Opinion ID: 2766626
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: Defendant’s arrest and statements to police

Text: Morris was arrested on October 21, 1995, three days after the crime, and killed himself in his jail cell the next afternoon. Wilson was arrested the following day. Also that day, a deputy sheriff recovered two knives that had been buried near Sheila Abbott‘s property. One was a long kitchen knife and the other was a pocket knife. DNA from both knives was consistent with a mixture of Bone‘s DNA and Wilson‘s DNA; none of the DNA on the knives could have come from defendant. Defendant was arrested on the following day, as he pulled his car into the parking area of the Sheraton apartment complex. As he got out of the car, a loaded .22-caliber handgun fell out of the driver‘s side door. Defendant called Sheila Abbott from jail, and she told him that Morris had killed himself. Defendant was interviewed by detectives, and a tape recording of the interview was played for the jury. Defendant admitted that he was involved in the burglary and robbery, but denied any involvement in the murder, claiming that Morris had killed Bone while defendant was in the back of the house. Defendant stated that it had been Morris‘s idea to break into a house because he needed money to pay for his automobile insurance. Defendant said that he, Morris, and Wilson each had a bandana that Sheila had given them, and they had latex gloves that were obtained from her first-aid kit. Morris drove defendant and Wilson to Bone‘s neighborhood, an area in which defendant had formerly lived. In the car, defendant handed Morris a gun, which was wrapped in a bandana, and Morris put it in his pants. According to defendant, they were watching a house in the neighborhood and saw a woman outside; Morris said they could kill her and take their time going through the house, but defendant told Morris that he was ―not into killin‘ people.‖ Defendant told the detectives that when they arrived at the Bone house, Morris and Wilson knocked on the door of the house and initially no one 4 answered; Morris commented that no one was there and defendant concluded they would just be committing a burglary. Then Morris stated there was someone in the house. Defendant walked back to the car and saw Bone answer the door. Wilson asked for a girl named Debbie and Bone replied ―no, my daughter‘s name is Barbara.‖ Wilson pushed the door open, hitting Bone and knocking her to the ground. Defendant walked through the open door. At some point he saw Bone lying on the floor with Morris on top of her; Bone pleaded with him to let her go. Defendant told the detectives that he said to Morris, ―don‘t hurt no women, don‘t hurt nobody.‖ He said he went into the back of the house because he ―couldn‘t deal with it.‖ When he came back out of the bedroom he saw Morris strangling Bone, who was tied up with a phone cord. According to defendant, Morris said, ―I can‘t leave no witnesses.‖ Morris also said, ―that fucking bitch won‘t die.‖ Defendant saw Morris rummaging through the kitchen looking for a knife. He saw or heard Morris stabbing Bone forcefully and repeatedly. Morris gave Wilson a paper sack containing the knives that were later recovered, and told him to get rid of them. According to defendant, Morris ordered him to take Bone‘s truck. They loaded the items from the house into the truck and took them back to Sheila‘s trailer. Wilson and Morris siphoned the gas out of the truck. Defendant drove the truck to Shasta Lake, following Morris and Misty. Morris instructed defendant to break out the windows of the truck and drive it into the lake. Defendant told the detectives that the gun he had when he was arrested in Sacramento did not come from the house and that he had obtained it that same day. He stated that Wilson had found a gun in the house and Morris had found a rifle. Defendant denied knowing the location of the guns taken from the house and asserted that Morris was supposed to dispose of them. 5