Wright v. State

• Decision Date: 10 November 2009
• Docket Number: No. 49A04-0905-CR-259.,49A04-0905-CR-259.
• Citation: 916 N.E.2d 269
• Parties: Sean WRIGHT, Appellant-Defendant, v. STATE of Indiana, Appellee-Plaintiff.
• Court: Indiana Appellate Court

916 N.E.2d 269

Sean WRIGHT, Appellant-Defendant, v. STATE of Indiana, Appellee-Plaintiff.

No. 49A04-0905-CR-259.

Court of Appeals of Indiana.

November 10, 2009.

Matthew D. Anglemeyer, Marion County Public Defender Agency, Indianapolis, IN, Attorney for Appellant.

Gregory F. Zoeller, Attorney General of Indiana, George P. Sherman, Deputy Attorney General, Indianapolis, IN, Attorneys for Appellee.

OPINION

BRADFORD, Judge.

Appellant-Defendant Sean Wright appeals his convictions, following a jury trial, for three counts of Murder,¹ a felony, and his accompanying sentence of 165 years. Upon appeal, Wright challenges his convictions by claiming that certain victim statements admitted against him violated his Sixth Amendment right to confrontation under Crawford v. Washington, 541 U.S. 36, 124 S.Ct. 1354, 158 L.Ed.2d 177 (2004); certain of his own statements were procured in violation of his right against self-incrimination, his right to remain silent, and his right to secure an attorney under the United States and Indiana Constitutions; and that his 165-year sentence is inappropriate in light of his mental illness. In addition Wright argues that his sentence is effectively a life sentence and that he should have received the protections of Indiana Code section 35-50-2-9 (2007), which provides for sentences of life without parole. We affirm.

FACTS AND PROCEDURAL HISTORY

In September 2007, Wright lived with his mother, Flossie Wright, and her two foster sons, R.A. and D.N., at 4531 Shady Lane in Indianapolis. At approximately 10:20 p.m. and again at approximately 10:45 or 11:00 p.m. the night of September 15, 2007, Deandra Wilkins, who lived across the street at 4532 Shady Lane, saw Wright standing outside Flossie's home. The garage door was open, and Flossie's vehicle was inside the garage.

Hours later, at approximately 1:00 a.m. the morning of September 16, 2007, Wilkins awoke to the sound of a loud thump against her front door followed by multiple cries for help. Wilkins called the police because she was unable to see her front porch in the dark.

Upon being dispatched to the scene at 1:19 a.m., Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Officer Robert Stradling observed an individual, bleeding profusely and wearing no clothes, lying face down on Wilkins's front porch. Officer Stradling summoned an ambulance and approached the individual, whom he determined to be a young man. The young man, later identified to be Flossie's sixteen-year-old foster son R.A., had sustained sixteen stab wounds, many of them to his face, neck, chest, back, and hands. The wounds were inflicted with such force that they passed through bone, including R.A.'s scapula, and caused significant tissue and vascular damage, piercing R.A.'s left lung, puncturing his right carotid artery, right jugular vein, subclavian vein and superior vena cava, and cutting his larynx. In addition, R.A. had sustained significant arm and hand wounds, including one which cut fully through his right hand, and another which cut the tops off of his right second and third fingers.

Officer Stradling returned to his vehicle for a first aid kit and sought to administer first aid by covering certain puncture wounds in R.A.'s back, which were losing "frothy" blood.² Tr. p. 234. In doing this, Officer Stradling was trying to stop R.A.'s bleeding and help him breathe. As Officer Stradling pressed on his wounds, R.A., though very weak, succeeded in pushing himself up on his elbows and rolling over onto his back. At this point, Wilkins, who had come to her front door, identified R.A. as her neighbor who lived across the street.

Officer Stradling asked R.A., "Who did this?", and R.A. replied, "Sean." Tr. p. 237. Officer Stradling asked again, "Did you say Sean?", and R.A. confirmed this by nodding his head or repeating the name. Tr. p. 237. Officer Stradling then asked who "Sean" was, to which R.A. responded by saying, "Uncle" either once or twice. Tr. p. 237. According to Officer Stradling, Wilkins told him that there was a man named "Sean" whom everyone called "Uncle" who lived directly across the street from her house. Shortly thereafter, paramedics transported R.A. to the hospital, where he died approximately two hours later.

Authorities discovered significant blood stains on Shady Lane, as well as a large amount of blood on the back patio and back door of Flossie's house across the street at 4531 Shady Lane. Upon entering Flossie's house, authorities discovered ten-year-old D.N. and sixty-year-old Flossie, both of whom were determined to be deceased due to multiple stab wounds. D.N. was found lying on his back on a couch in the den with seven stab wounds, one of which was large and deep enough to cut through his entire body, including his aorta, and caused his intestines to protrude. Another wound, to D.N.'s chest, penetrated his chest cavity, lung, diaphragm, spleen, and stomach. D.N. also sustained a stab wound to his back and multiple defense wounds to his left arm.

Flossie had similarly sustained severe stab wounds, and was found lying on the floor in a bedroom next to the bed. Among her twelve wounds was a five-inch-deep gash which traveled completely through her chest cavity, penetrating her chest wall and both her upper and lower left lung lobes, and fracturing her ribs. In addition, Flossie sustained a stab wound to the right side of her body which fractured her ribs and injured her right lung, and stab wounds to her back which further injured her lungs. Flossie also suffered additional wounds to her right arm, right knee, and right breast.

Inside Flossie's house, which had no broken windows or doors or other signs of forced entry, authorities also discovered an empty bedroom with R.A.'s first name painted on the wall. The room contained a bloody wall and bed. The rest of the house was in a general state of disarray, with broken and overturned furniture in the living room/dining room area and blood on the walls and floor. The basement where Wright usually slept, in contrast, was undisturbed. Authorities found additional blood on the floor in the garage. The garage door was down, and there was no vehicle inside.

On the night in question, Flossie spoke on her land line telephone to Irma Nichols from 11:13 p.m. until 12:09 a.m. At approximately 1:14 a.m. the morning of September 16, Wright's girlfriend Monika Thompson received a phone call from Wright, who was using Flossie's cell phone. Wright asked Thompson, "What are you doing?", and Thompson replied that she was sleeping, after which Wright ended the call. Tr. p. 920. Hours later, at approximately 9:06 a.m., 9:08 a.m., 9:09 a.m., 9:14 a.m., and 9:20 a.m., Wright again called Thompson, who by this time had heard of Flossie's death. Thompson asked Wright what he had done, and Wright answered that he had done nothing. Wright also stated that he had been "set up." Tr. p. 922. Also the morning of September 16, Wright called Flossie's friend Haskins, who by that point was aware of the deaths, and asked her what was wrong. When Haskins responded, Wright hung up the phone. A couple of hours later, Wright again called Haskins to ask what was wrong. Haskins told him that "they said" he had killed his mother and two boys. Tr. p. 213. Wright again hung up the phone. When Wright called back later that afternoon, he reported that he was hurt.

Wright also called his minister Michael Icenberg from Flossie's phone the morning of September 16, 2007. Prior to that date, Icenberg had invited Wright to church, but Wright had not yet accepted that offer. At 8:19 a.m. on September 16, 2007, Wright called Icenberg and indicated his wish to attend church that morning. Icenberg told Wright he would pick him up. As Icenberg, who was unaware of the events on Shady Lane, headed toward Wright's Shady Lane address, Wright called again to tell him he was at a different location. Icenberg was unable to determine Wright's location in the short time he had before the church service, so Icenberg proceeded to church without Wright.

After being subsequently informed of the incidents on Shady Lane and notifying police, Icenberg called Wright, who called him back and requested a ride. Icenberg drove with an undercover detective to Wright's reported location near the intersection of East Raymond and South Sloan Streets, where authorities arrested Wright.

At the time of his arrest, Wright was bleeding from certain flesh wounds to his abdomen, yet there were no corresponding cuts to his clothing. Apart from the wounds to his abdomen, Wright did not appear to be suffering from any other injuries, such as a head wound, nor did he complain of any. Authorities found Flossie's vehicle approximately two blocks from the location of Wright's arrest. There were multiple blood stains inside the vehicle.

Authorities brought Wright to the police department, where Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Officers Edward Miller and Edward Brickley read him his Miranda rights and questioned him. During the interrogation, Wright stated, "I probably need a lawyer," and, "I'm pretty sure I do need a lawyer," after which the interrogation ended. State's Exh. 1, p. 6. After approximately five minutes, during which Wright was told he was under arrest for triple homicide, Wright indicated that he wished to speak further. Wright was re-read his Miranda rights, and the questioning continued. During this second interrogation, Wright admitted to having been at his home at 4531 Shady Lane that day but claimed he had been hit on the head and recalled nothing until he woke up near the intersection of Raymond and Sloan Streets and found he had been stabbed in the abdomen. Wright admitted that he had not sustained any head wounds during the alleged attack.

Pathologist Joye Carter, M.D. subsequently opined that the wounds to Wright's abdomen appeared to have been self-inflicted and were more recent than the wounds sustained by Flossie, R.A., and D.N. Blood stains discovered on...