State v. Wallace, 6584
| Decision Date | 29 October 1986 |
| Docket Number | No. 6584,6584 |
| Citation | 728 P.2d 232,151 Ariz. 362 |
| Parties | STATE of Arizona, Appellee, v. James Granvil WALLACE, Appellant. |
| Court | Arizona Supreme Court |
Robert K. Corbin, Atty. Gen. by William J. Schafer, III, Diane M. Ramsey and Crane McClennen, Asst. Attys. Gen., Phoenix, for appellee.
Curtis & Cunningham by George H. Curtis, Tucson, for appellant.
Defendant, James Granvil Wallace, pled guilty to three counts of first-degree murder, A.R.S. § 13-1105, and two counts of armed robbery, A.R.S. § 13-1904. The trial judge sentenced defendant to death on each first degree murder count and to concurrent sentences of twenty-one years on each armed robbery count. Defendant appeals from these sentences. We have jurisdiction pursuant to Ariz. Const. art. 6, § 5(3) and A.R.S. §§ 13-4031, -4035.
On February 2, 1984, defendant telephoned the Tucson Police Department to report that he had killed three people. Defendant told police that he had killed the victims the previous afternoon in a mobile home which he had shared with them. Defendant also gave police the address of the mobile home as well as the address from which he was calling.
Upon receiving the call, police and members of the Pima County Sheriff's office went to the mobile home and verified the report. Defendant was subsequently arrested and, after being advised of his legal rights, defendant gave police a detailed confession. Throughout his confession, defendant expressed remorse for his acts and repeatedly requested execution.
Defendant told police that for the past two and one-half years he had shared the mobile home with his girlfriend, Susan Insalaco, and her two children, Anna and Gabe, ages 16 and 12. Defendant stated that just before the murders, he and Susan had argued over defendant's continued use of alcohol and drugs. Additionally, Susan apparently had become interested in another man. For these reasons, on January 31, 1984, Susan asked defendant to move out of the mobile home immediately.
The next day defendant, who had been drinking, remained at the mobile home waiting for Susan and her children to return. At approximately 2:45 p.m., Anna arrived home. As she entered the mobile home, defendant attacked her from behind with a baseball bat. He struck her numerous times about the head, eventually breaking the bat. Because Anna was moaning and still appeared to be alive, defendant forced a portion of the broken bat through her throat until it hit the floor. He then dragged Anna's body into her mother's bathroom and locked the door.
After obtaining a pipe wrench from an outside storeroom, defendant returned to the living room and waited for Gabe. When Gabe returned from school at approximately 3:00 p.m., defendant followed him into his bedroom. There, defendant surprised Gabe and repeatedly struck him over the head with the pipe wrench. Defendant used such force that the skull was fractured in several places and brain matter was clearly visible on the floor.
Defendant next loaded a handgun and waited for Susan to return from work at 5:00 p.m. By the time she arrived, however, defendant had decided that the gun would make too much noise and might alert the neighbors. When Susan entered the mobile home, she had a brief discussion with defendant and then went to the kitchen to put away groceries. As she turned to face defendant, he struck her on the side of her head with the same wrench he had used on Gabe. Defendant repeatedly struck Susan even after she had collapsed to the floor.
At this point, defendant decided he needed a drink. He took Susan's truck and some money from her wallet and drove to a liquor store. From there defendant drove to a roadside area to drink. After a while, defendant went to a friend's house where he played chess and spent the night. The next day, defendant told his friend what had happened and then telephoned the police.
Defendant was indicted on three counts of murder and two counts of armed robbery, each count containing an allegation of dangerous nature. Defendant notified his lawyers, in writing, that he wanted to be convicted and sentenced to death for these acts. This conduct, in part, prompted one of defendant's lawyers to file a Rule 11 motion. Based on the results of a preliminary examination, however, the trial court found defendant competent to stand trial.
On March 1, 1985, defendant pled guilty to all counts contained in the indictment. Defendant entered this plea against the advice of his lawyers and without benefit of a plea agreement. 1 In this appeal, defense counsel raises several issues concerning the basis for the plea and the sentences imposed on defendant by the trial court.
Defense counsel claims there was an insufficient factual basis to support defendant's guilty pleas to each of the armed robbery counts. Specifically, counsel argues that the element of intent, required by the robbery statute, § 13-1902, has not been established.
In Arizona, judgment may be entered on a guilty plea only after the court determines that a factual basis exists for each element of the crime to which the plea is made. Rule 17.3, Ariz.R.Crim.Proc., 17 A.R.S.; State v. Carr, 112 Ariz. 453, 454-55, 543 P.2d 441, 442-43 (1975). While this factual basis need not be established beyond a reasonable doubt, the court still must find "strong evidence" of guilt. State v. Hamilton, 142 Ariz. 91, 93, 688 P.2d 983, 985 (1984). The evidence may be derived from the record as a whole or any part thereof, including defendant's admissions and statements. Id.; State v. McVay, 131 Ariz. 369, 373, 641 P.2d 857, 861 (1982). Where, however, no factual basis exists in the record to support the elements of the crime to which the plea is made, conviction on a guilty plea cannot be sustained. State v. Carr, 112 Ariz. at 455, 543 P.2d at 443.
In the instant case, defendant pled guilty to two counts of armed robbery. Thus, to establish a factual basis for the pleas, it must be shown that defendant (1) while armed with a deadly weapon, (2) took property from another person against that person's will, and (3) in the course of taking the property, defendant threatened or used force against that person with the intent to deprive them of their property. A.R.S. §§ 13-1902, -1904. Stated otherwise, there must be evidence establishing that defendant's intent to commit robbery was coexistent with his use of force.
At the time of defendant's plea, the state introduced admissions made by defendant following his arrest. The trial court considered this evidence and found a factual basis for the armed robbery counts. Amidst his confessions, the following exchanges took place between defendant and various detectives:
Based on these and other statements in the record, we fail to find a factual basis to support the element of intent required by A.R.S. § 13-1902. Although, as the state argues, defendant may have planned that morning to get drunk following the murders, we do not believe that defendant's use of force upon Susan was intended to "coerce surrender" of her money and truck. Instead, defendant's decision to take these items occurred only after Susan was dead. While defendant's actions may render him liable for another crime, the takings did not amount to armed robbery.
Thus, as the record lacks sufficiently "strong evidence" of guilt as to the armed robbery charges, we conclude that the trial court erred in finding a factual basis for these crimes. We therefore hold that defendant's guilty pleas to the two counts of armed robbery must be vacated.
Defense counsel argues that the Arizona death penalty statute, A.R.S. § 13-703, is unconstitutional because (1) the statute violates the constitutional right to have a jury decide the existence of aggravating and mitigating factors and whether defendant should receive the death penalty; (2) the aggravating factor of "heinous, cruel or depraved" is unconstitutionally vague and arbitrarily imposed; (3) the statute fails to require that the sentencing judge find beyond a reasonable doubt that the aggravating factors outweigh the mitigating factors; (4) the burden of proof is placed upon the defendant to prove mitigating factors; and (5) the statute does not provide adequate standards for weighing aggravating factors against mitigating factors.
These arguments have been previously considered by this court and rejected on numerous occasions. See State v. Correll, 148 Ariz. 468, 715 P.2d 721 (1986); State v. Bracy, 145 Ariz. 520, 703 P.2d 464 (1985), cert. denied, 474 U.S. 1110, 106 S.Ct. 898, 88 L.Ed.2d 932 (1986); State v. Poland (Patrick), 144 Ariz. 388, 698 P.2d 183 (1985), aff'd, 476 U.S. 147, 106 S.Ct. 1749, 90 L.Ed.2d 123 (1986); State v. Richmond, 136 Ariz. 312, 666 P.2d 57, cert. denied, 464 U.S. 986, 104 S.Ct. 435, 78 L.Ed.2d 367 (1983); State v. Gretzler, 135 Ariz. 42, 659 P.2d 1, cert. denied, 461 U.S. 971, 103 S.Ct. 2444, 77 L.Ed.2d 1327 (1983). We conclude, as...
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