her diaper. Father said he awoke again at around 10:00 a.m. and he and Defendant discovered Baby Briana was not breathing so they called 911. In this portion of the interview, Father admitted only that Baby Briana had fallen off her bed during the night and that he caused two bite marks on her ribs, after initially claiming that his 18-month-old son made the bite marks.
{8} After a break, the police continued interrogating Father and informed him that Baby Briana was dead. Father then admitted to throwing Baby Briana into the air and said that Baby Briana hit her head on the ceiling four days before she died. Father admitted to bruising Baby Briana, stating, Father admitted that on the night of July 18, 2002, he and Uncle were "playing a little rough" with Baby Briana and throwing her into the air, with Baby Briana hitting the ceiling, and being dropped onto the floor when he "missed" her. Father identified a particular bruise on a photo as being caused when Baby Briana hit the ceiling and another when she landed on the floor. Father also identified various bite marks that he acknowledged he made. Father said Baby Briana cried when she was dropped onto the floor, and when he was asked what he did to calm her down, he answered, "I just kept throwing her in the air."
{9} Father was also shown a photo of Baby Briana's anus, and Father became very upset and profane, saying to police that they were "not going to find any semen." Father said he cleaned Baby Briana's butt with a baby wipe, wrapped the baby wipe around his left index finger, and put the wrapped finger into Baby Briana's anus up to the second knuckle at the middle of his finger. When he took his finger out, "[t]here was a little bit of blood on there."
{10} Father stated that Mother would sometimes get mad at Baby Briana and would pinch Baby Briana's ears and throw Baby Briana into her bouncy seat from a distance of about two feet. Father also stated that Mother questioned him about the bruises on Baby Briana and he informed her that he had been playing rough with her.
{11} Uncle was also interviewed at the police station on July 19, 2002. Uncle gave an initial statement to police after being informed of his Miranda rights. Uncle stated that on the night of July 18, 2002, he was in the bedroom playing video games with Father and Mother. He said that Robert Walters came home with a friend and they stayed in the room together drinking beer. Uncle said that Defendant had four or five beers. Uncle stated that nothing unusual happened that night and he went to bed at 2:00 a.m. In a subsequent statement to police, Uncle admitted to throwing Baby Briana in the air and said that one time she hit her head on the ceiling. Police...
To continue reading
Request your trial
-
State v. Chavez
... ... In so doing, a defendant must alert the court with specificity to the risk of actual prejudice a joint trial poses to the individual defendant. See Gallegos , 2007-NMSC-007, 19, 141 N.M. 185, 152 P.3d 828 ; see also State v. Lopez , 2007-NMSC-037, 16, 142 N.M. 138, 164 P.3d 19 (determining that a defendant properly preserved an objection to a joint trial by notifying the trial court of prejudice by violation of the defendant's confrontation rights); State v. Walters , 2007-NMSC-050, 18-19, 142 N.M. 644, 168 P.3d 1068 ... ...
-
State v. Tollardo
...violated Defendant's Sixth Amendment right to confront the witnesses against him. See, e.g., State v. Lopez, 2007–NMSC–037, ¶ 21, 142 N.M. 138, 164 P.3d 19 (finding a “per se” Sixth Amendment violation in admitting testimonial statements of co-defendants who did not testify at the defendant......
-
State v. Holly
...that the evidence complained of might have contributed to [the defendant's] conviction." State v. Lopez, 2007-NMSC-037, ¶ 22, 142 N.M. 138, 164 P.3d 19 (alteration in original) (internal quotation marks and citation omitted). Initially, the defendant has the burden to demonstrate prejudice.......
-
State v. Cabezuela
...charged with negligent child abuse versus intentional child abuse for a failure to act is State v. Lopez, 2007–NMSC–037, ¶ 28, 142 N.M. 138, 164 P.3d 19. The defendant in that case stated that on the night of the incident she was in the bedroom of her mobile home with the child's father and......