Opinion ID: 821509
Heading Depth: 5
Heading Rank: 3

Heading: Michelle Joe

Text: Joe testified she had known Fader for about six years before the crime, and first met defendant in March 1994 at Richie‘s apartment. During the week preceding the murder, she had been to the Nebraska Avenue house three or four 5 Thompson confirmed Fader had tried to sell her the grinder and had told her about the alleged rape. At some point, the police came and took the grinder. 12 times and had entered the house once or twice. At that time, she was using about 1.5 grams of methamphetamine per day and had been using for the past three years. According to Joe, on the morning of March 21, 1994, she first went with Long to the Nebraska Avenue house to go through the dumpster, then stopped by Fader‘s trailer on the way back to Long‘s apartment. She concocted a story about needing to take Fader to the hospital in order to get Long to lend her his car. After ingesting some methamphetamine, she picked up Fader in the afternoon and they drove around for a few hours unsuccessfully trying to obtain more. After dropping Fader off at her trailer, Joe obtained some methamphetamine from Rick Saso, ingested it, and rode around until after dark. Eventually, Joe explained, she ended up at Richie‘s apartment. She encountered Richie outside the apartment and asked if defendant was there. Defendant came out and sat in the car with Joe. Joe asked defendant to help her commit a burglary. Defendant asked if anyone would be home; Joe responded she didn‘t think so. Defendant agreed to help. Joe left, and returned a short while later. Someone gave Joe a pair of gloves, and defendant obtained gloves too. According to Joe, she drove with defendant to Fader‘s trailer, which was padlocked. At the window, Joe invited Fader to help with the burglary. Fader handed Joe a key to the padlock, and Joe opened the door, allowing Fader to leave. Fader, who was upset because she had been arguing with her boyfriend, brought along a tote bag and got in the back seat of the Mustang. Joe explained that she drove to the Nebraska Avenue house and parked on the dirt road near a pile of branches. She went up to the house to see if anyone was there. After looking in the living room window and seeing Sherman asleep on the couch, she returned to the car and informed the others. They then drove around looking for a back way in, drove into someone‘s driveway, heard a dog 13 barking, turned around, and came back to the Nebraska Avenue house. At some point during this period, defendant went to an area behind the house, retrieved a chainsaw, and put it in the Mustang. Joe testified that she came up with a plan to pretend the car had broken down. Joe and Fader walked up to the house together and knocked on the sliding glass door while defendant waited in back. When Sherman answered, Joe explained they were having car trouble and asked to use the phone; Sherman agreed. Once inside, Joe faked a phone call to Long, telling Sherman she was unable to reach him. Sherman agreed to allow the women to stay the night. The three talked for a while and had some drinks. Sherman then showed Joe to a bedroom. While Fader and Sherman continued talking in the living room, Joe emerged from the bedroom a couple of times to check on them and get a cigarette or a glass of water. Fader was on the loveseat and Sherman was on the couch. Fader got up to fix herself something to eat, took a bath, and went back to the living room. After a time, Fader and Sherman fell asleep. Joe then turned on the bedroom light as a signal, and defendant climbed in the bedroom window.6 Joe and defendant went through the drawers in the bedroom and unplugged a CD player and a television set. Joe explained that she went back to the family room, determined Fader and Sherman were still asleep, and returned to the bedroom. Defendant left the bedroom. She then heard a ―ruckus‖ — something opened and slammed, and someone was shouting. When she emerged, she saw defendant, who was holding a large gun like a shotgun, standing in front of Sherman as he lay on the couch. 6 On cross-examination, Joe testified defendant came in the window one to two hours earlier and stayed in the bedroom until Fader and Sherman fell asleep. 14 Joe went into a bedroom and unplugged a ―boom box‖ to steal. Fader came in and told her defendant wanted her to find something to tie up Sherman with. Fader said defendant had pointed the gun at her. Fader found a necktie and left. Joe went into the dining room and saw defendant standing over Sherman, demanding to know where he kept his wallet. Sherman said the wallet was in the bedroom. Joe retrieved the wallet from a green box in the bedroom and, without opening it, handed it to Fader. Joe testified that defendant instructed her to get the car. She moved the car into the driveway near the house. When she returned, defendant was still standing over Sherman, who was lying tied up on the couch. Defendant angrily commanded Joe and Fader to load the items they had gathered into the car. Joe told defendant she was afraid and did not want to go through with the burglary, but defendant raised his voice and told her to just get stuff into the car. Joe and Fader complied, putting several items, including a ―boom box,‖ a typewriter and a microwave oven, into the car.7 When Joe returned to the house, she asked defendant if he was going to kill Sherman. Defendant said ―no‖ but seemed very upset. Joe explained that when she went back outside, Fader was already at the car. As Joe was opening the rear car door for Fader, she heard a gunshot. She and Fader got in the car. Defendant emerged from the house carrying a gun, put the gun in the car, then returned to the house and retrieved a second gun, which he also placed at his side in the car. 7 According to Joe, Fader said defendant wanted her to go out the window. Fader opened the window, but Joe could not recall if Fader left through it. Joe had no recollection of handing or throwing stolen property through the window. 15 At defendant‘s suggestion, Joe testified, she drove to Prescott Estates. On the way, Joe asked defendant if he had killed Sherman; defendant responded he had not. At Prescott Estates, defendant unsuccessfully tried to sell the stolen property. Eventually, the three returned to Richie‘s apartment. Joe took a shower and changed clothes because she had urinated in her pants, while Fader counted pennies in the bedroom. Richie and defendant unloaded the stolen items from the car and brought them inside. When Joe emerged after her shower, defendant and Richie were in the kitchen talking to Rick Saso. The stolen property was on the kitchen table. Some methamphetamine was on a mirror on the counter; the men were dividing it up with a razor blade. Joe testified that Saso gave some methamphetamine to defendant, and she received about a gram of the drug. She took her share into the bedroom and ingested some of it. When she emerged from the bedroom, only Saso was there. Joe told Saso she thought defendant might have killed someone. Saso got up, kissed Joe and left without saying anything. Joe then saw Fader and defendant come in from outside and go into the bedroom. When Fader came out of the bedroom, she asked Joe to take her home, which Joe did.