State v. Morris, 54883

• Decision Date: 06 February 1990
• Docket Number: No. 54883,54883
• Citation: 784 S.W.2d 815
• Parties: STATE of Missouri, Plaintiff-Respondent, v. Bruce MORRIS, Defendant-Appellant.
• Court: Missouri Court of Appeals

Page 815

784 S.W.2d 815

STATE of Missouri, Plaintiff-Respondent, v. Bruce MORRIS, Defendant-Appellant.

No. 54883.

Missouri Court of Appeals,

Eastern District,

Division Two.

Feb. 6, 1990.

Timothy A. Braun, Capital Conflicts Defender, St. Charles, Robert Wolfrum, Asst. Capital Defender, St. Louis, for defendant-appellant.

William L. Webster, Atty. Gen., Ronald L. Jurgeson, Asst. Atty. Gen., Jefferson City, for plaintiff-respondent.

KAROHL, Judge.

The state charged defendant by information and alleged that defendant killed his wife on November 18, 1986 by striking her on the head with a blunt object. The information charged murder in the first degree. Section 565.020 RSMo 1986. The state qualified the jury to consider a death sentence. The jury found defendant not guilty of the charged offense, not guilty of murder second degree, guilty of voluntary manslaughter. Section 565.023 RSMo 1986. The court sentenced defendant in accord with the wishes of the jury to serve a term of imprisonment of fourteen years.

Morris appeals his conviction on the grounds that the court erred: (1) in prohibiting questions by defendant during voir dire on the subject of minimum sentences on possible lesser included offenses; and (2) in refusing to submit an offered instruction on the charge of involuntary manslaughter.

Defendant did not dispute the fact that he struck his wife on the head with a 2X4 board or that the blow caused massive injuries which contributed to cause death. Defendant's counsel informed the venire that defendant conceded "he did it, but the question, maybe, is: how did he do it and what level of homicide is it, from murder first degree, on down to involuntary manslaughter." Defendant furnished the police with oral, written and video statements which described his acts. Defendant testified and told the jury substantially the same story he previously told the police.

The evidence was sufficient to sustain a conviction of murder first degree. For some years defendant resided with his wife and teen-age daughter in St. Charles County, Missouri. Some months prior to the killing defendant was working near Jefferson City, Missouri. He met and engaged to marry another woman. The other woman testified that defendant once told her he was a widower with a teen-age daughter. He later revised this statement and told her his wife was seriously injured in an automobile accident from which she could not recover. The day after the killing occurred, he told her his wife had died. Defendant admitted he made these different statements to his girlfriend. He also admitted that after he told his girlfriend his wife had died, he told friends, neighbors, his wife's relatives and the police that his wife left home in the middle of the night and disappeared.

The following represents a summary of defendant's in-court testimony. On the evening of November 18, 1986 defendant was at home with his wife. For the purpose of constructing a Christmas present defendant brought a 2X4 board into the home. He intended to cut the board into a frame for a stained glass window. He placed the wood board against a doorframe in the hallway and went to bed. During a discussion with his wife he admitted having an affair. His wife got mad and jumped out of the bed. She then said "Well, I had one, too but it didn't mean anything to me, I just done it to hurt you, and she stormed out of the bedroom." He followed his wife down the hall, heard a noise, and found his wife toward the end of the hallway. She was bent over. Defendant stubbed his toe on the board and picked it up. As he approached his wife she turned around and laughed at him and said "she had had a real man and I was only half a man, and, I don't know, I--I guess I hit her. I don't know, I don't actually remember doing it, but that's the only thing that could have happened."

After striking his wife, defendant grabbed a towel from the linen closet and tried to stop the bleeding. At that time she wasn't breathing and he could not get a pulse. Defendant believes she died while he was holding her. Because of the bleeding he got a trash bag and put it over her head. He took the body to the garage, and wrapped it in a bedsheet and some plastic. He buried her body under the basement floor approximately one week later. Defendant cleaned the 2X4 board before putting it in the garage. He later placed it back on a pile of wood. Thereafter, it may have been burnt in the fireplace. Defendant told the jury he neither planned nor intended to kill his wife but felt he deserved time in the penitentiary. Defendant explained he did not call for medical help and covered up the crime because he was afraid of losing his daughter.

Law enforcement authorities followed defendant's directions and recovered the body. A forensic pathologist performed an autopsy on December 5, 1986. She found a laceration of the scalp with an underlying fracture immediately above and backward from the left ear. The skull was massively fractured. There was extensive hemorrhaging. The underlying brain was damaged. There was "probably one blow struck to this area." In most cases, a head injury of this sort would certainly be fatal. The pathologist concluded that the head injury, described on the death certificate as "blunt craniocerebral trauma," caused Mrs. Morris' death.

Additional testimony by the pathologist indicated that the plastic bag placed over the victim's head may have been a contributing factor, if the person was still alive. There was no evidence from either defendant's statements or testimony that the plastic bag, used to contain bleeding, was secured in a manner which would have prevented breathing. The pathologist's testimony confirmed "no anatomical evidence of any strangulation" and that an expert would not pronounce death simply by lack of respiration. In conclusion, the doctor could absolutely rule out strangulation.

In his first point, defendant contends he is entitled to a new trial because the trial court erred in refusing to permit specific voir dire questions on the full range of punishment for lesser included offenses. Two general observations are in order. First, in view of the facts it is likely that the verdict can be explained only in terms of the formulation and execution of a very skillful trial strategy by defense counsel. The strategy consisted of admitting guilt and focusing the factual decision of the jury on the question of the degree of homicide.

Second, the trial court observed that defense counsel had thoroughly explored with the venire an ability to decide the disputed issue on the degree of homicide. The verdict strongly suggests and the record confirms this observation was accurate.

Defendant argues the trial court denied him a fair and impartial jury guaranteed by the Sixth Amendment of the United States Constitution, equal protection under the United States and State of Missouri Constitutions, due process under the Fourteenth Amendment, and a fully qualified jury venire under Missouri case law. Defendant contends the trial court specifically erred by refusing to allow defense counsel to ask the venire members "[w]hether or not they could follow specific instructions about lesser forms of homicide, including among others an instruction on voluntary manslaughter or involuntary homicide." Defendant also contends "the court refused to allow defense counsel from asking any questions on the range of punishment for the lesser included homicides of murder in the first degree." Defense counsel anticipated evidence to support alternative instructions on murder second degree, voluntary manslaughter and involuntary manslaughter.

For the following reasons we reject this claim of error. First, the precise question the trial court would not permit was, as follows:

Now, we're going to talk about the bottom; whether or not you could give the bottom, and my question to you is, If the evidence in your mind justified a verdict of involuntary manslaughter, provided you were instructed by the judge and you found the man guilty of involuntary manslaughter, how many of you could consider a one dollar fine or one day in jail for someone killing his wife.

The court sustained an objection to the specific reference of "how many could" do that. The court then told defense counsel "I think the question should be asked whether or not they had--they could consider a full range of punishment, from the minimum to the maximum and I'll permit the question to be asked in that regard." Subsequently, the court told defense counsel, "I told you, Tim, you can ask them whether they will consider the full range of punishment, including the minimum as well as the maximum."

Defense counsel wanted to ask specific questions about minimum sentences for each lesser included offense which may be...