Title: West v. State
Citation: 519 So. 2d 418
Docket Number: N/A
State: Mississippi
Issuer: Mississippi Supreme Court
Date: January 13, 1988

519 So. 2d 418 (1988) Samuel Tony WEST, a/k/a Tony Wells West v. STATE of Mississippi. No. DP-61. Supreme Court of Mississippi. January 13, 1988. William B. Kirksey, Kirksey &amp; DeLaughter, Jackson, for appellant. Edwin Lloyd Pittman, Atty. Gen. by Marvin L. White, Jr., Asst. Atty. Gen., and Donald G. Barlow and Felicia C. Adams, Sp. Asst. Attys. Gen., Jackson, for appellee. EN BANC. ROY NOBLE LEE, Chief Justice, for the Court: Samuel Tony West has appealed from a conviction of capital murder and judgment imposing the death penalty, entered in the Circuit Court of Warren County, Honorable John E. Ellis, presiding, and assigns ten (10) errors in the trial below. We reverse and remand the case for a new trial on both the guilt phase and the sentencing phase. This is the second appearance of this case before the Mississippi Supreme Court. After the first trial and imposition of the *419 death penalty, this Court reversed and remanded the case to the lower court because the State presented evidence of two murders committed in Georgia previous to the robbery/murder of Kirby Phelps in Warren County, Mississippi, and the introduction at the sentence phase of Georgia convictions, which recited that West had been found guilty of capital murder and sentenced to be executed. See West v. State, 463 So. 2d 1048 (Miss. 1985). The facts of the homicide are reported in West v. State, supra, and we relate only such facts as will render a coherent understanding of the case presently before us. On December 13-14, 1982, Tony West and Kenneth Avery Brock drove from Chattooga County, Georgia, on Interstate Highway 20 west through Alabama into Mississippi and Warren County. They stopped at Bovina, Warren County, in a rest area and went to sleep. The next morning on December 15, 1982, West and Brock awakened and saw a brown Toyota automobile parked nearby. Inside was 26-year-old Navy Lt. Kirby Phelps, who also had stopped at the Bovina rest area and was asleep. West and Brock were out of money and needed different transportation from the jeep in which they were traveling. They went to the Toyota, awakened Phelps, and, at gunpoint, handcuffed him with cuffs taken in Georgia. While Brock searched the Toyota for valuables, West took Phelps and, with the pistol pointed at him, walked two hundred to three hundred yards into woods adjoining the rest area. During that time, West shot Phelps three times in the head, killing him, and left his body in the wooded area. Later that day, Civil War relic hunters discovered Phelps' body and reported it to the Warren County sheriff. West and Brock drove on Interstate 20 into Louisiana, where they abandoned the jeep, but continued in the stolen Toyota to Austin, Texas. There they pawned the stereo system, a camera and cassette tapes found in the automobile. They parted ways, and West drove the Toyota eastward back to his hometown of Chattanooga, Tennessee, and, on December 25, 1982, voluntarily surrendered to police.[1] Appellant contends that the trial judge was actively involved in the case on behalf of the prosecution, conducted by District Attorney Frank Campbell, and that the appellant did not receive a fair trial because of the aggressive assistance of the trial judge on behalf of the prosecution. We set out a sample of the record in considering this assigned error. The following excerpts occurred at the bench or while the jury was out of the courtroom. (R. 906, 917-18, 932, 479-80, 868-69, 953-54) We have carefully examined the eight-volume record and find that there are thirty (30) instances where the trial judge improperly, or unnecessarily, interjected himself into the proceedings. Of those thirty instances, twenty are of the type which may be characterized as coaching the district attorney.[2] On nine occasions, the trial judge posed questions to witnesses where the district attorney's questions were ineffective. The questions by the trial judge generally served to strengthen the prosecution's case. During closing argument for the prosecution, on two occasions, the appellant objected to portions of the prosecution argument. Overruling the objections, the court commented: "There is evidence in support of that argument. The objection is overruled. The jury is the ultimate decider of the facts." and "That is for the jury to determine. There is a basis for evidence that would support it. The objection is overruled." After the sentencing phase, which resulted in imposition of the death penalty by the jury, attorneys for the appellant filed a motion for new trial. One of the grounds was to the effect that the sheriff of Warren County had been observed in the area near where the jury was sequestered and it indicated that the sheriff had made an improper contact with the jury. Attorneys for appellant exhibited affidavits to the motion on that point and sought an evidentiary hearing. The trial judge struck the affidavits from the record and denied an evidentiary hearing on the motion, being of the opinion that the attorneys would have a conflict in the event they testified and that such procedure was impermissible. The trial judge required those attorneys, who had represented appellant from the beginning, to withdraw from the defense of the case, appointed the Honorable Lewis Fields to represent the appellant on a separate hearing, not a part of the trial record, which was designated as a habeas corpus proceeding. The trial judge then proceeded with a hearing in that cause, entirely separate from the West capital murder case, and required the appellant's former counsel (Kirksey &amp; DeLaughter) to take the stand, over their objection. He permitted the affidavits, which were stricken in the West capital murder cause, to be introduced in the habeas corpus proceeding. The latter proceeding was appealed by appellant to this Court, and the two causes were consolidated here. The State argues that objections were not made to the trial judge's involvement for the prosecution, or to many of them.[3] That argument is answered simply by noting that there were sufficient objections raised and made throughout the trial to preserve the question. Brashier v. State, 197 Miss. 237, 20 So. 2d 65 (1944), was reversed because the trial judge testified about the facts of the case, prior to indictment. The facts, involving a trial judge who testified on the trial, are different from those in the case sub judice, but the reasoning of the Court is applicable here. The Court said: 197 Miss. at 242-43, 20 So. 2d at 66-67. In Thompson v. State, 468 So. 2d 852, 854 (Miss. 1985), the Court said: See also Norman v. State, 385 So. 2d 1298 (Miss. 1980); Stallworth v. State, 310 So. 2d 900 (Miss. 1975); Shore v. State, 287 So. 2d 766 (Miss. 1974); Green v. State, 97 Miss. 834, 53 So. 415 (1910). We have recognized the danger that a trial judge generates by indicating or showing his attention to certain matters in the trial which may communicate to the jury the impression that such evidence or testimony is important or unimportant, and the very position of a judge during trial makes each comment unusually susceptible of influencing a juror or the jury. Shelton v. Puckett, 483 So. 2d 354 (Miss. 1986); Hannah v. State, 336 So. 2d 1317 (Miss. 1976); Thompson v. State, supra; Stubbs v. State, 441 So. 2d 1386 (Miss. 1983); Fulgham v. State, 386 So. 2d 1099 (Miss. 1980); Myers v. State, 99 Miss. 263, 54 So. 849 (1911). In United States v. Hickman, 592 F.2d 931 (6th Cir.1979), commenting on the requirement of impartiality, the Court said: 592 F.2d at 933. See also United States v. Tilton, 714 F.2d 642 (6th Cir.1983); United States v. Carabbia, 381 F.2d 133 (6th Cir.1967); United States v. Hill, 332 F.2d 105 (7th Cir.1964). With reference to the habeas hearing, the trial judge apparently was of the opinion that ethics prohibited appellant's attorneys from testifying on the motion for new trial. Without addressing the principle other than how this case and similar cases are affected by it when the constitutional rights of defendants are involved, we refer to the decisions and to the codes of professional responsibility. In Gradsky v. State, 243 Miss. 379, 137 So. 2d 820 (1962), this Court held that in criminal prosecutions the accused may call his attorney as a witness where the attorney has evidence vital to the defense. 243 Miss. at 384, 137 So. 2d at 821. See also Richardson v. State, 436 So. 2d 790 (Miss. 1983); Pittman v. Currie, 414 So. 2d 423 (Miss. 1982). In Currie, supra, the Court said: 414 So. 2d at 427. The trial judge, in the case at bar, relied on DR 5-101(B)(4), Mississippi Code of Professional Responsibility, in excluding the testimony of appellant's attorneys, by affidavit or otherwise, from the present case No. DP-61. The American Bar Association Standing Committee on Ethics and Professional Responsibility, in interpreting DR 5-101(B)(4), has set out circumstances in which an attorney should be allowed to testify for his client without necessitating withdrawal: ABA Formal Opinion 339 (1975) (Emphasis added). We are of the opinion that this assignment has merit and the case must be reversed and remanded for a new trial because of the involvement and participation in the trial below by the presiding judge. While the record in the so-called habeas corpus proceeding does not contain evidence and facts which would require reversal of this case (DP-61), the trial judge erred in declining to hear the point raised on the motion for new trial; in requiring the trial counsel for appellant to withdraw; in appointing another attorney for the appellant at that stage of the trial; and in hearing the matter separately from the West murder case. Appellant challenged by pretrial motion the voluntariness of his December 25 and 27, 1982, confessions and requested an evidentiary hearing. The motion was denied by the trial judge on the basis that, since the issue of voluntariness had been determined at appellant's first trial, and the Mississippi Supreme Court had expressly found no error in that ruling, the determination made in the first trial was binding. Thus, there was no need to investigate the issue further. Appellant stated his desire to introduce new evidence not considered at the first trial, including a handwriting expert who would provide testimony as to whether or not the signature on the confession was that of the appellant. He also proposed to introduce a pharmacologist to testify as to whether the appellant's drug use affected his mental state. During the trial on West II, appellant objected to the introduction of the confessions and again requested an Agee hearing which was denied for the above-stated reasons. Appellant argues here that, since both the conviction and the sentence were reversed on his first appeal, this Court intended to remand the cause for a new trial on all issues and that (Appellant's Brief at 16). In Jones v. State, 517 So. 2d 1295 (Miss. 1987), appellant's conviction was reversed and the case was remanded for a new trial. In the appeal on the first conviction, Jones argued the issue of (1) the legality of his arrest, (2) the voluntariness of his confession, and (3) the sufficiency of the indictment. Although the conviction was set aside, this Court resolved those three specific issues adversely to appellant Jones. In the second trial, Jones again raised the issues. However, on the voluntariness of the confession, Jones incorporated a transcript of the suppression hearing at the first trial into the record of the second trial. No new evidence was offered on any *425 of the issues, and Jones simply advanced the same argument which he had asserted on the appeal from his first conviction. We held that the trial court correctly rejected the identical argument on the same evidence at the second trial. The decision was based not upon the fact that the issues had been raised in a prior appeal, but because Jones' arguments advancing the issues were supported by the evidence and law argued and rejected in the first appeal. Therefore, the distinction between Jones and West is clear. We hold that, where the case has been reversed and remanded for a new trial, a trial de novo follows. The trial court hears the case as if for the first time and considers all matters as though there had been no prior trial. See Hobbs v. State, 231 Md. 533, 191 A.2d 238 (1963); State v. Darwin, 161 Conn. 413, 288 A.2d 422 (1971); United States v. Akers, 702 F.2d 1145 (D.C. Cir.1983). See also Commonwealth v. Oakes, 481 Pa. 343, 392 A.2d 1324 (1978); where the Court held that the defendant is 481 Pa. at 348, 392 A.2d at 1327. This Court has decided the question in civil cases that, as a general rule, when the Court reverses and remands the case is to be tried de novo on all issues. Weems v. American Security Ins. Co., 486 So. 2d 1222, 1226 (Miss. 1986). Further, regarding cases where the trial judge grants a motion for new trial, the old trial is out of the picture for all purposes. Its verdict is as though it had never been. Gill v. W.C. Fore Trucking, Inc., 511 So. 2d 496 (Miss. 1987). We are of the opinion that the refusal of the lower court to grant a suppression/Agee hearing on the voluntariness of the confessions constituted reversible error. Appellant offered as an expert witness William Donald Ates, a ballistics expert, for the purpose of explaining the physical evidence, especially the bullet wound to the back of the victim's head. The lower court refused to permit the expert to testify, even though he recognized Ates as an expert, on the ground that Ates' testimony would be cumulative to that of appellant West and merely represented and attempt by defense counsel to bolster their account of Phelps' shooting. The testimony of Ates was particularly relevant, since the State represented to the jury in opening statements, that it would show West's "methodical execution" of Phelps. Further, when asked by the district attorney on cross-examination to explain the bullet wound to the back of Phelps' head, West responded: "Sir, I am no expert. All I can do is tell you what happened." Appellant asserts that, absent Ates, the only thing the jury heard from the defense was what happened (from West himself) and heard nothing as far as an explanation of how it physically was not inconsistent with the evidence. Compounding the refusal, the prosecution stated in closing arguments: (R. 993, 997) Expert witnesses need not be infallible or possess the highest degree of skill, but, rather, only need have such skill, knowledge or experience in that field or calling as to make it appear that the opinion or inference will probably aid the trier in his search for the truth. Henry v. State, 484 So. 2d 1012 (Miss. 1986). A properly qualified and examined expert witness may provide the jury with the testimony which is potentially helpful in deciding the issues. Hollingsworth v. Bovaird Supply Co., 465 So. 2d 311 (Miss. 1985). The law is now well established that the Eighth and Fourteenth Amendments require that the sentencer not be precluded from considering, as a mitigating factor, any aspect of a defendant's character, record, or any of the circumstances of the offense that the defendant proffers as a basis for a sentence less than death. Eddings v. Oklahoma, 455 U.S. 104, 102 S. Ct. 869, 71 L. Ed. 2d 1 (1982); Lockett v. Ohio, 438 U.S. 586, 98 S. Ct. 2954, 57 L. Ed. 2d 973 (1978); Skipper v. South Carolina, 476 U.S. 1, 106 S. Ct. 1669, 90 L. Ed. 2d 1 (1986); Jordan v. State, 518 So. 2d 1186 (Miss. 1987). Exclusion of the testimony of William Donald Ates in West II constitutes reversible error. We have examined the other assigned errors on this appeal, and have concluded that there is either no merit in them, or that they should not occur again on retrial. Therefore, we do not address them. The judgment of the lower court is reversed, and the cause is remanded for a new trial on all issues. REVERSED AND REMANDED. HAWKINS and DAN M. LEE, P.JJ., and PRATHER, ROBERTSON, SULLIVAN, ANDERSON, GRIFFIN and ZUCCARO, concur. [1] On December 12, 1982, Brock and West visited the home of Charles Scudder, a pharmacologist and former university professor, and Joseph Odum near Summerville, Georgia. On that date, the four individuals were drinking wine and sniffing Toulene, a solvent. After about two hours of this activity, they became well intoxicated. Brock shot and killed Joseph Odum. Scudder attempted to escape and was shot in the head and killed by West. Brock and West then took a pistol, pair of handcuffs, gold necklace, silverware, a radio and other items from around the house, loaded the items into Scudder's jeep, which was a black vehicle marked on each side with a large inverted five-point star, and fled the scene heading out of Georgia toward Alabama and Mississippi. [2] This reference goes to the trial record and the habeas record, which will be discussed later. [3] Prior to the trial of West II, attorneys for appellant, being familiar with the record in West I, filed a motion for the court to refrain from commenting on evidence and/or from examining and/or cross-examining witnesses. It was overruled with the statement that the attorneys could object to any procedure during the trial.