State v. Vick

• Citation: 384 S.C. 189,682 S.E.2d 275
• Decision Date: 25 June 2009
• Docket Number: No. 4573.,4573.
• Court: South Carolina Court of Appeals
• Parties: The STATE, Respondent, v. Jonothan C. VICK, Appellant.

682 S.E.2d 275

384 S.C. 189

The STATE, Respondent, v. Jonothan C. VICK, Appellant.

No. 4573.

Court of Appeals of South Carolina.

Heard March 17, 2009.

Decided June 25, 2009.

Rehearing Denied September 17, 2009.

Robert M. Dudek, Deputy Chief Appellate Defender for Capital Appeals, of Columbia, for Appellant.

Attorney General Henry Dargan McMaster, Chief Deputy Attorney General John W. McIntosh, Assistant Deputy Attorney General Donald J. Zelenka, Assistant Attorney General Melody J. Brown, all of Columbia; and Solicitor Harold W. Gowdy, III, of Spartanburg, for Respondent.

HUFF, J.:

Appellant Jonothan C. Vick was indicted for and convicted of murder, first-degree criminal sexual conduct (CSC), and kidnapping. The trial judge sentenced Vick to life imprisonment for murder and thirty years each for CSC and kidnapping. Vick appeals, arguing (1) the trial court erred in allowing hearsay testimony from a witness regarding a telephone conversation between the victim and appellant's mother and (2) his kidnapping sentence should be vacated pursuant to South Carolina Code Ann. § 16-3-910. We affirm in part and vacate in part.

FACTUAL/PROCEDURAL HISTORY

This case involves the murder of Dana (hereinafter Victim), a twenty-seven year old mother of two who was found brutally beaten and strangled on July 31, 1995 inside the beauty salon she owned. Patty Taylor testified she arrived at Victim's salon at 6:30 in the evening on July 31, 1995 for a hair appointment. After she arrived, a woman selling a cleaning product made a demonstration to her and Victim, and Victim purchased a bottle of the item from the woman. Thereafter, Victim began working on Taylor's hair a little before 7:00 and finished around 8:00. During this time, Victim also swept and cleaned her shop. After Taylor paid her, Victim walked Taylor to the door. Victim told Taylor she had some clothes in the dryer, and when Taylor offered to stay with her until she locked up the shop, Victim declined, stating she would be right behind her as she only had five minutes left for the clothes. Taylor estimated she left the shop at 8:10 or 8:15.

Witness Diane Harris, who lived in Charlotte, was in the area of the beauty salon on the day of Victim's death, selling an all purpose cleaning product door-to-door. Harris went to Victim's salon around 6:30 or 6:40 and, after giving Victim a demonstration of her product, completed a sale with Victim around 6:50. Harris was scheduled to meet back at a designated spot at 8:30 and was to be the last salesperson picked up before travelling back to Charlotte. After leaving Victim's shop, Harris walked around the area making calls on different houses. Around 8:10, she walked back through the parking lot of Victim's salon at which time she saw Victim through the window of the salon and spoke to Victim. Victim appeared to be cleaning and waved at Harris. Harris continued on her quest to sell her product and headed back to her pick-up spot at 8:30. As she reached the parking lot of the salon, she noticed the lights were on in the salon, but the window blinds were now down. At that time, she heard thumping sounds. When she looked around, she observed a man coming out of the salon window. Startled, Harris ran, leaving all her belongings behind. As she ran around the building in one direction, the man ran in the other, and the two came face to face on the other side of the building. Harris then ran out to the street and screamed. She ran into a home, locked the door, and told the residents to call 9-1-1, screaming that Victim needed help. Harris testified the man she saw coming out of the window and again at the back of the building "was white and looked crazy." He was wearing a gray or white t-shirt and a pair of blue jeans, and appeared to be between twenty and thirty years-old.

Another witness observed a woman and man in the area of the salon fitting the description of Harris and the man Harris described encountering that night. Around 8:30 in the evening on July 31, 1995, Michael Crook was driving towards Spartanburg when he observed a black woman walking and then saw a white male, who was bent down and was looking back toward Victim's salon. The man was wearing "grayish colored blue jeans and a grayish colored t-shirt."

Additionally, witness Jerry Mills testified he was familiar with Victim's salon, which was located in the same area as his place of employment. Mills stated that he drove by the area around 5:00 or 5:30 on the afternoon of July 31, 1995 and did not notice anything out of the ordinary. However, just before dusk as he drove back through, he observed a Ford Bronco parked in a place where his employer did not allow parking. None of Mills' co-employees drove a vehicle like that. Mills pulled up closer to the car to investigate further but found no one around the vehicle. He described the Bronco as a late 1980's car, blue with a white or light cream colored top, and with "nice rims" on the tires that did not look like factory rims, and may have been called razor rims.

Spartanburg County Sheriff's Deputy John Todd Burnett received a call reporting a breaking and entering on July 31, 1995 at approximately 8:45 or 8:50 p.m., and arrived on the scene at Roebuck Beauty and Tanning Salon shortly before 9:00. Deputy Burnett found the only door to the establishment partially cracked and a screen from a window on the ground, with the window open. Inside, the deputy discovered the body of a twenty-seven year-old female in a bathroom/washroom. Victim was hanging from a strap around her neck which was connected to a hot water heater. She had blood in her hair and on her face, she had cuts and bruises on her face, and her tongue appeared to protrude from her mouth. A white t-shirt on the top of her body was covered with blood, and she was nude from the top portion of her waist down, with her pants on her left ankle.

Investigation of the scene revealed all of the blood was contained to the bathroom area where Victim was found. This room showed evidence a struggle had taken place therein. Victim's pocketbook, wallet, and checkbook were discovered in the salon, as well as the business cashbox and checkbook. The wallet and cashbox together contained over $200 in cash.

The pathologist who performed an autopsy on Victim noted she had a deep abrasion on her forehead as well as other superficial abrasions and numerous contusions about her head, neck, upper chest, elbows, arm, wrist, knees, and ankle. Victim's hyoid bone appeared fractured, indicating considerable pressure had been applied. This usually occurs from manual strangulation but could have been caused by a ligature. The pathologist believed Victim was probably strangled manually, as well as with the use of a ligature. Examination of Victim's brain also revealed extensive hemorrhaging caused by blunt force trauma.

David Michael Pace testified that he became a friend of appellant Vick in 1994 when they were in high school. Pace worked at a bowling alley and Vick would come by the place of business about twice a month, usually on Friday or Saturday nights. The last time Vick visited Pace at the bowling alley was on a Monday evening at the end of July in 1995. At that time, Vick was wearing blue jeans and a light colored shirt. Vick talked to Pace about a lady named Dana, and the fact that he was going to ask her out that night. Vick had previously spoken about Dana to Pace on a couple of occasions, telling Pace that Dana was a hairdresser who cut his hair and complimenting Dana's looks. On that Monday night at the end of July, Vick told Pace that Dana was having problems with her husband and he was going to ask Dana out and hoped she would agree to date him. Pace laughed at the idea because Dana was an older woman and he thought Vick was too young for her. Vick then became defensive and angry at Pace's reaction, stating he believed he had a chance with her. Vick stated that he hoped Dana would say yes to his date proposal, and graphically described to Pace how he would "bend her over her barber chair" and perform sexual acts on her. He further stated other sexual conduct he would like to have take place with Dana.

After talking for close to an hour, Vick agreed to give Pace a ride home. During the drive, Vick, who was very serious about his intentions with Dana, "kept defending himself" and was upset that Pace had laughed at him. Vick dropped Pace off around 6:45 or 7:00 p.m. As Pace exited the vehicle, Vick told him he was going to get his hair cut. When Pace asked who would cut his hair that late at night, Vick responded that Dana kept her salon open late at night and she knew he was coming. Pace described the vehicle Vick drove that night as a blue and white Ford Bronco with distinctive saw blade wheels.

The next time Pace saw Vick was a few days later at a pool hall. Pace stated Vick walked up and "bumped into [him] in a serious manner." Vick then told Pace "if I tell anybody he would kill me." When Pace asked what he was talking about, Vick said that Pace knew, or he would find out. A couple of days to weeks after the incident at the pool hall, Pace realized what Vick did not want him to discuss when he saw a report on the news that described a vehicle similar to Vick's and showed a sketch that closely resembled Vick.¹ Approximately three months after the murder, Pace anonymously provided authorities the name of a possible suspect. Pace contacted law enforcement a second time after the murder was featured on a television program, again remaining anonymous. On a third occasion, during an unrelated incident at the bowling alley, Pace informed an officer he might know who was responsible for Victim's murder and gave the officer a name, but he still did not give the officer his own name. Finally, in 2005 Pace had someone again contact law enforcement on his behalf. Eventually he came forward and informed the authorities of the information he relayed to the jury.

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