Opinion ID: 2401946
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: Prosecution Witness Aggravator

Text: Appellant alleges that the trial court erred in permitting the Commonwealth to present the prosecution witness aggravating circumstance to the jury during the penalty phase. In particular, Appellant argues that the evidence did not warrant the submission of this aggravator to the jury. A trial court is required to instruct the jury on aggravating circumstances as to which there is some evidence. 42 Pa.C.S. § 9711(c)(1)(i); Commonwealth v. Drumheller, 570 Pa. 117, 808 A.2d 893, 909 (2002), cert. denied, 539 U.S. 919, 123 S.Ct. 2284, 156 L.Ed.2d 137 (2003); Commonwealth v. Buck, 551 Pa. 184, 709 A.2d 892, 896 (1998). Specifically, the prosecution witness aggravator provides that it is an aggravating circumstance if [t]he victim was a prosecution witness to a murder or other felony committed by the defendant and was killed for the purpose of preventing his testimony against the defendant in any grand jury or criminal proceeding involving such offenses. 42 Pa.C.S. § 9711(d)(5). In Commonwealth v. Daniels, 537 Pa. 464, 644 A.2d 1175 (1994) (per curiam), the Court explained that: A finding of the existence of the aggravating circumstance set forth in § 9711(d)(5) requires proof that the victim was killed to prevent his testimony in a pending grand jury or criminal proceeding. The existence of this particular aggravating circumstance may be found, absent a pending criminal proceeding, only where the facts establish by direct, rather than circumstantial evidence, that the killing resulted from the intention to eliminate a potential witness. This burden will not be met by simply showing that an individual who witnessed a murder or other felony committed by a defendant was also killed by the defendant. Daniels, 644 A.2d at 1179 (internal citations omitted). See also Commonwealth v. Fisher, 559 Pa. 558, 741 A.2d 1234, 1239-40 (1999), cert. denied, 531 U.S. 829, 121 S.Ct. 81, 148 L.Ed.2d 43 (2000) ([i]n interpreting [the (d)(5)] aggravating factor, we have determined that it encompasses the killing of a potential witness, even when there is no criminal proceeding pending at the time of the murder, if the killer's intention to eliminate the victim as a potential witness is established through direct evidence). Here, the Commonwealth presented direct evidence that Appellant killed Schofield to prevent him from testifying as a witness against Appellant for the murder and robbery of Otto. In particular, the Commonwealth offered the testimony of Mathis, who accompanied Appellant to a friend's house shortly after the shootings. Notably, Mathis testified that: [Appellant] was telling everybody in the house what he did. He was sort of bragging he said, and I quote, it's in quotes, he said quote: He had the [sic] bust them mother-fuckers, leave no witnesses, close quotes. He told us quote don't say nothing. You didn't see nothing, end quote. (N.T., June 27, 2002, page 255) (emphasis added). Appellant's admission that he had to bust them mother-fuckers, leave no witnesses, which was made shortly after the shootings and overheard by Mathis, established by direct evidence that Appellant killed Schofield to eliminate him as a potential witness. Based upon this direct evidence, the trial court did not err in submitting the prosecution witness aggravator to the jury. [16] See Commonwealth v. Strong, 522 Pa. 445, 563 A.2d 479, 484 (1989), cert. denied, 494 U.S. 1060, 110 S.Ct. 1536, 108 L.Ed.2d 775 (1990) (defendant's statement to accomplice during robbery that he was tired of leaving witnesses behind constituted sufficient direct evidence to establish prosecution witness aggravator); Commonwealth v. Appel, 517 Pa. 529, 539 A.2d 780, 783-84 (1988) (defendant's admission that he tried to kill all of the individuals inside a bank during a robbery so as to not leave any potential witnesses constituted sufficient direct evidence to establish prosecution witness aggravator). Nonetheless, Appellant maintains that numerous inconsistencies in Mr. Mathis' testimony did not merit the submission of the [`prosecution witness'] aggravating circumstance to the jury. Brief for Appellant at 20. However, any inconsistencies in the testimony of Mathis went to the weight to be accorded such evidence, which is exclusively for the finder of fact, who is free to believe all, part, or none of the evidence in determining the credibility of the witness. See Commonwealth v. Johnson, 542 Pa. 384, 668 A.2d 97, 101 (1995), cert. denied, 519 U.S. 827, 117 S.Ct. 90, 136 L.Ed.2d 46 (1996). Therefore, contrary to the position of Appellant, any inconsistencies in Mathis' testimony did not render the evidence insufficient to necessitate that the trial court disallow the submission of the prosecution witness aggravator. See Commonwealth v. Small, 559 Pa. 423, 741 A.2d 666, 672 n. 6 (1999), cert. denied, 531 U.S. 829, 121 S.Ct. 80, 148 L.Ed.2d 42 (2000) (it is well established in this Commonwealth that a mere conflict of testimony does not render the evidence insufficient) (internal quotations omitted).