Yuille v. State
| Decision Date | 11 October 2022 |
| Docket Number | WD 84802 |
| Citation | 654 S.W.3d 416 |
| Parties | Shawn Michael YUILLE, Appellant, v. STATE of Missouri, Respondent. |
| Court | Missouri Court of Appeals |
Kathryn M. Merwald, Kansas City, for appellant.
Evan J. Buchheim, Jefferson City, for respondent.
Before Division Three: Cynthia L. Martin, P.J., Lisa White Hardwick, and W. Douglas Thomson, Judges
Shawn Yuille appeals the denial of his Rule 24.035 motion after he pled guilty to second-degree felony murder and first-degree endangering the welfare of a child. Yuille contends the motion court clearly erred in denying his post-conviction motion because his sentence was grossly disproportionate. He also argues defense counsel was ineffective for failing to argue proportionality at sentencing and to object to the disproportionate sentence after it was imposed. For reasons explained herein, we affirm.
On November 25, 2017, Yuille, his five-year-old daughter ("I.R.Y."), and Jeremy Osburn went to a Wal-Mart in Chillicothe, where Osburn purchased a two-pack of air duster. Air duster is a canned cleaning product containing fluorocarbon and compressed air. As Yuille drove the truck away from Wal-Mart, both he and Osburn inhaled or "huffed" the air duster.
Later, Yuille was driving on Washington Street when he took a second huff from the air duster can. After Yuille inhaled this time, he passed out in the driver's seat with his foot on the accelerator. The truck accelerated to what witnesses described as a "great rate of speed" and struck Danette Rardon's car. When it hit Rardon's car, the truck was traveling at a rate of 88 miles per hour at 100% throttle with 0% braking. The speed limit in that area was 25 miles per hour.
Rardon was pronounced dead at the scene. Her body was pinned in the driver's seat and had to be cut out of her car. Yuille was found lying on the ground just outside the driver's side of the truck. Yuille and Osburn told officers at the scene that, before the crash, Yuille was having trouble shifting the truck's transmission into drive and that, after he was able to put the car in drive, the accelerator got stuck. Yuille had severe injuries and was flown by Life Flight to a hospital in Kansas City. I.R.Y., who was not properly restrained in her car seat at the time of the crash, had a significant laceration on her forehead, her face was covered in blood, and she, too, had to be flown to a hospital in Kansas City. Osburn had injuries to his lower extremities, but he refused medical assistance.
Later that day, Osburn confided to a friend that it was his idea to buy the air duster. Osburn told his friend that Yuille had huffed the air duster twice and that, after the second time, Yuille was unresponsive and had his foot pressed down on the accelerator. Osburn said he had to reach over and grab the wheel, and he attempted to weave the truck in and out of traffic before hitting Rardon's car. After Osburn's friend reported what Osburn had told him, the police interviewed Osburn. Osburn gave the police a statement that was consistent with what he had told his friend. A mechanical evaluation of the truck's acceleration pedal revealed it had been functioning properly at the time of the crash.
Yuille was arrested five days after the crash. When officers interviewed him following his arrest, his version of the events was consistent with Osburn's statement. Yuille claimed that he had restrained I.R.Y. in her booster seat but "she often got herself loose." Yuille also told the police that he had never inhaled air duster before and thought it was "like helium."
Yuille was originally charged with the class A felony of second-degree felony murder and the class B felony of endangering the welfare of a child. The State and Yuille entered into a plea agreement under which the State agreed to amend the endangering the welfare of a child charge to a class D felony and recommend that Yuille receive a total sentence of no more than 20 years for the second-degree felony murder and endangering the welfare of a child charges.
During the guilty plea hearing on April 15, 2019, the State informed Yuille that the range of punishment for second-degree felony murder was 10 to 30 years in prison, and the range of punishment for endangering the welfare of a child was up to seven years in prison, up to one year in the county jail, up to a $10,000 fine, or any combination of those fines and incarcerations; thus, the possible total sentence for the two offenses was 37 years. The court restated the ranges of punishment and the possible total sentence. The court also advised Yuille multiple times that it was not bound by the State's recommendation of a 20-year ceiling on his total sentence and that it could sentence him to anything within the full range of punishment on each charge and run the two sentences consecutively. Yuille stated that he understood and still wanted to plead guilty. The court accepted Yuille's guilty plea and ordered the completion of a Sentencing Assessment Report ("SAR").
Yuille's SAR included a summary of the circumstances of the incident and Yuille's and Osburn's statements about the incident. The SAR noted that, for his role in the incident, Osburn was charged with and convicted of the misdemeanor of second-degree endangering the welfare of a child. He was sentenced to 60 days in jail. The SAR further noted that, after Osburn served his 60 days in jail, he was sent to prison for a 2016 conviction for distribution of a controlled substance and was currently on parole supervision.
The SAR detailed Yuille's criminal history. Yuille, who was 23 years old at the time of the crash, had a criminal history that included the misdemeanors of violating an adult order of protection and private peace disturbance in 2011; speeding in 2014; the misdemeanors of receiving stolen property and second-degree tampering with a motor vehicle in 2015; the felony of stealing a motor vehicle in 2015; operating a motor vehicle in a careless and reckless manner in 2015; and the misdemeanor of making a false report in 2016. For the 2015 felony of stealing a motor vehicle, Yuille received a suspended imposition of sentence and five years of probation. The SAR discussed Yuille's risk assets and liabilities and other assessment factors and concluded that he was a moderate risk for community supervision and an average risk for prison. The SAR noted that, between fiscal years 2013 and 2018, the average prison sentence for second-degree murder in Missouri was 21 years.
The SAR contained victim impact statements from Rardon's mother, father, and brother describing the enormity of their loss. The SAR also included a description of the crash's impact on I.R.Y. The SAR stated that, while I.R.Y. has healed from her physical injuries, she has a scar across her forehead and is engaged in weekly therapy to address her trauma.
During the July 2, 2019 sentencing hearing, defense counsel noted that the SAR had erroneously stated that Yuille was unemployed when he was, in fact, employed full time at a tire store at the time of the incident. The State then called Rardon's father and mother to testify about the impact of the death of their daughter, a 39-year-old lawyer who was very close to her parents, brother, nieces, and nephew and was involved in numerous boards and charities. The State stood by its recommendation of a total combined sentence of 20 years.
In response, defense counsel pointed out that the SAR showed Yuille was an average risk after completing his sentence in an appropriate way. Defense counsel stated that Yuille "understands truly the mistake he made" and that he "accepts full responsibility" for "that terrible choice he made that robbed this family of that wonderful person." Defense counsel concluded by stating Yuille "simply asks that you be fair in your judgment, that you consider the elements and the issues set forth in the Sentencing Assessment Report, and that you grant him leniency in this matter to the extent you think that is also just under the circumstances." Yuille then addressed the court, stating,
Before pronouncing sentencing, the court addressed Yuille:
The court then sentenced Yuille to 30 years in prison for second-degree felony murder and five years in prison for endangering the welfare of a...
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