Opinion ID: 524119
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: Gray Allegedly Exculpatory Material

Text: 20 A young man, William Gray, Jr., who was a high school student at the time of the murder, testified that he had seen a car which in some particulars answered the description of a car driven by petitioner on the date of the murder. Gray placed the car at the victim's house about 5:10 or 5:15 p.m. Petitioner had that day borrowed a car from his cousin, Willie Clayton, after petitioner was released from prison on a pass. Petitioner had inquired of Mr. Clayton about Susie Sanders before Clayton lent petitioner his car. Clayton testified that petitioner had his car from 3:30 p.m. to 6:25 p.m. 21 Petitioner argues that there was a failure to disclose to the defense that Gray, when initially questioned by the police, gave a false name and address. Gray testified at trial that he left home to take his sister to work at about 4:50 or 4:55 p.m. on the day of the murder. He picked up some food at a drive-through restaurant, and on returning home saw a car parked in front of the victim's house. He identified the car from a photograph as the one which was the borrowed car driven that day by defendant. 22 The initial interview with Gray took place when Gray was stopped for speeding while driving his sister's car. Officer Helton who stopped Gray made a report of the conversation the next day. In the report he described Gray's traffic violation and reported that Gray explained his speeding by referring to the fact that his cousin had just been strangled. Gray reportedly apologized for the speeding and told the officer that he had passed the victim's house that afternoon and had seen a car there that he had never seen there before. He reportedly said the car was in the driveway but that he did not want anything to come back on him because he had told me about this. He then gave the officer a false name and address. Gray described the car reportedly in the driveway as a Ford LTD about a '68 model with a cloth top that had colors of green, white and gold in it. 23 The following day Officer Helton went to the Gray home with Officer Duncan who filed a report stating that the officers talked to William Gray, Jr. in his father's presence. At this occasion there is no mention in the report of Gray making any reference of seeing the car. He described taking his girl friend home the previous afternoon and returning directly to his house. After the officers left the house, Officer Helton told Officer Duncan that he was sure Gray was the same person whom he had stopped for speeding the previous day. 24 At a follow-up interview on January 31 at Carver High School, police officers again interviewed Gray, Jr. On this occasion, a report in the police files states that Gray, Jr. told the officers: 25 On this date we went to Carver High School and contacted Det. Davis School Relations Officer at that location, and in the presence of Det. Davis, we did talk with William Gray, Jr., b/m, age 16, 3125 Mobile Dr., 265-1861. After talking to him at some length he finally advised us that on the day of this incident that he had took his sister, Linda to work at Hardee's on Fairview and dropped her off approx. 10 minutes until 5:00. He stated from there he went to McDonald's on Fairview and ordered a hamburger to go and after getting hamburger he departed McDonald's and drove the back way back to his home. He described this back way as taking him past the victim's house in this case. He stated it was probably 5:00 or 5:10 PM when he went by the victim's house and that he drove by her house he did see a Ford sedan somewhere between 1967-1971 model, green in color with plaid top. He stated the top of the car looked odd because it was kinda light green, yellow and white looking color. He stated the car was parked on the side of the street that Susie's house was on and that car was parked facing the oncoming traffic. Going into more detail he stated that on the previous Sunday he had observed the car drive past his house from direction of victim's house and that a black male had been driving the car. He described the black male and when given a series of black and white photographs in which the defendant's picture was included, he looked through photographs and picked the defendant as being individual who had been driving the car on previous Sunday. He did report that car he saw on the previous Sunday was the same car he had seen parked in front of the victim's house on the date of this incident. 26 At the time we talked with him he did not give us a written statement and later on in the day we went to his house on Mobile Dr. and his mother and father brought him to the Detective Office where he did give us a written signed statement in the presence of his parents concerning the above incident.... 27 This Court has read Gray's trial testimony, and it is substantially as reported in the police file in the January 31 interview (R. 59-66). 28 Petitioner argues that the prosecutor was required to produce all the reported interviews of Mr. Gray because in one of the interviews he gave a false name and address and falsely reported that it was his cousin who was strangled (Gray is no relation to the victim) and in another interview did not mention seeing the car which was later identified as having been driven by defendant on that afternoon. Moreover, one report stated that Gray had placed the car in a driveway rather than on the street. 29 The Court is of the opinion that the furnishing of all the reported interviews with Mr. Gray was required under Brady v. Maryland, 373 U.S. 83, 83 S.Ct. 1194, 10 L.Ed.2d 215 (1963). Brady requires that evidence that is both favorable to the defendant and material to either guilt or punishment must be produced. 30 On analysis of all the reported interviews, the Court is of the opinion that defense counsel could have made some use of the three or four interview reports. Defense counsel could have argued the unreliability of the testimony of one who gave a false identification and address to the police, even though the statement of false identity was next to the reported statement that Gray did not want to become involved in the strangulation death of his cousin. 31 Clearly in the opinion of this Judge, the better practice for the prosecutor would have been to produce the reported interviews, and the Court will treat such production as being required by Brady. However, although this Court would have compelled production of these documents at the trial level, their suppression does not necessarily warrant an automatic grant of the writ. A court may order a new trial on the ground of suppression of Brady material only if there is a reasonable probability that had the evidence been disclosed to the defense, the result of the proceeding would have been different. A 'reasonable probability' is a probability sufficient to undermine confidence in the outcome. United States v. Bagley, 473 U.S. 667, 682, 105 S.Ct. 3375, 3382, 87 L.Ed.2d 481 (1985). 32 Evidence that the defendant was at the victim's home on the afternoon of her death also came from a statement by defendant, although defendant placed the time he was at the house earlier in the afternoon than the time Mr. Gray's testimony placed him there. 33 As the Court of Appeals stated in its 1988 opinion in an earlier habeas petition of this petitioner: Although the evidence convicting Julius was all circumstantial, it was overwhelming. Julius v. Johnson, 840 F.2d 1533, 1541 (11th Cir.1988). This Court has read the trial transcript with the significance of the withheld testimony in mind, and such reading confirms the contention of the State that there is no reasonable probability that had this evidence been disclosed, the result would have been different. 34