U.S. v. Childs

• Decision Date: 29 August 2008
• Docket Number: No. 07-1597.,No. 07-1495.,07-1495.,07-1597.
• Parties: UNITED STATES of America, Plaintiff-Appellee, v. Joshshan CHILDS (07-1495); Jeremiah Japeth Sims (07-1597), Defendants-Appellants.
• Court: U.S. Court of Appeals — Sixth Circuit

539 F.3d 552

UNITED STATES of America, Plaintiff-Appellee, v. Joshshan CHILDS (07-1495); Jeremiah Japeth Sims (07-1597), Defendants-Appellants.

No. 07-1495.

No. 07-1597.

United States Court of Appeals, Sixth Circuit.

Argued: July 31, 2008.

Decided and Filed: August 29, 2008.

ARGUED: Paul L. Mitchell, Mitchell & Zambon, P.C., Grand Rapids, Michigan, Frank Harrison Reynolds, Reynolds Law Firm, Lansing, Michigan, for Appellants. Brian K. Delaney, Assistant United States Attorney, Grand Rapids, Michigan, for Appellee. ON BRIEF: Paul L. Mitchell, Mitchell & Zambon, P.C., Grand Rapids, Michigan, Frank Harrison Reynolds, Reynolds Law Firm, Lansing, Michigan, for Appellants. Brian K. Delaney, Assistant United States Attorney, Grand Rapids, Michigan, for Appellee.

Before: KENNEDY, GILMAN, and GIBBONS, Circuit Judges.

OPINION

KENNEDY, Circuit Judge.

Defendants Jeremiah Sims and Joshshan Childs appeal their convictions for conspiracy to commit murder for hire resulting in the death of Chrissy Satterfield in violation of 18 U.S.C. §§ 1958(a) and 2. Defendant Joshshan Childs also appeals his conviction for the underlying substantive offense of murder for hire. Sims raises four arguments on appeal: (1) the district court erred when it denied his Rule 29 motion for acquittal; (2) the district court erred in allowing Jackie Love to testify to an out-of-court statement made by indicted co-conspirator Carolyn Ross; (3) the district court improperly required him to testify under a statutory grant of use immunity at his co-defendant's trial; and (4) the district court erred when it failed to order Childs, over his attorney's objections, to submit to a pre-testimony interview by Sims' attorney. In his sole argument, Childs argues that the district court erred in denying his mistrial motion based on the government's allegedly improper questioning of him at trial in violation of the Fifth Amendment. Because we find that the district court did not err on any of these grounds, we AFFIRM both defendants' convictions.

BACKGROUND

Shortly after midnight on August 5, 1996, sixteen-year-old Chrissy Satterfield was murdered while taking a shower at her grandmother's house in Benton Township, Michigan. Satterfield was shot multiple times by someone standing on an overturned garbage can outside of the bathroom window.

Chrissy's uncle, Elmer Satterfield, heard the gunshots and saw two men jumping the side fence and running from the residence. A neighbor also heard the gunshots and saw two unidentified young black males dressed in dark clothing running from the area. Police officers responding to the scene recovered identifiable fingerprints located on the outside window ledge of the bathroom.

The case remained dormant, with few leads, until late 2001. At that time, Doreen Dortch came forward and related that the day after the murder, she overheard a conversation between her nephew, Joshshan Childs, and Jeremiah Sims, in which they discussed their involvement in the murder of Chrissy Satterfield. Based on this new information, the FBI submitted the known prints of Childs and Sims to the crime lab for comparison against the prints recovered from the murder scene. This comparison resulted in a positive fingerprints match with Childs.

In the course of the ensuing investigation, investigators contacted Jackie Love, Childs' former girlfriend. Love testified that while at a pool party during the summer of 1996, her cousin, Carolyn Ross, asked her if she knew anyone who could kill someone for her. Both Childs and Sims were present. Love testified that she initially thought Ross was joking. Later, Childs asked her if Ross was serious about having a murder committed because he might know someone who would do it.

A few weeks later, Ross again approached Love and Childs. Ross was very upset over her husband's affair with Chrissy Satterfield. Ross asked both if they would kill her husband and Chrissy Satterfield in exchange for money. A price was agreed upon. Later, Love and Childs visited the restaurant where Satterfield worked so that Childs could see what Satterfield looked like.

Shortly after this discussion, Love and Childs moved to Atlanta, Georgia. Throughout the summer, Love and Childs traveled back to Benton Harbor, Michigan about every other week to visit friends and relatives and to pick up SSI checks for Love's children. On one of these trips in mid-July of 1996, Childs and Love conducted a surveillance of the Satterfield residence.

On August 3, 1996, Love, Childs, and her children checked into a motel in Benton Harbor. Childs met Sims at the motel that night, and Love saw Sims playing with a gun. Sims spent the night at the same motel. The following day, they all went to spend the day visiting relatives. Love testified that at some point later that night she had not seen Childs in awhile.

Sometime after midnight on August 5, 1996, Love testified that she heard sirens and saw an ambulance and fire truck racing by. One of her cousins, a sister of Carolyn Ross, informed her that Chrissy had been shot. About a half hour later, Childs returned dressed in black clothing and told Love that he needed to be with people.

Later that same day, Love and Childs checked out of the motel and met Ross at a clothing store Ross owned. Love testified that she learned on the drive back to Atlanta that Ross had given Childs a large sum of cash at the store.

After receiving payment, Childs drove himself and Love to a nearby apartment complex and picked up Sims. Tonia Childs, Defendant Child's sister, saw them and Sims remarked that "we done fucked somebody up." Defendants, along with Love and her children, then left Michigan together.

After they returned to Atlanta, Sims stayed with Childs and Love until he was arrested on August 16, 1996, during a traffic stop on an outstanding warrant. Childs later confided in Love that he murdered Chrissy Satterfield and provided specific details, including how he stood on a garbage can and shot her multiple times through the bathroom window.

Investigators also interviewed both Childs and Sims about the murder and they gave conflicting accounts. Based on the information gathered, on June 29, 2005, a federal grand jury returned a two-count indictment against Childs and Sims, charging them both with conspiracy to commit murder for hire resulting in the death of Chrissy Satterfield and the underlying offense of murder for hire. Because Sims' prior statements to both law enforcement officers and the federal grand jury inculpated both Childs and Sims, on November 9, 2006, the district court severed their trials due to confrontation concerns.

Childs was tried first. The government granted Sims use and derivative use immunity pursuant to 18 U.S.C. §§ 6002 and 6003 and sought to compel him to testify at Childs' trial. Sims opposed the motion to compel his testimony, but the district court rejected his arguments and entered a compulsion order on January 5, 2007. At trial, Sims took the stand as ordered, but provided trial testimony that was wholly contradictory to the statements he had previously given to law enforcement officers and before the grand jury. Excerpts of Sims' grand jury testimony were then entered into evidence.¹

Childs also testified on his own behalf at his trial. On the stand, Childs admitted that he lied to the law enforcement officers who interviewed him in jail about the Satterfield murder. He also admitted that following the interview he immediately attempted to contact Jackie Love through relatives to have her falsely deny that she and Childs were in Benton Harbor at the time of the homicide. Childs denied shooting Chrissy Satterfield.

On January 12, 2007, the jury convicted Defendant Joshshan Childs on both counts of the indictment.

On January 25, 2007, Carolyn Ross and Jeremiah Sims were named in a two-count superseding indictment, charging them both with conspiracy to commit murder for hire resulting in the death of Chrissy Satterfield and charging Ross only with the underlying substantive offense of murder for hire. Defendants' trials were also severed.

Sims did not testify at his own trial. Childs, however, voluntarily agreed, against the advice of counsel for both Sims and Childs, to testify on behalf of Sims. On the stand, Childs admitted that he shot and killed Chrissy Satterfield, but claimed that no one was with him when he committed the murder. He testified that he stood on a trash can and shot her through the bathroom window. Childs also claimed that Jackie Love drove him to the location and waited in the car while he committed the murder.

On cross-examination, Childs admitted that he lied repeatedly, including under oath at his own trial. He also testified that all of Sims' prior statements given to police and before the grand jury were lies.

On February 9, 2007, the jury found Sims guilty of the crime charged.

Both Childs and Sims were sentenced to life in prison. They now timely appeal their convictions.

ANALYSIS

I.

Defendant Sims first argues that the district court erred when it denied his Rule 29 motion for acquittal. Sims asserts that there was insufficient evidence to indicate he was part of a conspiracy to commit murder for hire resulting in the death of Chrissy Satterfield. We disagree.

In reviewing the sufficiency of the evidence, we must uphold a jury verdict if, "viewing the evidence in the light most favorable to the prosecution, any rational trier of fact could have found the essential elements of the crime beyond a reasonable doubt." Jackson v. Virginia, 443 U.S. 307, 319, 99 S.Ct. 2781, 61 L.Ed.2d 560 (1979) (emphasis in original). However, "where, as here, a defendant does not renew his motion for judgment of acquittal for insufficiency of the evidence at the close of all the proofs, appellate review is limited to determining whether there was a `manifest miscarriage of justice.'" United States v. Price, 134 F.3d 340, 350 (6th Cir.1998). Such a...