Vaughn v. State, No. M2004-00544-CCA-R3-PC (TN 5/3/2005)
| Decision Date | 03 May 2005 |
| Docket Number | No. M2004-00544-CCA-R3-PC.,M2004-00544-CCA-R3-PC. |
| Parties | REARNO VAUGHN v. STATE OF TENNESSEE. |
| Court | Tennessee Supreme Court |
Tim R. Rector, Gallatin, Tennessee, for the Appellant, Rearno Vaughn.
Paul G. Summers, Attorney General and Reporter; Kathy D. Aslinger, Assistant Attorney General; Lawrence Ray Whitley, District Attorney General; and Sallie Wade Brown, Assistant District Attorney General, for the appellee, State of Tennessee.
OPINION
The Petitioner, Rearno Vaughn, was convicted of one count of first degree murder, two counts of attempted first degree murder, two counts of attempted second degree murder, and one count of reckless endangerment, and the trial court sentenced him to an effective sentence of life plus twenty-two years. This Court affirmed the convictions and sentences on appeal. The Petitioner subsequently filed a petition for post-conviction relief, which the post-conviction court dismissed after a hearing. On appeal, the Petitioner contends that the post-conviction court erred because he was denied the effective assistance of counsel. Finding no reversible error, we affirm the judgment of the post-conviction court.
On August 28, 1996, a jury convicted R. Vaughn1 of the first degree murder of Tyrone Smith, the attempted first degree murder of Ardell Williams, the attempted first degree murder of Keith Goodrich, the attempted second degree murder of Chris Williams, the attempted second degree murder of Tallis Bonds, and one count of reckless endangerment. This Court summarized the facts on direct appeal as follows:
The State's proof at trial demonstrated that in the early morning hours of July 2, 1995, several individuals were gathered around a picnic table outside a restaurant known as Wing-It, located in Gallatin, Tennessee. These individuals were socializing. Several of these individuals were drinking alcohol or using illegal narcotics, or both. It appears that a tractor-trailer was parked adjacent to the picnic table. Several of the socializing individuals observed one or two pair of feet underneath the trailer. Immediately thereafter, the Defendant and James Vaughn emerged onto the scene and began shooting at various individuals in the crowd with handguns. The socializing individuals fled in a general panic. Given the confusion generated by the flight, the observations of what transpired differed among various individuals.
Two individuals, Chris Williams and Ardell Williams, did not see who had done the shooting. Ardell Williams testified that he had seen one pair of feet underneath the trailer prior to the shooting. Chris Williams, who was urinating a short distance away from the picnic table when the shooting began, did not observe anything underneath the trailer. Both individuals fled when they heard shots fired, but both were wounded. Ardell Williams suffered five gunshot wounds to his left leg and one to his left ankle. Chris Williams suffered a single gunshot wound to his right buttock.Tallis Bonds and Hygo Lyles saw only James Vaughn doing the shooting. Both individuals observed two pair of feet underneath the trailer prior to the shooting. Neither individual saw the Defendant at the scene. Tallis Bonds suffered gunshot wounds to his right thigh and his left foot. Hygo Lyles was not wounded.
Two individuals, Keith Goodrich and Lemarcus Rickman, saw both James Vaughn and the Defendant at the scene. Goodrich observed two pair of feet underneath the trailer prior to the shooting. Goodrich and Rickman both saw James Vaughn step out from behind the trailer and begin shooting. In fleeing the shooting, Goodrich ran into the Defendant. The Defendant pointed a handgun directly at his chest and told him to empty his pockets. Without waiting for Goodrich to act, the Defendant pulled the trigger of the handgun. Goodrich heard a click, but the gun did not fire. Goodrich then ran away from the Defendant. During his flight from the scene, Rickman observed Goodrich run into the Defendant. Rickman saw the two individuals standing face to face, but did not see a gun in the Defendant's hands.
Another individual, Alonzo Rogan, saw only the Defendant during the shooting. Rogan was talking on a cellular telephone as the shooting began and did not observe any feet underneath the trailer. Upon hearing shots fired, Rogan fled the scene. During his flight, he saw Keith Goodrich run into the Defendant. Rogan observed the Defendant pointing a gun at Goodrich.
The State offered additional proof placing the Defendant near the scene of the shooting at the time of the shooting. Several witnesses, including some of the ones socializing at Wing-It, testified that they had seen the Defendant earlier in the evening at a club called Big Robert's and at an establishment known as Julio's. Latonya Alexander testified that she gave the Defendant a ride from Julio's to Wing-It in the early morning hours of July 2, 1995. Furthermore, Alice Mason testified that she saw the Defendant pull on black pants over his clothing while in a car in the parking lot of Wing-It.
Several individuals were wounded as a result of the shooting. Chris Williams was shot once in the right buttock. Ardell Williams was shot five times in the left leg and once in the left ankle. Tallis Bonds was shot once in the right thigh and once in the left foot. Tyrone Smith was shot once in the left leg and once in the chest cavity. The wound to Smith's chest cavity entered in the left side of his abdomen and exited through the right side of his chest, causing injuries to his internal organs. Tyrone Smith died as a result of this wound.
Officers discovered numerous shell casings and bullet fragments at the scene. The shell casings and bullet fragments were all either .45 caliber or .38/.357 caliber. [FN2] Officers also discovered a .38 caliber semi-automatic handgun on a table inside Wing-It. That handgun had a live round in the chamber, and a live round was found on the table beside the gun. Officers were not able to determine the owner of the .38 caliber semi-automatic handgun.
FN2. Officer Jerry Hickman of the Gallatin Police Department testified that the shell casing for a .357 caliber is the same size as one for a .38 caliber.
The State introduced further proof linking the Defendant to the crime. The Defendant's brother, "Chuckie" Vaughn, was shot and killed in February of 1995 by Gerome Smith, the twin brother of Tyrone Smith, one of the victims of the Wing-It shooting. In addition, Tyrone and Gerome Smith were founding members of the Zone 8 gang. According to Detective Susan Morrow, the Vaughns (Rearno, James and "Chuckie") did not get along with the members of the Zone 8 gang.
From interviews after the shooting, Gallatin Police Department officials developed James Vaughn and the Defendant as suspects. Arrest warrants were issued for both individuals, but neither suspect could be located. Police eventually received information that two individuals were going to meet with the Defendant and James Vaughn in Alabama. Police conducted surveillance of these individuals and observed them leave Gallatin at approximately 9:30 a.m. on July 25, 1995. They were driving a blue Mitsubishi down Interstate 65 South at speeds in the seventy to ninety mile per hour (70-90 mph) range. Several law enforcement officers were following the blue Mitsubishi in unmarked cars. Upon reaching Alabama, the blue Mitsubishi exited the interstate and quickly re-entered the interstate in the opposite direction. The police officers following the blue Mitsubishi lost contact with the car at this point.
After they had lost contact with the blue Mitsubishi, the police officers stopped and arranged a meeting with officers from the Alabama Bureau of Investigation. At this meeting, the officers developed information that James Vaughn and the Defendant had relatives in Sheffield, Alabama. Those relatives, apparently Brenda and George Simpson, occupied a home at 612 East 17th Street. The officers telephoned the Sheffield Police Department and asked them to drive by the Simpson residence to check for the presence of a blue Mitsubishi. Sheffield police officers did so and found that the blue Mitsubishi was indeed at the Simpson residence. Gallatin police officers arrived on the scene and conducted surveillance of the Simpson residence. Officers soon observed James Vaughn and the Defendant on the front porch. They were entering and exiting the home freely. In addition, a car pulled up to the front of the residence and an occupant of the car yelled "Fuzz" to the individuals standing on the front porch. James Vaughn, whose nickname is "Fuzz," approached the car.
With this information, Gallatin police officers requested the assistance of Sheffield police officers in obtaining a search warrant for the Simpson residence so that they could arrest the Defendant and James Vaughn. Detective Greg Ray of the Sheffield Police Department went to the courthouse to obtain two fugitive warrants for the suspects and a search warrant for the Simpson residence. While Detective Ray was in the process of securing the warrants, one of the suspects exited the home, got in the blue Mitsubishi and drove away. Police officers could not determine which of the two suspects was the driver at that time. Officers decided to stop the vehicle and arrest the suspect once the car was out of sight of the Simpson residence. Sheffield police officers stopped the vehicle a short distance from the Simpson residence. The driver was the Defendant. During the stop, residents of the neighborhood were yelling to the Defendant, "Run, run, you haven't done...
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