There the prosecutor invited jurors to speculate what the victim must have thought when [defendant] burst through that door ; the anguish she must have felt when she saw that knife ; and how long that time must have seemed to [the victim]. 272 Kan. at 1112. However, we have emphasized that [n]egative media coverage by itself is insufficient to establish actual prejudice. Carr, 300 Kan. 1, Syl. Immediate Family: Son of John Waller Robinson and Mary Bondurant Ayres. William Bonner paid his ex-wife $1,000 in monthly alimony for 18 months. Sufficiency of Evidence of Common Scheme or Course of Conduct. 1698 (2015). The Criminal Code defined deception as knowingly and willfully making a false statement or representation, express or implied, pertaining to a present or past existing fact. K.S.A. Stasi said they wanted her to sign four blank sheets of paper. 2. This list included the mailing addresses and, for some, birthday information for Trouten's family members. A. I think I can do that., In response to this unsolicited comment, defense counsel suggested Juror 271 would still expect the defense to put on evidence. At the outset, we take the unusual step of noting that our review of this mattergiven its size and complexityhas been assisted and facilitated by the diligence and professionalism of the trial judge, Judge Anderson, throughout the proceedings below. K.S.A. 546, 50 L.Ed.2d 444 (1977). Since Irvin, the Supreme Court has twice considered and rejected claims that juror declarations of impartiality should be set aside. However, neither Woods nor Hanks held that a single identifiable goal or motive of the defendant was a prerequisite to finding a common scheme. Given that Robinson resided in and ran his businesses out of Johnson County, it is not surprising that the State's evidence overwhelmingly demonstrated that he carried out this common scheme or course of conduct almost exclusively within Johnson County. See State v. Williams, 299 Kan. 509, 540, 324 P.3d 1078 (2014). See Schlaikjer v. Kaplan, 296 Kan. 456, 468, 293 P.3d 155 (2013) (appellate courts accept findings supported by substantial competent evidence). Robinson contends the district judge erroneously denied his challenge of Juror 23 because pretrial publicity would cause him to shift the burden of proof to Robinson. Debbie was born with a number of birth defects, including cerebral palsy, which limited her ability to walk and control her bladder, forcing her to wear adult diapers later in life. We found no abuse of discretion in the ruling. Also, defendant misconstrues Warledo. The United States District Court for the District of Kansas also has embraced this construction of the search warrant statutes. At trial, Robinson challenged his first-degree murder conviction, but not the capital convictions, as multiplicitous. This inquiry is broken into two components, both of which must be met for there to be a double jeopardy violation: (1) Do the convictions arise from the same conduct? Admission of Other Crimes or Civil Wrongs Evidence. See City of Dodge City v. Ingram, 33 Kan.App.2d 829, 83738, 109 P.3d 1272 (2005) (prosecutor's comments that defense simply arguing smoke and mirrors' and [g]rasping at straws' not improper). Reason to Protect Jurors from Identification. Judge Anderson decided Juror 14 adequately explained his questionnaire responses and demonstrated his fidelity to the law. He could not determine if the blows rendered them immediately unconscious. Includes Address(6) Phone(7) Email(4) See Results. He contends the alleged misconduct exacerbated the trial court's other jury selection errors. 213439(a)(6), in Gleason, we again required only that the multiple murders be related to one another in some way. Not the least of their problems is that of assembling the witnesses, lawyers, and jurors at the same place at the same time, and this burden counsels against continuances except for compelling reasons. K.S.A. During the second phase of jury selection, Judge Anderson assigned veniremembers to small group panels for questioning on bias related to pretrial publicity and the death penalty. 222401a(2). Robinson's counsel objected, arguing that the circumstances the prosecutor had identified were not all valid, statutory aggravating circumstances. However, Juror 229 confirmed her ability to set these views aside and reach a sentencing decision based on aggravating and mitigating circumstances. Ponce returned to Mexico around May 10 and mailed the letters from a hotel in Veracruz several days later after writing the sender's initials on the envelopes as Robinson had instructed. See State v. McCullough, 293 Kan. 970, 98081, 270 P.3d 1142 (2012) (trial court abuses discretion where substantial competent evidence does not support a finding upon which a legal conclusion rests). See, e.g., State v. Anderson, 294 Kan. 450, 463, 276 P.3d 200 (statement that the victim's redemption would come with a guilty verdict is an appeal to emotion that attempts to pressure a verdict from the jury out of pity for the victim, rather than the defendant's guilt, and is an attempt to divert the jury's attention from the evidence), cert. 2516, 165 L.Ed.2d 429 (2006) (the Kansas capital sentencing system is dominated by the presumption that life imprisonment is the appropriate sentence for a capital conviction), and therefore, those veniremembers who would not presume a life sentence upon conviction for capital murder were not qualified to serve. A short time later, the jury returned a verdict of death on both capital murder counts. Robinson again challenges Juror 271, claiming he would fail to honor the statutory presumption for a life sentence. He is responsible for the death and disappearances of eight women, Paula Godfrey, Lisa Stasi, Catherine Clampitt, Beverly Bonner, Sheila Faith, Debbie Faith, Izabela Lewicka and Suzette Trouten. I truly thought he would probably leave me for her." On appeal, defendant advanced only two theories supporting his venue challenge: actual prejudice under the Sixth Amendment and abuse of discretion under Kansas' venue change statute. At a family reunion in 1983, Donald and Helen told Robinson they were pursuing a private adoption. K51711). First, since Morgan, the majority of federal appellate courts have rejected the notion that the Constitution mandates case-specific questioning during voir dire in capital proceedings. It wasnt true, of course. John Robinson, Trevor Robinson, Joann Robinson. Did jurors ignore admonitions, demonstrating actual prejudice? That construction principle is even more compelling in a death penalty case, considering the following: [D]eath is a different kind of punishment from any other which may be imposed in this country From the point of view of the defendant, it is different in both its severity and its finality. They also demonstrate that Mattingly's testimony was not prejudicial and, in fact, worked to Robinson's benefit. We do not reweigh evidence, resolve evidentiary conflicts, or make witness credibility determinations when reviewing the sufficiency of the evidence. Instead, Judge Anderson granted the continuance, providing defense counsel roughly 1 full year to prepare for trial. If it becomes apparent during voir dire that an impartial jury cannot be found, the Court will not be reluctant to order a change of venue., 2. The State presented ample evidence that Robinson lured his victims with promises of financial gain, employment, or travel; exploited them sexually or financially; used similar methods to murder and dispose of their bodies; and used deception to conceal the crimes, including phony letters and e-mails to victims' friends and family members. Defendant relies on the same testimony cited in support of his challenge of Juror 271 on grounds that he would automatically vote for a sentence of death. The prosecutor did not inject information from other capital cases or otherwise discuss matters beyond the evidence. Second, Robinson argues Judge Anderson improperly minimized testimony regarding the delay created by the number of witnesses endorsed by the State. Mattingly's preliminary hearing testimony was generally consistent with the proffer. 4648. Also, prosecutor Morrison thought he recognized Juror 184 as a participant of a weekend marriage seminar the prosecutor and his wife taught more than a decade prior. Robinson fails to establish any specific grounds for error. In terms of the position that the arms or hand was in at the time the blow was inflicted, that's not something that you would determine from an autopsy. Stay up-to-date with how the law affects your life. ] and telling him to leave her alone. The trial court granted the State's motion at an August 2002 hearing. at 2756 (Breyer, J., dissenting). Judge Anderson made these remarks to calm the jurors so their responses would be forthright and complete, allowing him to make an informed decision based on an accurate recitation of the facts. The expert said his mother physically abused him, and blamed him for the death of his brother. A whole paragraph and a half trying to explain why she would leave her car there. Nor, we hope, should it reopen, heighten, or otherwise cheapen the terrible pain and suffering Robinson's conduct caused to Lewicka and the still living victims of her murder. Family members last saw Stasi and Tiffany in early January 1985. Finally, Robinson argues Juror 147 should never have been seated because he was excused for cause on the first day of jury selection for failing to appear. However, Fell merely recognized that rather than reject all case-specific questions, a trial court should allow such questions to be asked when they are reasonably directed toward discovering juror bias. 372 F.Supp.2d at 771. With this knowledge, he said he was confident he could realistically consider a life sentence. Lewicka shopped there one more time prior to winter 1999, and Meyers never saw her again. See Romano, 512 U.S. at 9 (instructions that emphasized the importance of the jury's role diminished the type of prejudice created in Caldwell ). Robinson maintains this conviction and sentence is multiplicitous with both capital murder counts since Stasi's death is alleged as a predicate murder for both those counts. Robinson suggests that the prosecutor participated in press conferences, but none of the media-published facts defendant contends to be uniquely prejudicial were connected to the prosecution. Learn more about FindLaws newsletters, including our terms of use and privacy policy. Morgan ultimately held the petitioner was entitled, upon his request, to inquiry discerning those jurors who, even prior to the State's case in chief, had predetermined the terminating issue of his trial, that being whether to impose the death penalty. 504 U.S. at 736.
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