U.S. v. Layton, 84-1252
| Decision Date | 29 July 1985 |
| Docket Number | No. 84-1252,84-1252 |
| Citation | 767 F.2d 549 |
| Parties | 18 Fed. R. Evid. Serv. 1322 UNITED STATES of America, Plaintiff-Appellant, v. Laurence John LAYTON, Defendant-Appellee. |
| Court | U.S. Court of Appeals — Ninth Circuit |
Sanford Svetcov, Asst. U.S. Atty., San Francisco, Cal., for plaintiff-appellant.
James F. Hewitt, San Francisco, Cal., for defendant-appellee.
Appeal from the United States District Court for the Northern District of California.
Before HUG and SKOPIL, Circuit Judges, and CURTIS, * District Judge.
This is an appeal concerning the pretrial exclusion of evidence under Rule 403 of the Federal Rules of Evidence. Laurence John Layton ("Layton") was charged with conspiracy to murder and aiding and abetting the murder of Congressman Leo Ryan, and also with conspiracy to murder and aiding and abetting the attempted murder of Richard Dwyer, the Deputy Chief of Mission of the United States in the Republic of Guyana. Layton's first trial ended in a hung jury. Prior to retrial, the Government sought the admission of certain evidence under Fed.R.Crim.P. 12(b) that had been excluded in the first trial. The district judge ruled the evidence inadmissible as hearsay. The Government appealed, and we ruled that three of the four statements involved were admissible under the hearsay rules, but we remanded for a determination of their admissibility under Fed.R.Evid. 403. The district judge ruled that two of the statements were admissible but excluded the recorded statements made by Jim Jones in the "Last Hour Tape" made while the mass suicides were taking place. The Government appeals that order. We affirm.
The facts of this case, as represented by the Government's offer of proof, have been thoroughly discussed by this court in United States v. Layton, 720 F.2d 548 (9th Cir.1983), cert. denied, --- U.S. ----, 104 S.Ct. 1423, 79 L.Ed.2d 748 (1984) (Layton I ), and need not be fully recounted here. In brief, Layton was a member of the People's Temple, a religious organization founded by Jim Jones. The People's Temple had a settlement known as Jonestown, consisting of approximately 1200 members, located in the Republic of Guyana.
On November 17 and 18, 1978, Congressman Ryan and his party conducted an investigation of conditions in Jonestown. On November 18, Congressman Ryan arranged for the departure of Jonestown residents who desired to return to the United States. While the Ryan party was still preparing to depart from Jonestown, Layton and Jones were seen engaged in a conversation. 1 After the conversation ended, Layton announced that he, too, wished to leave Jonestown. Some of the departing Jonestown residents became concerned, believing that Layton was feigning defection.
There were two planes, a 19-seat Otter and a 6-seat Cessna, arranged for the Ryan party at the Port Kaituma airstrip. Some of the departing Jonestown residents had boarded the Cessna. Layton insisted on travelling on the Cessna, and proceeded to board the plane. Layton was then told to leave the plane, and reluctantly submitted to a weapons search. Although the search did not reveal any weapons, and he was permitted to reboard the Cessna, Layton did, nevertheless, have a gun on the airplane. Layton later claimed that he was given the gun by a Temple member named Poncho, but the gun may have been passed to him by Joe Wilson, a People's Temple member, who hugged Layton and put his hand underneath the poncho that Layton was wearing shortly before Layton boarded the plane.
When the Cessna was fully boarded, others were still in the process of boarding the Otter. The Cessna taxied down the runway, preparing to take off. At this point, a tractor-trailer cut in front of the Cessna and moved toward the Otter. A group of People's Temple members, including Wilson, began shooting from the tractor-trailer at the larger plane, hitting people inside as well as outside the plane. Congressman Ryan, who was standing outside near the Otter, was among those shot and killed. Other people were wounded, including Dwyer. The Cessna passengers heard the gunfire. Layton insisted that the plane take off and then took a revolver from his crotch area and shot two of the passengers. A struggle ensued and Layton was disarmed. The occupants of the Cessna then escaped into the jungle.
Layton was indicted and tried on four counts arising from the killing of Congressman Ryan and the wounding of Dwyer. Layton was charged with (1) conspiracy to murder a Member of Congress in violation of 18 U.S.C. Sec. 351(d); (2) aiding and abetting the murder of a Member of Congress in violation of 18 U.S.C. Secs. 2, 351(a); (3) conspiracy to murder an internationally protected person (Dwyer) in violation of 18 U.S.C. Sec. 1117; and (4) aiding and abetting the attempted murder of an internationally protected person in violation of 18 U.S.C. Secs. 2, 1116(a).
Layton's trial resulted in a mistrial because the jury was unable to reach a verdict. The Government then moved for an order to present certain statements made by Jim Jones as evidence on retrial that the court had ruled inadmissible during the trial. The Government's motion was denied, and the Government appealed. We reversed in part, holding that three of the four challenged statements were admissible under the hearsay rule and the confrontation clause, but we remanded to the district court to allow the court to determine whether the statements were admissible under Fed.R.Evid. 403. Layton I, 720 F.2d 548 (9th Cir.1983), cert. denied, --- U.S. ----, 104 S.Ct. 1423, 79 L.Ed.2d 748 (1984).
The district court found that the so-called "Last Hour Tape" (the "Tape") was inadmissible under Rule 403. The Tape records statements made by Jim Jones soon after the Ryan party left Jonestown for the airstrip. Screams of dying children can be heard in the background. Pertinent portions of Jones's statements on the Tape are as follows:
Jones: ... How very much I have loved you ... how very much I have tried my best to give you the good life ... But in spite of all that I've tried, a handful of ....
our people, with their lives, have made our life impossible. There's no way to detach ourself from what's happened today. Not only--We're in a compound situation, not only are there those who have left and committed the betrayal of the century, some have stolen children from others and they're in pursuit right now to kill them because they stole their children, and we, we are sitting here waiting on a powder keg. I don't think this is what we want to do with our babies. I don't think that's what we had in mind to do with our babies. It was said by the greatest of prophets, from time immemorial, "No man lay, takes my life from me, I lay my life down." ... So, to, to sit here and wait for the castastrophe that's going to happen on that airplane, it's gonna be a catastrophe ... It almost happened here, almost happened, the congressman was nearly killed here ... But you can't steal people's children. (Crowd: That's right.) You can't take off with people's children without expecting a violent reaction. (Crowd: That's right.) And, that's not so unfamiliar to us, either, if we, even if we were Judeo-Christian, even if we weren't Communists. The world, the kingdom suffers violence and the violent shall take it by force. If we can't live in peace then let's die in peace ... We've been so betrayed, we have been so terribly betrayed. But we've tried, and as Jack Beam often said, and I don't know where he's at right this moment, poor Jack, he says if it's only worked one day, it was worthwhile ... Of what's going to happen here in a matter of a few minutes, is that one of those people on that plane is gonna, gonna shoot the pilot. I know that. I didn't plan it, but I know it's gonna happen. They're gonna shoot that pilot, and down comes that plane into the jungle and we had better not have any of our children left when it's over, 'cause they'll parachute in here on us. I'm telling you just as plain as I know how to tell you, I've never lied to you ... (Crowd: That's right.) I never have lied to you. (Crowd: That's right.) I know that's what's gonna happen, that's what he intends to do and he will do it. He'll do it.... Fortunately, being so bewildered with many, many pressures on my brain, seeing all these people behave so treasonous, it was just too much for me to put together, but, I now know what he was telling me and it'll happen. If the plane gets in the air even. So my opinion is that we be kind to children and be kind to seniors and take the potion like they used to take in ancient Greece, and step over quietly because we are not committing suicide. It's a revolutionary act. We can't go back. They won't leave us alone. They're now going back to tell more lies which means more congressmen. And there's no way, no way we can survive
There's one man there, who blames, and rightfully so, Debbie Blakey, for the murder, for the murder of his mother and ... he'll stop that pilot by any means necessary. He'll do it. That plane will come out of the air. There's no way you fly a plane without a pilot.
....
Apparently after learning of the shooting, Jones continued:
Jones: I don't know how in the world they're ever gonna write about us. It's just too late, it's too late. The Congressman's dead, the Congressman lays dead, many of our traitors are dead, they're all laying out there dead. (Unknown female: right on) Mmmm? ... (Crowd: good, good) ... I didn't but, but my people did. My people did. They're my people ... (Crowd: that's right, right) ... and they, they've been provoked too much ... (Crowd: that's right, right) ... They've been provoked too much. What's happened here's been to, this has been an act of provocation....
....
Jones: It's not to be feared. It is not to be feared. It's a friend, it's a friend. You're...
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