State v. Smith
| Decision Date | 23 February 1999 |
| Docket Number | No. CR-97-0389-AP,CR-97-0389-AP |
| Citation | 974 P.2d 431,193 Ariz. 452 |
| Parties | , 290 Ariz. Adv. Rep. 3 STATE of Arizona, Appellee. v. Todd Lee SMITH aka Tom Steel, Appellant. |
| Court | Arizona Supreme Court |
¶1 A jury convicted Todd Lee Smith of two counts of first-degree murder (both premeditated and felony murder for each count), armed robbery, and first-degree burglary. The trial court sentenced him to death for the murder convictions, and to consecutive eighteen-year prison terms for the noncapital crimes. Appeal to this court is automatic under Rules 26.15 and 31.2(b), Ariz. R.Crim. P., and direct under A.R.S. § 13-4031. We affirm.
¶2 During the summer of 1995, Clarence "Joe" Tannehill, 72, and Elaine, his 73-year-old wife, were camping near Ashurst Lake, approximately twenty miles from Flagstaff. They arrived at the campsite in their truck and travel trailer on July 26, 1995.
¶3 Todd Lee Smith arrived at the Ashurst campground on July 21, 1995 with his mother, Judy Smith, and four-year-old son in a motor home and car. The three were living in the motor home. Smith had been unemployed for some time and Judy supported all three with her Social Security income.
¶4 On July 31, 1995, after a quarrel, the Smiths left Ashurst separately. Later that same day, Todd Smith and his son returned to Ashurst in the motor home. He had no money. When he arrived, he checked in and gave the campground hosts the name "Tom Steel" and an incorrect license plate number.
¶5 The next evening, August 1, Smith went to the Tannehills' trailer armed with a gun and knife. His hand was wrapped in his son's T-shirt to feign an injury as a ruse to get into the trailer. Once Smith was inside, Mr. Tannehill grabbed for the gun and it went off. Smith then struck the Tannehills repeatedly with the gun. Although both had already died from blunt-force head injuries, he also cut their throats. Mrs. Tannehill also had bruises and lacerations on her arms and upper body, which the medical examiner characterized as defensive wounds.
¶6 Smith took Mr. Tannehill's wallet from his back pocket and emptied Mrs. Tannehill's purse on the bed. He took cash, but left credit cards. He also took a white television set, seven necklaces, and approximately $130. Smith said he struck them first, took the items, and when he thought they were getting up, struck them again and slit their throats.
¶7 The Tannehills' bodies were not discovered until August 3, 1995, when neighboring campers grew concerned over not having seen the Tannehills for a couple of days. By this time, Smith and his son had gone to Phoenix and were staying with friends.
¶8 When Smith arrived in Phoenix on the morning of August 2, he told his friends he had just come from Louisiana. Smith asked one of his friends to sell a pearl necklace for him, which he said had belonged to his grandmother. Smith stayed with these friends and parked his motor home behind a gas station. After Smith saw his picture on the news in connection with the Tannehill murders, he removed the license plate from the motor home. He was also seen leaving the motor home with a green trash bag, which police later recovered in a nearby dumpster. The bag contained a bloodstained handgun and knife, and bloody clothing. Both Tannehills' blood was on the gun and clothing, Mr. Tannehill's blood was on the knife, and Smith's blood was also on the clothing. After obtaining a search warrant for the motor home, the police discovered the Tannehills' television set and six necklaces.
¶9 After a friend reported him to the police, Smith was arrested at a Denny's restaurant during the early morning hours of August 6. Phoenix police held Smith until the investigating detective, Michael Rice, arrived from Flagstaff. The Phoenix police did not interrogate him and did not give him warnings under Miranda. They only held him until the Coconino authorities came to pick him up.
¶10 While waiting for Detective Rice to arrive, Smith engaged in small talk with the Phoenix officers. During one of these conversations with Officer Maish, Smith made some incriminating statements regarding his motor home, meeting the Tannehills, and his drug use. When Detective Rice arrived, he gave Smith the warnings required by Miranda and conducted and videotaped the first interrogation. Smith waived his Miranda rights and agreed to talk. When the detective told Smith that they had found the bloody weapons and clothes, Smith invoked his right to a lawyer and the interrogation stopped.
¶11 At the end of the first interrogation, Detective Rice prepared to take Smith to Flagstaff. Just before leaving the police station, Smith said to Detective Rice, "I don't see why I shouldn't just tell you." Tr. Apr. 15, 1997 at 149. This statement was not recorded. However, once in the car, Detective Rice hooked up a tape recorder and clarified that Smith's statement meant that he wanted to speak to the police after all. While en route to Flagstaff, Smith admitted robbing the Tannehills and hitting them with the gun. Smith's final interrogation occurred as soon as they arrived in Flagstaff, during which Smith provided a summary of the events that took place in the Tannehills' trailer.
Smith raises the following issues:
A. Trial Issues
1. Did the trial court commit clear and manifest error in determining that Smith's statements were admissible at trial?
2. Did the premeditation instruction in this case constitute reversible error?
B. Sentencing Issues
1. Is the Arizona death penalty unconstitutional on its face and/or as applied in this case?
1. ADMISSIBILITY OF SMITH'S STATEMENTS
¶12 Smith argues that the court erred in not suppressing his statements to the police in violation of the Fifth and Sixth Amendments to the United States Constitution and Article 2, Sections 10 and 24 of the Arizona Constitution. Within that general argument, Smith appears to make several sub-arguments: his statements were not voluntary, the police violated Miranda, he did not reinitiate contact after requesting counsel, and his right to counsel was violated.
¶13 Smith argues that the court erred in admitting his statements because they were made either while he was under the influence of methamphetamines or while experiencing withdrawal symptoms. This argument appears to challenge the voluntariness of his statements.
¶14 Because confessions are presumed involuntary, the state must show by a preponderance of the evidence that a confession was voluntary. State v. Scott, 177 Ariz. 131, 136, 865 P.2d 792, 797 (1993). The trial court's ruling will not be reversed absent clear and manifest error. Id. The court will look at the totality of the circumstances to determine " 'whether police conduct constituted overreaching.' " Id. (quoting State v. Stanley, 167 Ariz. 519, 524, 809 P.2d 944, 949 (1991)). "Coercive police activity is a necessary predicate to the finding that a confession is not 'voluntary' ...." Colorado v. Connelly, 479 U.S. 157, 167, 107 S.Ct. 515, 522, 93 L.Ed.2d 473 (1986). When evaluating coercion, the defendant's physical and mental states are relevant to determine susceptibility to coercion, but alone are not enough to render a statement involuntary. State v. Tucker, 157 Ariz. 433, 445, 759 P.2d 579, 591 (1988).
¶15 The trial court conducted a four-day suppression hearing on the voluntariness of Smith's statements and found all statements made after he arrived at the Phoenix police station were admissible. While there is some evidence that Smith may have consumed methamphetamine shortly before his arrest, the police did not perceive Smith to be under the influence of or withdrawing from drugs. In addition, Smith himself told Officer Maish that he had not consumed drugs for a couple of days before his arrest. Smith did not behave in a bizarre or unusual way. His speech was clear. He was not unkempt. He was not hysterical, hallucinating, or disoriented. On the contrary, he was friendly and cooperative. Smith appeared to understand his discussions with police, was aware of his rights, and could communicate. The police did not threaten, intimidate, or make promises to induce him to speak. No evidence exists that police conduct coerced him to speak.
¶16 In addition, Smith understood the meaning of his statements. Tucker, 157 Ariz. at 446, 759 P.2d at 592. For example, Smith invoked his right to a lawyer during his first interrogation when the detective presented him with incriminating evidence. Thus, he was able to understand the inculpatory nature of the evidence and the need to protect himself by invoking his rights. We affirm the trial court's ruling that Smith's statements were voluntary.
¶17 Smith argues that the first statements he made while in custody were in violation of Miranda because they were made after he was in custody but before he was advised of his rights. It is not clear from Smith's Opening Brief to which statements he is referring. However, the only inculpatory statements were those made to Officer Maish, so we address them.
¶18 Miranda 's procedural safeguards apply only to custodial interrogation. Miranda v. Arizona, 384 U.S. 436, 444, 86 S.Ct. 1602, 1612, 16 L.Ed.2d 694 (1966). Interrogation "refers not only to express questioning, but also to any words or actions on the part of the police (other than those normally attendant to arrest and custody) that the police should know are reasonably likely to elicit an incriminating response from the suspect." Rhode Island v. Innis, 446 U.S. 291, 292, 100 S.Ct. 1682, 1685, 64 L.Ed.2d 297 (1980).
¶19 Officer Maish did not give Smith Miranda warnings...
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