Opinion ID: 1060393
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 29

Heading: The Elements of First Degree Murder

Text: Appellants contend that the State failed to establish all of the elements of first degree murder beyond a reasonable doubt. We disagree. When Griffin was killed in 1992, Tennessee's first-degree murder statute provided that [f]irst degree murder is: [a]n intentional, premeditated and deliberate killing of another. Tenn.Code Ann. § 39-13-202 (1991). [13] First, Appellants contend that the evidence was insufficient to support their convictions because the State failed to prove that Appellants were the individuals who killed Griffin. However, we conclude that when the evidence is viewed in the light most favorable to the State, as it must be, the evidence was clearly sufficient for a rational jury to find beyond a reasonable doubt that Appellants killed Griffin. Carr saw Appellants and Griffin come to Howie's Hideaway on February 21, 1992, in a dark blue Camaro or Trans Am. Newman observed Appellants and Griffin when they left Howie's Hideaway at approximately 7:00 p.m. Approximately ten minutes later, Mr. and Mrs. Walker observed an altercation on the Alcoa Highway in which a person standing outside of a dark-colored Camaro with one headlight appeared to be fighting with a person inside the Camaro. That same night, Davis saw a shirtless man stumbling around by the Alcoa Highway and she subsequently saw two men standing by a dark-colored Camaro in the same area who appeared to be looking for something. When Officer Roberts responded to the call about the altercation on the Alcoa Highway, he found a shirtless Griffin sitting on the bed of a pickup truck. Griffin initially stated that an argument had taken place and that some friends put him out of a car, but when questioned further, he stated that the men were not really his friends. Griffin refused to give any other information and Roberts subsequently arrested Griffin for public intoxication and took him to the Blount County Jail. Sergeant Herron participated in the booking of Griffin into the jail at 7:40 p.m. Approximately forty-five minutes later, Dellinger approached Herron and asked when Griffin could be released. Herron told Dellinger that the victim would be kept a minimum of four hours. At approximately 9:00 p.m., Henry saw Dellinger's white pickup truck drive up the road from the direction of Griffin's trailer and pull into Dellinger's driveway. A few seconds later, Henry saw flames shooting out of Griffin's trailer. Clabo subsequently investigated the fire and concluded that the fire had been set by human hands using a liquid accelerant. When Jennifer Branam learned that Griffin's trailer was on fire, she went to Dellinger's trailer and asked Appellants to accompany her to Griffin's trailer. Dellinger then stated that he could not go because he was in enough trouble already. Later that night, Jennifer Branam saw Appellants move an object that looked like a shotgun from Dellinger's truck to Linda Dellinger's car. Griffin was subsequently released from jail at 11:25 p.m. when Dellinger returned to the jail and posted a cash bond. Shortly thereafter, Lieutenant Defoe saw Appellants leave the jail with an individual who had just been released. At 11:55 p.m., McDonald heard two or three gunshots coming from the Blue Springs/Blue Hole area near his home. On February 24, 1992, Carter found the body of a man in the Blue Hole area. Hamilton stated that he subsequently located the body and he also found two spent twelve-gauge shotgun shells and two empty beer cans by the body. Agent Carman subsequently determined that shotgun shells found in Dellinger's yard and the surrounding area and the shells found near Griffin's body had been fired from the same shotgun. Dr. Harlan opined that Griffin died between 6:00 p.m. on February 21, 1992, and 8:00 a.m. on February 22, 1992. The next day, Appellants went to Howie's Hideaway with Branam. While they were there, Dellinger repeatedly asked Carr and Newman whether they remembered Appellants from the previous day. Sutton subsequently attempted to get Newman to leave with Appellants and when she refused, Sutton threatened her. Appellants and Branam left at 6:30 p.m., and the flames from the vehicle that contained Branam's body were seen at 8:00 p.m. Clabo subsequently concluded that the fire had been set by human hands with the use of an outside ignition source. Carman subsequently determined that the .303 rifle shell recovered from the scene of the burned vehicle was fired from the rifle that was found in Dellinger's home. It is clear that the above evidence, when viewed in the light most favorable to the State, is sufficient for a rational jury to find beyond a reasonable doubt that Appellants were the individuals who killed Griffin. A rational jury could conclude from this evidence that Appellants fought with Griffin at approximately 7:10 p.m., set fire to Griffin's trailer at approximately 9:00 p.m., and then retrieved a shotgun. A rational jury could also conclude that Griffin was killed at 11:55 p.m., only thirty minutes after he was last seen alive in the presence of Appellants. A rational jury could also conclude that Appellants had murdered Branam in order to cover-up the murder of Griffin. Thus, a rational jury could certainly conclude that because Appellants fought with Griffin five hours before he was killed, that Appellants set fire to Griffin's trailer three hours before he was killed, that Appellants bailed Griffin out of jail and took him with them thirty minutes before he was killed, that the shotgun hulls found near Griffin's body had been fired from the same gun as the hulls found in Dellinger's yard, and that Appellants killed Branam in order to conceal the murder of Griffin, that Appellants were the individuals who killed Griffin. [14] Appellants also claim that the evidence was insufficient to support their conviction because the State failed to prove that the murder was committed with premeditation and deliberation. Premeditation requires a showing of a previously formed design or intent to kill. State v. West, 844 S.W.2d 144, 147 (Tenn.1992). Deliberation requires that the offense be committed with cool purpose, free of the passions of the moment. Id. Although premeditation may be formed in an instant, deliberation requires some period of reflection, during which the mind is `free from the influence of excitement, or passion.' State v. Brown, 836 S.W.2d 530, 538 (Tenn.1992) (citation omitted). While it remains true that no specific length of time is required for the formation of a cool, dispassionate intent to kill, more than a split-second of reflection is required in order to satisfy the elements of premeditation and deliberation. Id. at 543. The elements of premeditation and deliberation are questions for the jury which may be established by proof of the circumstances surrounding the killing. State v. Bland, 958 S.W.2d 651, 660 (Tenn.1997); State v. Bordis, 905 S.W.2d 214, 222 (Tenn.Crim.App.1995). Tennessee courts have delineated several circumstances that may be indicative of premeditation and deliberation, including planning activity prior to the actual killing, State v. Schafer, 973 S.W.2d 269, 273 (Tenn.Crim.App.1997); facts from which motive may be inferred, Bordis, 905 S.W.2d at 222; the use of a deadly weapon upon an unarmed victim, Brown, 836 S.W.2d at 841[541]; and facts about the nature of the killing. Bordis, 905 S.W.2d at 222. We conclude that the above evidence, when viewed in the light most favorable to the State, was sufficient for a rational jury to conclude beyond a reasonable doubt that Appellants killed Griffin with both premeditation and deliberation. First, there was evidence that Appellants planned the murder of Griffin before they killed him. Indeed, the evidence shows that after fighting with Griffin, Appellants attempted to bail him out of jail. When this attempt failed, Appellants burned down Griffin's trailer and then retrieved a shotgun. Appellants then returned to the jail, successfully obtained Griffin's release, and then killed him thirty minutes later. Second, there was evidence that Appellants had a motive to kill Griffin. For whatever reason, Appellants were angry enough with Griffin to fight with him and then set fire to his residence. Third, there is absolutely no indication that Griffin was armed when he was shot with the shotgun. Fourth, the fact that Griffin was taken to a remote area and was then shot in the back of the head indicates that the killing was done as part of a preconceived design. In short, a rational jury could conclude from these circumstances that Appellants decided to kill Griffin and then reflected on that decision with cool purpose for some period that was at least more than a split-second before they shot and killed him. This issue has no merit.