State v. Ulen
| Decision Date | 26 May 1993 |
| Docket Number | No. 10436,10436 |
| Citation | 623 A.2d 70,31 Conn.App. 20 |
| Parties | STATE of Connecticut v. Craig ULEN. |
| Court | Connecticut Court of Appeals |
Suzanne Zitser, Asst. Public Defender, with whom, on the brief, was G. Douglas Nash, Public Defender, for appellant (defendant).
Leon F. Dalbec, Jr., Asst. State's Atty., with whom, on the brief, was Patricia Swords, State's Atty., for appellee (State).
Before DUPONT, C.J., and DALY and HEIMAN, JJ.
The defendant appeals from the judgment of conviction, rendered after a jury trial, of sexual assault in a spousal relationship in violation of General Statutes § 53a-70b 1 and unlawful restraint in the first degree in violation of General Statutes § 53a-95. 2 Both crimes involved acts occurring on October 2, 1989. The jury acquitted the defendant of an additional count of sexual assault in a spousal relationship and of kidnapping in the first degree with a firearm. On appeal, the defendant asserts that the trial court (1) improperly permitted the state, under the theory of proving intent, motive or common scheme, to introduce evidence of the defendant's prior acts of misconduct consisting of an alleged rape and threat in September, 1989, (2) violated the defendant's constitutional rights to confrontation, to present a defense and to due process by prohibiting him from questioning the victim regarding her refusal to testify against him in an out-of-state prosecution based on the same incident for which he was being tried, and for prohibiting the defendant from bringing to the jury's attention the fact that a not guilty finding was entered by the out-of-state court, and (3) improperly instructed the jury on the permissible use of misconduct evidence that had been admitted for a limited purpose. We disagree and affirm the judgment of the trial court.
The jury could have reasonably found the following facts. The victim and the defendant were married in Springfield, Massachusetts, on October 23, 1976. Three children were born of this union, two sons and a daughter, ranging from three to fourteen years of age. The victim and the defendant separated in early August, 1989. On September 7, 1989, the victim obtained a restraining order from a Massachusetts court, prohibiting the defendant from contacting the victim at her home or place of employment.
The victim was employed as a pharmacy technician at Mercy Hospital in Springfield. While she was at work, her sister-in-law, the defendant's sister, Sharon Pouliot, took care of the victim's two younger children at the Pouliot home at 857 Belmont Avenue in Springfield. On October 2, 1989, in accordance with her usual practice, the victim dropped off the children at the Pouliot home and returned for them after work.
When the victim attempted to open her car door after driving into the Pouliot's driveway, she felt something hit the door and saw the defendant standing next to the car. The defendant told the victim to move over into the passenger seat. The victim attempted to blow the horn to attract attention but was unsuccessful. The defendant pushed the victim to the passenger seat got into the vehicle, and backed the car out of the driveway.
As the defendant drove, he told the victim that he wanted to talk and "get this thing [the marital problems] straightened out once and for all." The defendant also stated that he could not understand why the victim wanted a divorce and why they could not agree on some terms that would permit them to reunite. The victim requested that the defendant take her back to the Pouliot home. The defendant continued to drive away from the Pouliot home.
He drove to Camp Ayapo in Somers, Connecticut. Upon arriving there, the defendant stopped the vehicle, exited the car, went around to the passenger side of the vehicle, opened the passenger side door, pulled the victim from the car, picked her up and carried her inside one of the cabins. In his hand, he held an object wrapped in a yellow jacket.
Once inside the cabin, he placed the wrapped object on the floor and told the victim to remove her clothing. When she refused, the defendant picked up the wrapped object, revealing it to be a gun. He then pointed the gun at her and again told her to undress. She refused. The defendant forcibly removed all of the victim's clothing, pushed her down onto a mattress on the floor, and pulled down his pants and underwear. While undressing the victim, the defendant repeatedly stated that he had to make sure that he did not leave any marks on her.
The defendant demanded that the victim perform oral sex. She refused and stated, "No. I'll just bite it off." The defendant picked up the gun, placed it in the victim's vagina, and again demanded that the victim perform fellatio. When she refused, the defendant withdrew the gun and penetrated her with his penis. During this incident, the victim was extremely frightened.
When the defendant got off the victim, he told her to dress. He said to her, "Why did you make me do this?" She responded,
The defendant pointed the gun at the victim and said, The victim refused to make this promise.
The defendant then went around the side of the cabin and walked down a hill. The victim got into the car but could not leave because the defendant had the car keys. She heard a noise and saw the defendant standing near the cabin. He motioned for the victim to lower the car window and when she complied, the defendant fired the gun into the ground. He then repeated his question about the victim's not telling anyone what had occurred and the victim agreed. As they returned to Springfield, the defendant repeated his questions about the victim's not filing a complaint and that the whole event had been her fault because she would not discuss a solution to their marital problems.
The defendant drove the victim to a lot in the area of Belmont Avenue near the defendant's truck. He exited the car and removed items from the backseat. After a brief conversation, he left in his truck and the victim drove to the Pouliot house.
The victim told her brother-in-law that the defendant had accosted her when she arrived after work to pick up her children, taken her to Camp Ayapo, and raped her at gunpoint. She made several telephone calls from the Pouliot house before she went to her own house with her children. Shortly after the victim arrived at her house, the Springfield police were called.
The victim was sent to Baystate Medical Center where she was examined by medical personnel. She was then taken to a police station where she made a statement concerning the events of the evening.
The next day, the victim was contacted by Trooper Diane Davis of the Connecticut state police. Davis came to the victim's house and together they went to Camp Ayapo. They searched the area and the victim identified the mattress on which the sexual assault had taken place. The victim then gave a written statement to the Connecticut state police. On January 31, 1990 a warrant was issued for the arrest of the defendant. 3
The defendant first asserts that the trial court improperly permitted the state to introduce evidence of a prior act of misconduct involving another alleged rape and threat that occurred in September, 1989. The defendant also asserts that the court admitted the evidence to prove intent, motive or common scheme. We disagree with both assertions.
The following additional facts are necessary to a resolution of this issue. On September 1, 1989, the victim was in her house in Springfield talking on the telephone. The defendant had retained a key to the house when he moved out and used it on that day to gain admission to the victim's house. After a brief conversation, the defendant picked up the victim and carried her into her bedroom. He placed the victim on the bed and tied her arms to the bedposts. He removed her slacks and underclothing, pulled up her sweater, and fondled her. Each time that she screamed, he put a pillow over her head and told her to be quiet. The defendant pulled down his pants, and penetrated the victim's vagina with his penis. The victim kept telling the defendant to stop and to remove his penis because she was in pain. He continued to place the pillow over her head to stop her from screaming. He finally released her and she was able to dress and leave the room.
As a result of the defendant's actions, the victim sustained bruises to her face and marks on her wrists from the rope that was used to tie her to the bedposts. The victim made a complaint to the police on the day following the assault although she did not report the sexual assault because she was embarrassed to discuss it with the responding male officers.
The victim also testified, without objection, to a telephone call she received from the defendant four days before the October 2, 1989 incident, in which the defendant was alleged to have warned the victim to look over her shoulder whenever she left the house, entered the car, exited the car, entered her workplace, or went anywhere. The defendant now complains that the trial court improperly admitted this evidence. We disagree.
We note the very limited objection raised by the defendant to the evidence of the prior assault and sexual assault, 4 and the lack of objection to the questions relating to the telephoned threat a few days before the sexual assault that resulted in these charges.
We are limited in the scope of review that can be afforded to the claim of the inadmissibility of evidence of the prior sexual assault and assault committed on the victim by the defendant by the nature of the defendant's objection. The only objection raised to the...
To continue reading
Request your trial
-
State v. Schiappa
...evidentiary matters in the majestic garb of constitutional claims does not make such claims constitutional in nature." State v. Ulen, 31 Conn. App. 20, 37, 623 A.2d 70, cert. denied, 226 Conn. 905, 625 A.2d 1378 (1993). In circumstances where, as here, the defendant cannot establish that th......
-
State v. Reddick
...been asked and answered. "We review evidentiary rulings solely on the ground on which the party's objection is based." State v. Ulen, 31 Conn.App. 20, 27, 623 A.2d 70, cert. denied, 226 Conn. 905, 625 A.2d 1378 (1993); State v. Baldwin, 224 Conn. 347, 362, 618 A.2d 513 (1993); State v. Duke......
-
State v. Smith
...29 Conn.App. 533, 537, 616 [35 Conn.App. 55] A.2d 1148 (1992), cert. denied, 224 Conn. 924, 618 A.2d 531 (1993); State v. Ulen, 31 Conn.App. 20, 37, 623 A.2d 70, cert. denied, 226 Conn. 905, 625 A.2d 1378 "The first two conditions are determinations of whether a defendant's claim will be re......
-
State v. Streater
...of objection. Upon request, opportunity shall be given to present the exception out of the hearing of the jury." See State v. Ulen, 31 Conn.App. 20, 36, 623 A.2d 70, cert. denied, 226 Conn. 905, 625 A.2d 1378 (1993). Our Supreme Court has found that "[t]he failure of the defendant to state ......