State v. Wogenstahl

• Citation: 75 Ohio St.3d 344,662 N.E.2d 311
• Decision Date: 06 March 1996
• Docket Number: No. 95-42,95-42
• Parties: The STATE of Ohio, Appellee, v. WOGENSTAHL, Appellant.
• Court: United States State Supreme Court of Ohio

Page 344

75 Ohio St.3d 344

662 N.E.2d 311

The STATE of Ohio, Appellee, v. WOGENSTAHL, Appellant.

No. 95-42.

Supreme Court of Ohio.

Submitted Nov. 15, 1995.

Decided March 6, 1996.

SYLLABUS BY THE COURT

1. In the penalty phase of a capital trial, the "aggravating circumstances" against which the mitigating evidence is to be weighed are limited to the specifications of aggravating circumstances set forth in R.C. 2929.04(A)(1) through (8) that have been alleged in the indictment and proved beyond a reasonable doubt.

2. It is improper for prosecutors in the penalty phase of a capital trial to make any comment before a jury that the nature and circumstances of the offense are "aggravating circumstances."

Peggy Garrett was first introduced to Jeffrey A. Wogenstahl, appellant, in October 1991. During October and November 1991, appellant and Peggy became casual acquaintances. At the time, Peggy resided in a two-bedroom apartment at 301 Harrison Avenue, Harrison, Ohio, with her five children: Eric Horn, age sixteen, Justin Horn, age fifteen, Amber Garrett, age ten, Matthew Garrett, age eight, and Shayna Perkins, age four. During October and November 1991, appellant visited the apartment on several occasions and came to know Peggy's family.

Appellant went to Peggy's apartment on Saturday afternoon, November 23, 1991. He asked Peggy if she had any plans for the evening. Peggy told appellant that she had no plans, and appellant left following a brief conversation. That night, Peggy put her three youngest children (Amber, Matthew and Shayna) to bed for the evening. At approximately 10:30 p.m., she decided to meet a friend, Lynn Williams, at a local bar. Justin was spending the weekend at a friend's house. Peggy left sixteen-year-old Eric in charge of the other children.

Peggy met Lynn Williams at the "Escape" bar sometime between 11:00 p.m. and midnight. From there, the women drove Lynn's car to the Miamitown Lounge, which was also known as "Hornsby's." At Hornsby's, Peggy and Lynn saw appellant at the bar. He was wearing a brown leather jacket and jeans. Appellant joined the women for drinks and conversation. Appellant asked Peggy where Justin was and what Eric and the other children were doing. Peggy told appellant that Justin was away for the weekend, and that Eric was home baby-sitting the children. At some point, the trio went outside to appellant's car to smoke marijuana.

On Sunday morning, at approximately 2:15 a.m., appellant, Peggy and Lynn drove Lynn's car to the Flicker Inn. Later, the women drove appellant back to Hornsby's, where appellant's car was parked. Appellant invited the women to his apartment to smoke marijuana, but Peggy and Lynn told appellant that they were going to the Waffle House restaurant. Peggy and Lynn then separated from appellant and drove directly to the Waffle House. After the women had arrived at the restaurant, a witness saw a car resembling appellant's dark-brown four-door 1978 Oldsmobile Omega pull into and then out of the restaurant parking lot.

At approximately 3:00 a.m., while the women were at the Waffle House, appellant drove to Peggy's apartment and spoke with Eric. According to Eric, appellant claimed that Peggy needed to see him (Eric) at Troy Beard's house. Beard was Peggy's friend who lived approximately three blocks from the apartment. Eric locked the door to the apartment, leaving the children unattended, and drove with appellant to the vicinity of Beard's residence. Appellant dropped Eric off approximately one block from Beard's apartment. According to Eric, appellant said that he would drive around the block and then pick Eric up to drive him home. When Eric arrived at the residence, Beard told Eric that he (Beard) had not seen Peggy at all that evening. Eric left Beard's apartment and waited for appellant to drive him home. Appellant did not return. Eventually, Eric walked home and found that the door to the apartment was unlocked. He checked on the children and noticed that ten-year-old Amber was missing. However, Eric mistakenly assumed that Amber might have been spending the night at a friend's house. Thus, he mentioned nothing to Peggy when she returned home later that morning.

On the morning of November 24, 1991, Vickie Mozena was working at a United Dairy Farmers store in Harrison, Ohio, near the Ohio-Indiana border. At approximately 3:15 a.m., Mozena saw a car resembling appellant's Oldsmobile drive past the store in the direction of Bright, Indiana. Mozena observed the silhouette of a man driving the vehicle, and what appeared to be a young girl next to him in the passenger's seat. Between 3:45 and 4:00 a.m., Mozena saw the same vehicle parked at a car wash across the street from the United Dairy Farmers store. The vehicle pulled out of the car wash and into the farthest corner of the United Dairy Farmers parking lot. The driver did not exit the vehicle for several minutes, and Mozena thought that she was about to be robbed. However, appellant exited the vehicle, came into the store, and purchased a pack of cigarettes. At that time, Mozena noticed what appeared to be dirt or blood under appellant's fingernails. Later that morning, Mozena once again saw appellant's car parked across the street at the car wash. According to Mozena, there was a man inside the car, presumably cleaning the interior.

Harold Borgman lived on Jamison Road between Harrison, Ohio, and Bright, Indiana. Borgman's home was located in a rural area of West Harrison, Indiana, approximately four miles from Harrison. At 3:13 a.m. on the morning of November 24, 1991, Borgman got out of bed to use the bathroom. Sometime later, he looked out the window and saw a car driving very slowly on Jamison Road toward the direction of Harrison. The driver pulled off to the side of Jamison Road, stopped, and turned off the headlights. Borgman continued to watch for several minutes, and observed two or three vehicles pass the parked car on Jamison Road.

On November 24, at approximately 3:40 a.m., Brian Noel was driving on Jamison Road toward Bright, Indiana. While driving near the location of Borgman's residence, Noel saw a late 1970s-model, dark-colored four-door vehicle parked off to the side of Jamison Road, the vehicle facing the opposite direction. Noel came to a rolling stop alongside the vehicle and observed a man apparently retrieving something from the trunk of the automobile. The man was wearing a dark jacket and blue jeans. Noel later identified appellant as the man he had seen on Jamison Road in the early morning hours of November 24. He also identified appellant's 1978 Oldsmobile as the car that had been pulled off to the side of Jamison Road.

On November 24, at approximately 3:40 a.m., Kathy Roth was driving on Jamison Road toward Bright, Indiana. While driving near the location of Borgman's residence, Roth saw a man wearing a brown leather jacket and blue jeans standing near a parked car off to the side of Jamison Road. As Roth drove past the vehicle, the man turned to face her, dropped his head, and then turned around to face the woods. Roth later identified appellant as the man she had seen on Jamison Road.

Frederick G. Harms was driving on Jamison Road on November 24, at approximately 3:40 a.m. Harms also saw the vehicle parked off to the side of Jamison Road. According to Harms, the vehicle resembled appellant's 1978 Oldsmobile Omega.

On Sunday afternoon, November 24, Peggy Garrett finally realized that Amber was missing. At that time, Eric told Peggy about appellant's 3:00 a.m. visit to the apartment. Peggy and others went to appellant's residence and knocked on the door for over an hour. When appellant finally answered, Peggy asked him why he had taken Eric to Troy Beard's apartment earlier that morning. Appellant stated that he had been "messing with Eric's head," and claimed to have no knowledge of Amber's whereabouts. On the evening of November 24, 1991, appellant gave a similar statement to Officer Charles Lindsey of the Harrison Police Department.

On Monday, November 25, 1991, police executed a search warrant at appellant's residence. During the search, appellant was questioned concerning his movements on the morning of November 24. Appellant admitted to having visited the Harrison Avenue apartment on November 24 at approximately 3:00 a.m. Appellant told police that he had duped Eric out of the Harrison Avenue apartment as a practical joke. However, appellant stated that he went directly home to bed after having taken Eric to the vicinity of Troy Beard's apartment. Police then requested that appellant accompany them to the Harrison Police Department. Appellant agreed to go to the police station and asked for his leather jacket. Officer Lindsey retrieved the jacket from the bedroom closet. Lindsey noticed that the jacket was soaking wet and that the lining was discolored. According to police, appellant explained that his cat had urinated on the jacket on Friday evening, November 22, 1991. Appellant further explained that he had washed the jacket on Friday night. Police were suspicious, since appellant had worn the jacket on Saturday night, November 23, 1991.

Police found several bloodstains in appellant's bathroom. However, it could not be determined whether the blood was human blood. The items seized from appellant's residence included drugs and drug paraphernalia. Police contacted appellant's parole officer, and a parole holder was placed against appellant. On November 25, 1991, police also attempted to search a dumpster near appellant's apartment. However, the dumpster had been emptied earlier that morning. Two witnesses had seen appellant near the dumpster on November 24, at approximately 5:15 a.m.

On the morning of November 27, 1991, appellant made another statement to law enforcement authorities. This time, appellant claimed that he had driven Eric to the vicinity of Troy Beard's apartment on November 24 because Eric had wanted to deliver marijuana to...