Source: http://www.texaslawyer.com/id=1202588690994&United_States_v_Snarr_et_al
Timestamp: 2014-04-17 18:48:15
Document Index: 554496675

Matched Legal Cases: ['§ 1111', '§ 3592', '§ 1861', '§ 12101', '§ 1865', '§ 1865', '§ 1865']

United States v. Snarr, et al. | Texas Lawyer
Before STEWART, Chief Judge , and KING and OWEN, Circuit Judges.
Following their joint trial, a jury found Defendants-Appellants Mark Snarr and Edgar Garcia guilty of murdering Gabriel Rhone, a fellow inmate at the United States Penitentiary in Beaumont, Texas. After the jury unanimously recommended capital punishment for each defendant, the district court sentenced them to death. Defendants appeal their convictions and sentences. For the reasons that follow, we AFFIRM.
On January 21, 2009, a federal grand jury returned a one-count indictment against Mark Snarr and Edgar Garcia ("Defendants"), charging them with murdering Gabriel Rhone in violation of 18 U.S.C. §§ 1111 and 2. The indictment provided notice of special findings for both Snarr and Garcia, and on February 9, 2009, the government filed notice of its intent to seek the death penalty against both defendants.
The evidence adduced at trial showed that, on November 28, 2007, Rhone, Snarr, and Garcia were incarcerated at the federal penitentiary in Beaumont, Texas. That day, as prison guards escorted Snarr and Garcia from outdoor recreation areas to their respective cells, Defendants escaped from their handcuffs and produced handmade weapons known as "shanks." Unaware that Garcia had a shank, and believing that Snarr was preparing to attack Garcia, correctional officer Dewight Baloney positioned himself between the two men, with his back toward Garcia. Garcia then stabbed Baloney in the back, as Snarr attacked him from the front. Defendants continued assaulting Baloney as he struggled to reach a secure location, ultimately stabbing him twenty-three times in approximately fifteen seconds. After Baloney escaped, Defendants turned their attention to correctional officer Josh McQueen. Snarr stabbed McQueen while demanding from him keys to the inmates' cells. When McQueen refused to surrender his keys, Garcia stabbed him, at which point Snarr was able to rip McQueen's keys from his duty belt.
Defendants then ran down a corridor to Rhone's cell. Snarr attempted for almost a full minute to unlock the cell door, while Garcia-who, according to one witness, appeared "to be taunting the inmates" in the cell with his shank-yelled either "I'm going to kill you," or "We going to kill you." When Defendants finally opened the door, Rhone fled from his cell and Defendants began stabbing him. One witness to the events testified that, in the midst of the attack, Defendants "were in a frenzy . . . repeatedly stabbing [Rhone] over and over." Despite officers' commands that they stop, Defendants continued their assault on Rhone until they saw that officers were preparing to use riot control equipment to clear the area. As Defendants retreated, one of them yelled, "That's how you get your enemy," and Snarr exclaimed, "Dude disrespected us, and that's what he got."
Only then were officers able to attend to Rhone, who by that time already appeared to be dead. Prison officials attempted to resuscitate him, but shortly after the attack, Rhone was pronounced dead at a Beaumont hospital. An autopsy revealed that he had sustained fifty stab wounds: eighteen to the front of his body, and thirty-two to the back. The cause of Rhone's death was listed as "multiple stab wounds of the heart, lung, and liver," with the injury to his heart being the fatal wound.
On May 7, 2010, jurors deliberated for just over one hour before returning guilty verdicts against both Snarr and Garcia for Rhone's murder. During the eligibility phase of the trial, the government submitted several statutory aggravating factors to establish Defendants' eligibility for the death penalty.*fn1 These included, for both defendants, that the offense had been committed: (1) "in an especially heinous, cruel, or depraved manner in that it involved torture or serious physical abuse to the victim," and (2) "after substantial planning and premeditation to cause the death of a person." 18 U.S.C. § 3592(c)(6), (9). To substantiate these factors, the government introduced a number of exhibits and presented several witnesses over a two-day period.
On May 12, 2010, the jury unanimously concluded that Defendants were eligible for the death penalty. That same day, the district court began the selection phase of Defendants' trial. In support of its position that Defendants' crime warranted the death penalty, the government alleged the existence of multiple non-statutory aggravating factors, including, as relevant here, that each defendant "poses a continuing and serious threat to the lives and safety of others because it is likely that he will commit criminal acts of violence in the future." On May 21, 2010, the jury unanimously selected the death penalty for both Snarr and Garcia. The district court subsequently sentenced Defendants to death in accordance with the jury's recommendation. Defendants now appeal their convictions and sentences.
On appeal, Defendants raise a host of challenges, which broadly may be characterized as follows: (1) given numerous errors committed during the jury selection process, Defendants were denied their constitutional rights to an impartial jury, due process, and equal protection; (2) the district court improperly denied Defendants' request for a lesser-included-offense instruction; (3) the government presented insufficient evidence to support the jury's conclusion regarding the applicability of three aggravating factors; (4) the district court abused its discretion in denying Defendants' motion for severance; (5) the Federal Death Penalty Act ("FDPA") is unconstitutional; (6) the district court improperly excluded character evidence related to the victim; (7) the district court abused its discretion in excluding Garcia's "execution impact" evidence; and (8) this court's chief judge denied Defendants due process by overruling the district court and issuing an order partially reducing and partially denying funds Garcia requested for the retention of certain investigators and experts. We consider each of these claims in turn.
A. Jury Selection Challenges
Defendants assign three errors to the district court in connection with the jury selection process. First, Defendants argue that the court improperly excluded for cause five prospective jurors who expressed reservations about imposing the death penalty. Second, Defendants contend that the court erred in dismissing a venire person who indicated that he had a physical infirmity that would impair his ability to render effective jury service.*fn2 Finally, Defendants submit that the court improperly denied their for cause challenges to three prospective jurors.
(1) Prospective Jurors Dismissed for Death Penalty Objections
A district court's dismissal of a prospective juror for cause because of his or her views on capital punishment is reviewed for abuse of discretion. United States v. Bernard, 299 F.3d 467, 474 (5th Cir. 2002). "Deference to the trial court is appropriate because it is in a position to assess the demeanor of the venire, and of the individuals who compose it, a factor of critical importance in assessing the attitude and qualifications of potential jurors." Uttecht v. Brown, 551 U.S. 1, 9 (2007). We thus give "considerable deference" to a district court's decision to dismiss a juror based on his or her opposition to the death penalty. United States v. Fields, 483 F.3d 313, 357 (5th Cir. 2007).
In Witherspoon v. Illinois, the Supreme Court held that a capital defendant's right to trial by an impartial jury is violated when a court universally excuses for cause all members of the venire who express conscientious objections to the death penalty. 391 U.S. 510, 521--22 (1968). Nevertheless, "[a] court may excuse a prospective juror for cause because of his views on capital punishment if those views would prevent or substantially impair the performance of his duties as a juror in accordance with the instructions and oath." United States v. Webster, 162 F.3d 308, 340 (5th Cir. 1998) (citing Wainwright v. Witt, 469 U.S. 412, 424 (1985)). A prospective juror, therefore, properly is dismissed if, regardless of the facts and circumstances of a case, he indicates that he personally could not impose the death penalty. See Fields, 483 F.3d at 357. Additionally, because "many veniremen simply cannot be asked enough questions to reach the point where their bias has been made 'unmistakably clear,'" dismissal for cause is also appropriate if the court "is left with the definite impression that a prospective juror would be unable to faithfully and impartially apply the law." Wainwright, 469 U.S. at 425--26. Accordingly, this court repeatedly has deemed proper a lower court's dismissal for cause of a prospective juror who has wavered or given conflicting or ambiguous signals as to whether he or she could sentence a defendant to death. See, e.g., United States v. Jackson, 549 F.3d 963, 973 (5th Cir. 2008); Ortiz v. Quarterman, 504 F.3d 492, 502--03 (5th Cir. 2007); Bernard, 299 F.3d at 474--75; Webster, 162 F.3d at 340--41.
Here, each member of the venire submitted answers to a written questionnaire, after which he or she was questioned by both government and defense counsel. Defendants argue that the district court abused its discretion in dismissing for cause five prospective jurors who expressed reservations during this process about their ability to impose capital punishment. As discussed below, we disagree.
The first venire person whose dismissal Defendants contest is prospective juror number three ("Lacy"). Although Defendants acknowledge that Lacy expressed conscientious scruples against the death penalty, they argue that when questioned by defense counsel, Lacy indicated that she would follow the law and would answer questions truthfully, even if that resulted in a death sentence. Defendants also emphasize that Lacy indicated that she would "follow the evidence" and was "not going to disregard it."
Even so, Lacy answered in the affirmative when asked whether her "personal feelings against the death penalty would always prevent [her] from voting for the death penalty." Further, when asked if she thought her "feelings against the death penalty would substantially impair [her] or prevent [her] from ever voting for it regardless of what the evidence and the law instructed," she replied that they would. The court observed Lacy's demeanor and heard her testimony. That testimony revealed Lacy's consistent opposition to the death penalty and her view that, because of that opposition, she was unable to affirm that she could faithfully follow her oath as a juror. Accordingly, the district court did not abuse its discretion in excusing her. See Jackson, 549 F.3d at 973.
Next, Defendants submit that the court erred in dismissing prospective juror number sixty-six ("Stephenson"). In particular, Defendants contend that the sum of Stephenson's testimony was that "she did not know how she felt" about the death penalty and that she "never said she could not impose it." Defendants argue that Stephenson even stated that she could vote in favor of capital punishment "if the Holy Spirit was guiding her" to do so.
In excusing her, however, the court emphasized that throughout her questionnaire, Stephenson had indicated that she was opposed to the death penalty, that she could not impose it, and that she "thought it was God's job to put persons to death." The court correctly explained that Stephenson never affirmed that she would be able to return a verdict of death if the facts and circumstances warranted it under the law. In light of Stephenson's ambiguous responses during voir dire, and her "strange" demeanor, the district court was unable to ascertain whether-notwithstanding her opposition to the death penalty-she would be able "to faithfully and impartially apply the law."
Wainwright, 469 U.S. at 426. As such, the court did not abuse its discretion in excusing her.
Defendants also allege that potential juror number 130 ("Kimball") should not have been dismissed.*fn3 Kimball previously had served on a jury that imposed the death penalty, which Defendants suggest supports their conclusion that Kimball could have fulfilled his duties impartially as a juror in this case. Defendants also note that Kimball indicated that he generally favored the death penalty, and he affirmed that he "would base a decision to impose it on the facts and the law in the case."
Nevertheless, on his questionnaire, Kimball expressed in response to three separate questions that he did not think he could impose the death penalty a second time. During individual voir dire, Kimball testified that he might not be able to vote for the death penalty even if it was called for "under the law and the facts." He stated that imposing capital punishment in the first case for which he had served as a juror had bothered him "an awful lot," and had caused him to experience nightmares wherein he would "see the defendant's face." When asked if he thought his "personal feelings would substantially impair [his] ability to go ahead and vote for the death penalty," Kimball replied, "I'm not really sure." Even under questioning by defense counsel, Kimball consistently indicated that he did not know whether he could impose the death penalty in a second case. Because Kimball was consistent as to the fact that his personal feelings about imposing the death penalty in this case prevented him from attesting that he would faithfully and impartially apply the law, the district court did not abuse its discretion in dismissing Kimball for cause.*fn4 See Bernard, 299 F.3d at 474--75.
Defendants next maintain that the district court erred in excusing prospective juror number 140 ("Furby"). Although Defendants acknowledge that Furby expressed doubts about her ability to impose the death penalty, they stress that she also indicated that she "would follow [her] oath and follow the law." Additionally, they note that Furby stated that she would not submit a "false answer" on verdict forms simply to avoid voting for the death penalty. Finally, Defendants emphasize that when asked whether she could follow her oath and vote for the death penalty if she "heard enough bad evidence from the government" to satisfy her that the death penalty was warranted, Furby stated that "I guess if I was put in that situation, yes."
Notwithstanding this statement, however, Furby repeatedly indicated that she did not know whether she could vote for the death penalty. Indeed, she stated that the "scariness" of capital punishment would impair her ability to vote "for the death penalty even if [she] felt like the facts justified that verdict." When eventually asked directly whether she was "going to follow [her] oath or not" and impose the death penalty if it was warranted, she stated "I'm not going to." In light of Furby's vacillations as to whether she personally could impose capital punishment, and her explicit statement that her personal feelings would prevent her from following her oath, the district court did not abuse its discretion in granting the government's motion to strike her for cause. See Wainwright, 469 U.S. at 425--26.
Finally, Defendants assert that the district court erred in dismissing for cause prospective juror number two-hundred ("Blackmon"). During voir dire, Blackmon stated to defense counsel that she had a "religious problem" with imposing capital punishment unless the case involved a child or an act of domestic violence. This generally was consistent with her questionnaire, wherein Blackmon had noted that she was against capital punishment except in cases involving "killing a child, abusing a child, child molestation, [or] killing an elderly person." Nevertheless, Defendants argue that Blackmon should not have been dismissed because she testified that she was willing to keep an open mind that there might be other cases that could warrant a death sentence. Further, Defendants also emphasize that, when questioned by defense counsel, Blackmon stated that she could vote for the death penalty if the government established the appropriateness of such a sentence.
Despite this testimony, however, Blackmon stated that although she had "waffled" when answering defense counsel's questions, she did not think she "could live with [herself] if" she voted for the death penalty in this case. When government counsel asked if he would "ever have a chance of getting a death penalty verdict from" Blackmon in cases not involving victims she had listed on her questionnaire, she replied "[p]robably not." Finally, Blackmon stated that she would not be able to follow her oath or the court's instruction if it meant imposing capital punishment in this case. Given Blackmon's position that she would not follow the oath to faithfully and impartially apply the law in this case, the district court did not abuse its discretion in dismissing her. See Jackson, 549 F.3d at 973--74.
(2) Prospective Juror Dismissed for a Physical Infirmity
Defendants also raise a host of challenges to the district court's dismissal of a prospective juror who indicated during voir dire that he had a physical infirmity that might have impeded his ability to render jury service. First, Defendants claim that the court's action in excusing this venire person was contrary to the Jury Selection and Service Act. 28 U.S.C. § 1861, et seq.Second, Defendants submit that the court violated the Americans with Disabilities Act ("ADA") by dismissing this juror. 42 U.S.C. § 12101, et seq. Finally, Defendants contend that excusing this juror violated their constitutional rights to equal protection and to have a venire drawn from a fair cross section of the community.
"Determinations as to the general qualifications of jurors are reviewed for abuse of discretion." United States v. Whitfield, 590 F.3d 325, 360 (5th Cir. 2009).As a question of law, the applicability of the ADA is reviewed de novo. See Jackson, 549 F.3d at 969. Defendants' constitutional claims were not raised below and, as such, are reviewed only for plain error. See United States v. Goldfaden, 959 F.2d 1324, 1327--28 (5th Cir. 1992). Plain error review "requires considerable deference to the district court." United States v. Peltier, 505 F.3d 389, 391 (5th Cir. 2007).
(b) Prospective Juror Number 232
On his questionnaire, prospective juror number 232 ("Horton") indicated that he took medications that caused him to use the restroom frequently. He testified that although he wished to serve as a juror, his health kept him from so doing. Horton first estimated that he needed to use the facilities roughly every sixty to ninety minutes, though he later indicated that he had done so five times during the two-and-a-half hour period he was at the courthouse. He further stated that his inability to use the restroom when needed "would be a distraction" and would impede his ability to concentrate on the proceedings. After the court informed Horton that, during trial, "it could be as much as two hours at a time without a break," Horton was unable to assure the court that he could wait that long without using the facilities. He later stated that while he knew he might be required to sit for an hour or two and be "undisturbed about that . . . that's just not going to work for me." The court finally asked Horton directly if he was asking to be excused, to which Horton replied in the affirmative. The court therefore dismissed him.
(c) The Jury Selection and Service Act
Defendants first imply that Horton's dismissal violated the Jury Selection and Service Act, which sets forth the qualifications for jury service in federal courts. 28 U.S.C. § 1865. As relevant, a person is disqualified from service under the Act's provisions if he is unable "by reason of mental or physical infirmity, to render satisfactory jury service." Id. at § 1865(b)(4).
"A court has broad discretion to determine whether to excuse a juror for cause" pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1865(b)(4). United States v. Solomon, 273 F.3d 1108, 2001 WL 1131955, at *3 (5th Cir. 2001) (per curiam) (unpublished). In Solomon, for example, we affirmed the dismissal for cause of a prospective juror who suffered from an obsessive compulsive disorder. Id. When asked whether his co