State v. Russaw

• Decision Date: 21 June 2022
• Docket Number: AC 43748
• Citation: 213 Conn.App. 311,278 A.3d 1
• Parties: STATE of Connecticut v. Deykevious RUSSAW
• Court: Connecticut Court of Appeals

213 Conn.App. 311

278 A.3d 1

STATE of Connecticut

v.Deykevious RUSSAW

AC 43748

Appellate Court of Connecticut.

Argued September 20, 2021

Officially released June 21, 2022

Pamela S. Nagy, supervisory assistant public defender, for the appellant (defendant).

Matthew A. Weiner, assistant state's attorney, with whom, on the brief, were Sharmese L. Walcott, state's attorney, and David L. Zagaja, supervisory assistant state's attorney, for the appellee (state).

Elgo, Suarez and Palmer, Js.

PALMER, J.

The defendant, Deykevious Russaw, appeals from the judgment of conviction, rendered after a jury trial, of conspiracy to commit murder in violation of General Statutes §§ 53a-54a and 53a-48.¹ The defendant's conviction stems from an incident involving a drive-by shooting that resulted in the death of an unintended third person rather than the intended victim. On appeal, he claims, first, that his conviction of conspiracy to commit murder is legally insufficient because the doctrine of transferred intent, upon which he contends the state relied, does not apply to the crime of conspiracy, and second, that the trial court improperly denied his motion to suppress certain statements that he made to the police while he was in custody and after he had invoked his right to counsel. We reject both of the defendant's claims and, therefore, affirm the judgment of conviction.

The following facts and procedural history are relevant to this appeal. The defendant's conviction stems from a drive-by shooting that occurred on July 16, 2017, and resulted in the death of the victim, Jeffrey Worrell, who had sustained a single gunshot wound to the head. When he was shot, the victim was sitting at a picnic bench in a small park located in an area in Hartford known as the five corners, where Westland Street, Garden Street and Love Lane all intersect. Police officers who arrived at the scene shortly after the shooting spoke to witnesses, but none gave a description of the shooter. Shell casings, however, were recovered from the scene, and a video surveillance camera installed by the city of Hartford at the corner of Garden and Westland Streets captured the shooting. Upon review of the footage from that camera, the police identified three vehicles involved in the incident, a blue Honda Accord, a black Ford Escape, and a white Nissan Altima. The driver of the Honda Accord was identified as Dominick Pipkin, who, upon questioning by the police within hours of the shooting, provided information concerning the identities of the individuals in both the Nissan Altima and the Ford Escape. With respect to the occupants of the Ford Escape, Pipkin identified the driver as Teddy Simpson, and the rear passengers as Jonathan Vellon and his brother, Osvaldo Vellon, and a person whose nickname is "Bama," later identified as the defendant.² The police also received information identifying the front seat passenger of the Ford Escape as Dayquan Shaw.³ In addition, the Vellon brothers, who admitted that they were present when the shooting occurred, gave the police information about others involved in the incident, including the defendant. Early in the investigation, it became apparent to the police that a member of a rival gang, and not the victim, was the likely target of the shooting.

Shortly after the incident, the police identified several addresses associated with the defendant, including a former residence in a multiunit apartment building in New Britain. When detectives from the Hartford Police Department went to that former residence in New Britain the day after the shooting, they discovered the Ford Escape.

On the basis of the foregoing information, the lead investigator in the case, Sergeant Anthony Rykowski of the Hartford Police Department, prepared and obtained arrest warrants for Simpson and the defendant. The defendant was charged with murder and conspiracy to commit murder and arrested three days after the incident, on July 19, 2017. Following the defendant's arrest and transportation to police headquarters, Rykowski questioned the defendant, who made several incriminating statements.

A jury trial followed,⁴ at which the state adduced testimony from several witnesses to the incident, including Jonathan Vellon. In his testimony, Jonathan Vellon acknowledged that he had provided the police with a written statement about the incident the next day, but he refused to identify anyone else who was in the car when the shooting occurred. He also testified that he did not know who was driving the Ford Escape at the time of the shooting, from where in the car the gunshots were fired, or who brought the gun into the car, even though his statement to the police indicated otherwise. When asked why he was refusing to provide the names of the individuals in the car, he stated that he "just [did not] feel like it." Although he did testify that he knew the defendant, he denied that the defendant was in the Ford Escape on the day of the shooting, and he also denied providing any contrary information to the police. Moreover, he claimed that he did not sign the statement even though he previously had acknowledged that the signature on the statement was his.

At the conclusion of Jonathan Vellon's testimony, the state introduced into evidence his written statement to the police pursuant to State v. Whelan , 200 Conn. 743, 753, 513 A.2d 86, cert. denied, 479 U.S. 994, 107 S. Ct. 597, 93 L. Ed. 2d 598 (1986).⁵ That statement provides in relevant part: "On Sunday afternoon [on the day of the shooting], my brother Osvaldo [Vellon] and I ... were walking past ... Flatbush Avenue ... [when] I heard someone call my name from inside a car. When I looked at the car, I noticed [the defendant] in a black Ford Escape. [The defendant] was sitting in the passenger side rear seat ... [and] told us to get in the car [and] so we did. ... The person driving the Ford Escape is named Teddy [Simpson]. ... The front seat passenger was someone I've never seen before ....

"Once inside the car, all five of us drove around and were smoking weed. ... [Simpson] then pulled up to a blue Honda Accord and I saw a black male, around [nineteen to twenty years old] driving the Honda all alone. ... I heard [Simpson] and [the defendant] say let's shoot the G's. The G's are gang members from the Barbour Street area. I've been with the Ave gang for around three months .... The Ave gang is from the Albany Avenue area.

"The next thing I [knew] [Simpson] was handed a gun by the driver of the blue Honda Accord and then [Simpson] passed it to [the defendant]. The gun was a small black handgun and it looked like the handle was grayish because it looked old. I heard the driver of the Honda tell [the defendant] that he wanted him to shoot the G's. [Simpson] then drove down the street and [the defendant] racked the gun back and I saw a bullet fall inside the car. [The defendant] then held the gun out the window and shot the gun around three times. I think the gun jammed once or twice as [the defendant] was shooting. [Simpson] then sped away and drove to meet the guy in the blue Honda Accord. ... [The defendant] then passed the gun over to [Simpson] who then handed the gun out the window to the driver of the blue Honda Accord. [Simpson] then told [the defendant] to drive so [Simpson] got into the passenger seat, [the defendant] got into the driver's seat and the tall guy who was sitting in the passenger seat before walked home. We sat there for around [twenty] minutes and then [the defendant] drove the Ford Escape to New Britain and parked it where the [p]olice found it .... [The defendant] used to live at the apartment where the car was found .... Once [the defendant] parked the car, [my brother] and I walked home to our house ...." (Internal quotation marks omitted.) In his written statement, Jonathan Vellon further stated that he had identified the defendant from a photographic array shown to him by the police, that he signed his name on the defendant's photograph, and that he was "100 [percent] sure" the photograph chosen from the array was the defendant, whom he "saw shoot from the Ford Escape at the G's," as he "was sitting shoulder to shoulder with [the defendant]" at the time of the shooting.⁶ (Internal quotation marks omitted.)

The state next adduced testimony from Simpson, who testified pursuant to a plea agreement with the state related to his involvement in the shooting of the victim.⁷ Simpson explained that he was associated with the Ave gang and was involved in the shooting as the driver of the Ford Escape. He further testified that the other occupants of the car were Jonathan Vellon, Osvaldo Vellon, the defendant and Shaw. According to Simpson, at some point when they were driving around near the intersection of Garden and Capen Streets, they stopped to talk with Pipkin, who was operating a blue Honda. Simpson stated that he was familiar with a picnic spot in the area known as the five corners, and that, while driving in that area, they saw a group of kids from the G's neighborhood with whom they did not get along. Subsequently, they met up again with Pipkin, who began waving a handgun, and Simpson asked Pipkin for the gun at the defendant's request because the defendant had expressed a desire to open fire on the G's. At first, Pipkin told Simpson just to drive off but, shortly thereafter, Pipkin handed the gun to Shaw, who gave it to the defendant. Simpson testified that he did not see the defendant with the gun in the backseat and did not see the defendant fire the gun because he was focused on driving. He also testified that the defendant was not a member of the Ave gang.

Shaw also testified for the state. He stated that he was a front seat passenger in the Ford Escape at the time of the shooting, and he described the other passengers as two Hispanic males and the defendant. He testified further that, as they were driving around the five corners area, they saw a group of people in the grassy area, at...