Title: Brown v. Com.
Citation: 558 S.W.2d 599
Docket Number: N/A
State: Kentucky
Issuer: Kentucky Supreme Court
Date: November 18, 1977

558 S.W.2d 599 (1977) Larry Joseph BROWN, Appellant, v. COMMONWEALTH of Kentucky, Appellee. Supreme Court of Kentucky. November 18, 1977. *600 Kevin M. McNally, Asst. Public Defender, Frankfort, for appellant. Robert F. Stephens, Atty. Gen., Mark F. Armstrong, Asst. Atty. Gen., Frankfort, for appellee. JONES, Justice. On July 19, 1976, Larry Joseph Brown, alias Nathaniel Hardin, was indicted on three counts: first degree robbery (KRS 515.020); murder (KRS 507.020); and theft by unlawful taking (KRS 514.030). At a pre-trial conference by agreement of counsel, the indictment was amended to read: "Nathaniel Hardin alias Larry Joseph Brown." The jury found Brown guilty on all counts. It fixed his punishment at 20 years on the robbery conviction, life on the murder conviction, and 5 years on the theft conviction. Brown asserts three grounds for reversal of the convictions: (1) error resulted when a police officer referred to him by his nickname, "Killer"; (2) the trial court allowed into evidence an involuntary confession; and (3) photographs of the deceased were allowed into evidence over the objection of his attorney. Chester Coleman Parke was a route salesman for the Paul Myers Company. On June 3, 1976, he called on Daley's Market on West 4th and Schmidt Streets in Lexington, Kentucky. The owner, Robert Lee Williams, showed Mr. Parke a .22 caliber pistol which he kept in the store. Five or ten minutes after Parke arrived at Daley's Market, two black men entered the store. One *601 of them asked for a candy bar. When Williams went to the cash register, one of the men pulled a pistol on Williams. Williams attempted to defend himself with his pistol. However, one of the robbers shot and killed Williams. Johnny Christopher Jones, a co-indictee, testified that on the morning of the murder Brown came to his house. Brown wanted Jones to accompany him in a planned robbery. At that time, Brown had a .38 caliber pistol. Jones and Brown went to Daley's Market. Jones testified that Williams began the shooting. Jones then fled the store and Brown fled shortly afterwards. Jones testified that Brown told him he had shot the man in the store. Jones also admitted to participation in a theft from an automobile, where he took the sum of $300 or $400. He further testified he gave the money to Brown. When he and Brown were arrested, Brown had the money on his person. Clyde Norton, manager of the J. T. Barrick Hardware, had $314.27 in the glove compartment of his automobile. When he returned from lunch he found his car had been broken into and the money taken. When Brown was arrested on June 4, 1976, a police officer removed from Brown an envelope containing $300, which was marked "J.T. Barrick Hardware." Norton identified the envelope as containing the money taken from his car. Other evidence was that a Lexington police officer obtained a finger print that was identical to Brown's. A .38 metal slug was retrieved from the scene of the crime. A Harrison-Gilroy test on Brown was conducted by a Kentucky State Police laboratory technician. The technician testified that the test, which is used to determine whether any residue from the firing of a pistol is present on the person, showed a positive reaction from the swab taken from the palm of Brown's right hand. On June 4, 1976, Larry Brown made a voluntary statement to Detective Kirby Allen, a Lexington Metropolitan police officer. In that statement, Brown, after being advised of his constitutional rights,[1] stated: Brown had made a previous statement in which he denied any knowledge of the robbery or theft. Brown did not take the witness stand and made no defense against the evidence presented against him. This court now turns to the issues Brown raises in support of his argument for reversal. Prior to the trial, Brown's attorney requested that the Commonwealth's Attorney refrain from expressing to the jury Brown's nickname, "Killer." The colloquy between the court, the Commonwealth's Attorney, and Brown's counsel, at the pretrial conference concerning this question, is as follows: Despite the trial court's ruling, Detective Giles a police veteran of 13 years, testified that he was called upon to assist in the investigation of Larry Brown on June 3, 1976. After receiving information about the murder he was asked: Brown's counsel immediately moved for a mistrial on the ground that Officer Giles *603 referred to Brown as "Killer" in open court before the jury. He contended this statement irreparably harmed Brown and caused such prejudice so as to prevent him from obtaining a fair trial. The court overruled the motion, but gave a strong admonition. The incident is unfortunate. This court notes, however, that there was no deliberate attempt by the prosecutor to elicit the nickname. Therefore the trial court's order was not violated. It clearly directed the prosecutor not to deliberately elicit the nickname. Brown cites a number of cases in support of his position that this was so prejudicial as to affect his substantial rights and that a mistrial should have been declared. It is true that this court has often denounced placing labels on the accused, but the cases cited by Brown are distinguishable from the facts in this case. Cf. Spirko v. Commonwealth, Ky., 480 S.W.2d 169 (1972). This court is not convinced by Brown's argument that the nickname indicates such a history of violence that it is prejudicial in a defense against a charge of murder. The admonition by the trial court follows: This court is of the view that Brown's nickname, "Killer" is not such as to indicate a violent character or that he killed in the past. The trial court pointed out that the name "Killer" is given to a character created by the comedian, Flip Wilson. Flip plays the part of Geraldine whose boyfriend is "Killer," noted for his romantic endeavors and not his violence. On October 25, 1977, a sports writer referred to the Kentucky football team as follows: "Curci's Killers Thrive on Strength, Speed." On November 1, 1977, another sports writer for the Courier Journal stated: "Lee Corso, still glowing following Indiana's big victory over Michigan-Killer Minnesota, said . . . we're having a great year." Those terms were used to show the competitive spirit of the Kentucky Wildcats and the Indiana Hoosiers. Admittedly, it would have been better if the veteran detective had not mentioned Brown's alias as "Killer." However, it is difficult for this court to see how a jury could be prejudiced in this case, especially in light of the trial court's strong admonition to the jury. This court is of the view that under the totality of the evidence and Brown's confession; coupled with the trial court's admonition, the irregularity was not prejudicial to Brown's substantial rights. Brown's next claim of error concerns the admission of evidence. He argues that the trial court committed reversible error and denied his right against compulsory incrimination by permitting introduction of a confession when he was ill from heroin withdrawal. On August 17, 1976, Brown moved to suppress his pretrial confession. After a full evidentiary hearing, the trial court made extensive findings of fact and denied the motion. The trial court found that Brown's confession was free and voluntary and that he was not suffering symptoms of drug withdrawal. The question presented here is whether the factual determination *604 of the trial court and its ruling was erroneous. This court is of the view that it was not. The trial court also found that there was no evidence, other than that of Brown, that he was a heroin addict. The trial court found also that Brown was advised of all his constitutional rights and that he voluntarily talked with the police and understood he had a right to remain silent. This court has established guidelines for trial courts faced with the question of the voluntariness of a confession: It is obvious that the trial court followed the procedure outlined in Britt, supra. Thus, the trial court's ruling was not clearly erroneous. Brown's final argument is a constant recurring one. It relates to the introduction of photographs. The Commonwealth's Attorney introduced ten photographs, all of which were admitted in evidence as exhibits. Seven of the photographs depict Daley's neat, well-stocked market (the scene of the crime). Another is a photograph of the meat counter at the back of the store near the cash register. It shows the area where fingerprint powder had been applied to the meat counter. No objection was made to the introduction and admission of these eight photographs. The other two pictures show the body of Williams [the deceased]. When these were introduced, counsel for Brown strenuously objected to their introduction and admission. He contended the pictures were "gruesome," and were not essential evidentiary material. The first photograph shows the body of Williams lying on the floor, face up, with blood on the front of his shirt in the area of his upper chest. The second photograph shows Williams' body at the morgue. His shirt was open, exposing his bare chest. It depicts a wound in his upper chest where the bullet that caused death entered his body. The trial court overruled Brown's objection and denied his motion for a mistrial. Photographs of a victim of a homicide or the scene of a crime constitute demonstrative evidence which is often an aid to the jury in the trial of a case. It is true that "one picture is worth more than 10,000 words."[2] A famous author phrased it in this fashion, "A picture shows me at a glance what it takes dozens of pages of a book to expound."[3] In this advanced technological age of television, movies, and the news media, children, as well as adults, are exposed to more gruesome, repulsive and nauseous depictions of human misery and tragedy than that shown in prosecutions for murder, manslaughter or other types of homicide. On a November day in 1963, the viewing public witnessed the assassination of President Kennedy as his motorcade made its way through the streets of Dallas, Texas. Subsequently, the public witnessed the murder of the President's assassin as he was brought from the jail to a courtroom. Five years later, the public again witnessed the assassination of Attorney General Robert Kennedy. Later, the violent death of Martin Luther King was shown to the viewing *605 public, as well as the abortive attempt to kill the governor of Alabama. In today's society, violence and tragedy walk hand in hand. They are not strangers to the viewing public and prospective jurors. The statement in Brown's brief, "It would appear that in this jurisdiction all photographs of the scene of the crime are now admissible no matter how heinous the crime," is accurate to the extent that a photograph that is otherwise admissible does not become inadmissible simply because it is gruesome and the crime is heinous. Thus the trial court properly admitted in evidence the photographs about which complaint is made. The judgment is affirmed. All concur. [1] Miranda v. Arizona, 384 U.S. 436, 86 S. Ct. 1602, 16 L. Ed. 2d 694 (1966). [2] Chinese Proverb. [3] Turgenev, Fathers and Sons, Ch. 5 (1962).