State v. Patton
| Decision Date | 30 September 2005 |
| Docket Number | No. 89,481.,89,481. |
| Parties | STATE of Kansas, Appellee, v. Tyler Block PATTON, Appellant. |
| Court | Kansas Supreme Court |
Bob L. Thomas, of Thomas & Associates, LLC, of Olathe, argued the cause and was on the brief for appellant.
Richard G. Guinn, assistant district attorney, argued the cause, and Steven J. Obermeier, assistant district attorney, Paul J. Morrison, district attorney, and Phill Kline, attorney general, were with him on the brief for appellee.
Defendant Tyler Block Patton appeals her jury trial conviction of first-degree murder in violation of K.S.A. 21-3401(a) and her sentence of life imprisonment with the possibility of parole after 25 years directly to this court pursuant to K.S.A. 22-3601(b)(1). She raises nine issues on appeal. Our review of each issue establishes that no reversible error occurred during trial or sentencing. We therefore affirm her conviction and sentence.
On January 16, 2001, at 9:31 p.m., the Overland Park Police Department responded to a 911 call made by the defendant. She was inside her vehicle across the street from the residence she had shared with her husband, Ed Patton, Jr. She told officers that her husband had been sick with the flu and had wanted her to stay elsewhere. She stopped by the residence and entered through the garage, noticing debris and drawers thrown around and items scattered in the stairway. As she started up the stairs she heard a noise which scared her so she ran outside and called the police.
The responding officers entered the residence through the unlocked front door and noticed debris scattered throughout the house. Ed Patton's body was discovered in an upstairs bedroom which was filled with the odor of a decaying body. He was lying on his back in bed with a blanket up to his neck, and his arms were down to his sides. A second blood-soaked blanket was placed over his head, the headboard was splattered with blood, and a piece of his skull was lying up against the blanket. The victim's face was so bloody and swollen that it was unidentifiable.
Dr. Michel Handler conducted the autopsy and testified that the victim had been struck at least eight times in the face and skull and did not have any defensive injuries on his hands and arms to indicate that he was awake during the attack. Four small pieces of dark wood were found in his hair and face, which were later identified as part of a bloody 2-by-4 piece of wood found on the back porch of the residence. He ruled the cause of death a homicide and opined that the victim had been dead for at least 48 hours prior to discovery. Pathologist Dr. Thomas Bennett reviewed the autopsy report, photographs, interviews, and investigative reports and opined that the victim died either the late evening of January 14 or the early morning hours of January 15, 2001.
Marijuana and drug paraphernalia were found in the basement of the home. Evidence technician Andy Black opined that the extent of drugs discovered was consistent with personal use rather than someone involved in the sale of drugs. Officers discovered a pill bottle in back of the residence near a gate containing six different types of medication and three empty pill bottles inside the residence in the trash.
The defendant was interviewed by Detective Bobby Jo Hohnholt on January 17, 2001. The detective testified over objection that the defendant had recent cuts on her hands during this interview. Initially, the defendant told the detective that she cut herself while sanding cabinets but later said the cuts were from razor blades during a failed suicide attempt. At trial, the defendant said the cuts were from razors and screwdrivers she used while remodeling cabinets.
During this interview, the defendant characterized her relationship in a positive manner, indicating that the victim was the best man ever, that he had her on a pedestal, that she received anything she wanted, and that their marriage only got better over time. However, a January 2, 2001, tape-recorded argument between the defendant and the victim was discovered in the residence that indicated otherwise.
During the recorded argument, the victim indicated he thought the defendant wanted to commit suicide, and the defendant then said that she did not love him and wanted to end the relationship, that she was unhappy with their current residence and the amount of money the victim made, and that she planned to immediately move to a second home they had recently purchased. At trial, the defendant claimed for the first time that this fight was precipitated by her observing the victim using cocaine and that the tape recording was turned on well into the fight. The defendant moved to the new house on January 3, 2001, taking most of the contents of the marital residence with her.
The defendant told the detective that on Monday, January 15, 2001, she stayed home to work on remodeling her new house because it was a holiday. The victim called her at about 10 a.m. saying that he missed her and wished they could be together. She went shopping at Name Brand Clothing or Home Depot but made no purchases. She then drove by the victim's residence but did not stop. At trial, she said that she stopped by the residence to pick up some articles and put clothes in the dryer. The victim told her not to bother him for a few days because he was sick and wanted to get well, and he asked her to take care of the real estate calls as they came in. She purchased a microwave at Sears at 5:27 p.m. that day, went to Walmart, and arrived home at her new house after 9 p.m.
On Tuesday, January 16, 2001, the defendant met with an employee of Drywall Basements to get an estimate on basement repairs around 10 a.m. and then drove by the victim's house on her way to a bank. The time on her bank receipt was 12:56 p.m. She went to a library and printing shop, although she did not have a receipt from either place. She purchased keys from a lock and key store at 1:36 p.m. She went to Lowe's but made no purchases there either, and she went to Burlington Coat Factory to purchase a pair of work jeans at 3:50 p.m.
She met with her visiting parents at their hotel between 4:30 and 5 p.m. The defendant and her parents subsequently drove to her new residence, passing the victim's residence on the way. Although the defendant thought it was unusual that the house appeared dark, she did not stop. Her parents stayed for about an hour, and then the defendant went to Home Depot to buy several items so she would have an excuse to stop by the victim's home. The receipt showed the transaction took place at 8:39 p.m. After being told that the 911 call was placed at 9:27 p.m., she could not recall whether she went straight to the victim's home or stopped at her new home first. At trial, she remembered that she had run back into Home Depot to look at other items. She left the victim nine voice mail messages throughout the day the victim's body was found.
The defendant was charged with premeditated first-degree murder. The State's expert witness testified at trial that the crime scene appeared to be staged to make investigators believe that the murder was committed by an outside intruder during a burglary. He pointed to evidence that although numerous items of financial value had been disrupted, they were not damaged or broken. Nothing was determined to have been stolen from the residence, and things that normally are not disturbed during burglaries had been. The only items of value which were removed from the residence were a halogen light and computer speakers, which were not consistent with a burglary based on their relative values. Although an individual spent some time combining prescription pills into one bottle, it was left behind. Marijuana found on the steps in the basement appeared to have been spread out.
DNA testing revealed multiple samples of blood from the residence and the defendant's vehicle that either matched the defendant's DNA profile or would not exclude her as the known source of the sample.
The statistical probability of selection of an unrelated individual at random from the population having a DNA profile matching the blood sample of the defendant would be about 1 in 53.9 billion. The following blood samples matched the defendant's DNA profile: (1) A bloodstain found on a blanket on the bed where the victim was murdered, (2) a blood sample found on a dresser sitting inches away from the murder weapon, (3) a bloodstain on the dryer knob in the victim's residence (while a bloodstain near the dryer door handle matched the victim's DNA profile), and (4) blood on a tissue in her vehicle.
The statistical probability of selection of an unrelated individual at random having a DNA profile that could not be excluded as being a contributor to a mixture of blood or a single blood sample varied between the samples. The defendant could not be excluded as a contributor to the bloodstains in the following samples: (1) A mixture of blood from the victim and at least another person on the murder weapon (1 in 431,000); (2) blood found on the sheets and pillow where the victim was murdered (1 in 27,880); (3) blood on the dryer door (1 in 7); (4) a bloodstain on the front passenger seat of the defendant's vehicle; and (5) a tissue with biological matter found in the defendant's vehicle.
Several witnesses offered marital discord testimony indicating that the victim wanted to separate from the defendant but she was not financially capable of taking care of herself. The victim had described the defendant as crazy and as having significant mood swings where she would become violent, scream, and throw things.
Evidence was presented that the victim's m...
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