Thomas v. State

• Decision Date: 01 September 1982
• Docket Number: Nos. 151,s. 151
• Citation: Thomas v. State, 301 Md. 294, 483 A.2d 6 (Md. 1982)
• Parties: Donald THOMAS v. STATE of Maryland. ,
• Court: Maryland Court of Appeals

Page 294

301 Md. 294

483 A.2d 6

Donald THOMAS v. STATE of Maryland.

Nos. 151, Sept. Term, 1982, 44, Sept. Term, 1983.

Court of Appeals of Maryland.

Oct. 31, 1984.

Michael R. Braudes and George E. Burns, Jr., Asst. Public Defenders, Baltimore (Alan H. Murrell, Public Defender, Baltimore, on the brief), for appellant.

Richard B. Rosenblatt, Asst. Atty. Gen., Baltimore (Stephen H. Sachs, Atty. Gen., Baltimore, on the brief), for appellee.

Argued before MURPHY, C.J., ELDRIDGE, COLE, DAVIDSON, ^* RODOWSKY and COUCH, JJ., and W. ALBERT MENCHINE (Retired), Specially Assigned Judge.

MURPHY, Chief Judge.

The appellant, Donald Thomas, was found guilty by a jury in the Circuit Court for Baltimore County of the first degree murders of Donald Spurling and his wife, Sarah. He was also found guilty at the same trial of raping Noel Wilkins, of committing two first degree sexual offenses upon Ms. Wilkins (cunnilingus and fellatio), and of robbing her at knife point of $20. The State having earlier given the requisite statutory notice that it would seek the death penalty for the two first degree murders, the ensuing sentencing hearing resulted in the imposition of the death penalty for Sarah's murder, a life sentence for Donald's murder, concurrent terms of life imprisonment for the rape and first degree sexual offenses, and a twenty-year consecutive sentence for the armed robbery. Thomas appealed, challenging both the guilty verdicts and the death sentence imposed upon him.

For the purposes of appeal, the parties have agreed to the following statement of facts:

"At 4:41 a.m. on October 2, 1981, Officer Joseph Bayer of the Baltimore County Police Department received a call to respond to a reported double rape at 5643 Chelwynd Road, a residence located in Baltimore County. Five minutes later, Officer Bayer arrived at that address. Already on the scene, outside the residence, were two other police officers; a fourth officer arrived almost immediately thereafter. Officer Bayer entered the house through the front door, followed by the other officers.

"Upon entering the house, Officer Bayer observed the body of Sarah Ann Spurling lying on the floor in a doorway between the kitchen and dining room. Ms. Spurling was nude from the waist down with the exception of a pair of panties, the crotch of which had been cut or torn away. Ms. Spurling was found lying in a pool of blood, and the cause of death was subsequently ascertained to be multiple stab wounds.

"Searching the house, the officers encountered two other persons. In the basement, the officers located the body of Donald Lee Spurling. The cause of Mr. Spurling's death was also multiple stab wounds. In an upstairs bedroom, the officers found an 18-month-old child later identified as the Spurlings' daughter Jennie, who was unharmed.

"The State's principal witness was Noel Ann Wilkins. Ms. Wilkins was a student who rented a room from the Spurlings at the time of the homicide. Ms. Wilkins testified that she went to bed at approximately 11:00 p.m. on October 1, 1981. Later that night, she was awakened by Ms. Spurling crying out in alarm; the cry was then cut off. Not fully awake, Ms. Wilkins remained in bed, where she continued to hear 'strange noises' from the downstairs portion of the house.

"According to Ms. Wilkins' testimony, at some point that evening she saw the silhouette of a man pass by her door, and then heard the door to Jennie's bedroom open and close. Her own door was then opened, and a man whom she identified as Appellant entered her room. Threatening her with what appeared to be a butcher knife, the man tied her hands and forced her to engage in various sexual activities. Specifically, he placed his mouth on her genital area, engaged in vaginal intercourse, and forced her to kiss his penis. He then bound her with a lampcord and asked for money. She told him that there was $20.00 in a candy dish, and he took the $20.00.

"Ms. Wilkins went on to testify that she told Appellant that Donald Spurling would be coming home; Appellant responded 'I have taken care of him.' He asked her about guns, and she told him about a rifle case in the basement. He left to look for the guns. By this point, the bonds on her hands had come loose, and she exited through her bedroom window, climbed down a drainpipe, and ran for help.

"Kelly Gramm, who at that time was living at 5638 Chelwynd Road, testified that at approximately 4:30 or 5:00 a.m. on October 2, she heard Ms. Wilkins calling for help. She invited Ms. Wilkins in, and the latter called the police, stating that she had been raped, that there was still a child in the house, and that 'I think he has killed Sarah.'

"The defense did not dispute that Appellant had stabbed the Spurlings. The defense theory was that he killed Donald Spurling in self-defense when the latter attacked him; killed Sarah Spurling in a frenzied attempt to escape; and that the sexual encounter with Ms. Wilkins was consensual.

"Appellant testified on his own behalf. He related that during the evening of October 1, he was in downtown Baltimore playing video games. From a distance of half a block, he observed a minor traffic accident in which Donald Spurling was involved. Spurling asked him to remain until the police arrived as a witness on his behalf, and he complied. Thereafter, Spurling stated that he wished to pay Appellant for staying but had no money with him. Spurling asked him to accompany him home to obtain some money, and Appellant agreed. On the way, they stopped at the residence of one Sam Houseman, where Spurling demanded the repayment of a $20.00 debt. Houseman was unable to repaySpurling, and the latter threw him to the ground and beat him. ¹

"After stopping at a bar in Arbutus, Appellant and Spurling proceeded to Spurling's home. Sarah Spurling castigated her husband for failing to pick her up at work and ultimately went upstairs, leaving Appellant and Spurling alone in the kitchen. While there, Spurling stated that he had a 'job' for Appellant to do. It ultimately developed that Spurling was looking for a 'hit-man' to kill someone who had apparently cost him a great deal of money. Appellant responded that he would be willing to fight someone, but not to kill.

"The two proceeded to the basemant, where Spurling showed Appellant his collection of guns and knives, indicating that he would provide a weapon for the 'hit.' They proceeded to watch television and throw darts in the basement, after which they prepared and ate a meal in the kitchen and then returned to the basement.

"At this point, Appellant was under the impression that Spurling was acting and speaking strangely, as if he had been using Quaaludes. The conversation returned to the topic of Appellant killing someone who had 'cost [Spurling] a lot of money.' Appellant decided he did not like Spurling's attitude toward him, and stated that he wished to leave. Spurling said he would go upstairs and get some money from his wife to give Appellant so that he could return home.

"When Spurling returned, he informed Appellant that he could not give him any money, because his wife was still angry and refused to give him any. In lieu of giving him money, Spurling told him that there was a 'chick' upstairs (Noel Wilkins) who 'indulged in having sex with black guys.' He had checked with her, and she was willing to have sex with Appellant. Appellant went up to Noel's room, and they proceeded to engage in sexual relations. "Appellant then returned to the basement. Spurling removed a knife from a gun cabinet, and again raised the subject of the 'hit job.' Appellant responded that he could not kill anyone and wanted to go home. At that point, Spurling 'toyed with the knife and for no apparent reason he stuck me in my leg.' After Spurling stabbed Appellant, Spurling held the knife pointing inward toward his own chest. Appellant 'pushed it to his chest,' and the knife fell onto a sofa. Appellant grabbed it and ran toward the steps leading upstairs from the basement. Spurling grabbed him, and Appellant, in fear because Spurling had already stabbed him and was much larger than himself, continually slashed him with the knife.

"Appellant then ran back to Noel's room, stating that he was in trouble and asking for money. He then ran downstairs, saw Sarah's body, and realized that he had killed her. (He testified subsequently that he had 'blanked out' after the fight with Spurling and did not remember encountering Mrs. Spurling at all.) He returned to Ms. Wilkins' room for a third time; she voluntarily gave him $20.00 and a pair of jeans to replace his bloody pants. He then tied her up and fled.

"In rebuttal, the State requested that the court call as a court's witness Michael Thomas, Appellant's brother. The State proffered that on October 11, 1981, Assistant State's Attorney Thomas Basham had telephoned the witness to ask him questions about the case, but that he had refused to cooperate. On October 26, the witness recanted a statement given to investigating officers on October 4, during which he related what Appellant had told him after the crime occurred. On this basis, the prosecutors stated that they were unable to vouch for the witness's credibility. Over objection, the court called Michael Thomas as its own witness. During his testimony, the witness read his statement to the jury. That statement indicated that on October 2, Appellant told his brother that he had to kill Mrs. Spurling because she had attacked him. The statement also included Appellant's admission that he had stolen a pair of diamond earrings and some gold chains, contradicting his testimony that he had not stolen anything from the house.

"Michael Thomas at trial again recanted the statement, testifying that he had given the officers a statement because he had been held at the police station for a long time and needed to tell them something in order to be released.

(1)

The appellant first contends that the trial...