Opinion ID: 1583137
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 5

Heading: HAC Aggravating Circumstance

Text: Zommer next contends that the trial court improperly found that the murder of Robinson was heinous, atrocious, and cruel (HAC). This Court has stated: The HAC aggravating factor applies in physically and mentally torturous murders which can be exemplified by the desire to inflict a high degree of pain or utter indifference to or enjoyment of the suffering of another. HAC focuses on the means and manner in which the death is inflicted and the immediate circumstances surrounding the death, rather than the intent and motivation of a defendant, where a victim experiences the torturous anxiety and fear of impending death. Thus, if a victim is killed in a torturous manner, a defendant need not have the intent or desire to inflict torture, because the very torturous manner of the victim's death is evidence of a defendant's indifference. Barnhill, 834 So.2d at 849-50 (citations omitted). In determining whether an aggravating factor has been proven, this Court had held that the trial judge may apply a common-sense inference from the circumstances. Gilliam v. State, 582 So.2d 610, 612 (Fla.1991) (internal quotation marks omitted) (quoting Swafford v. State, 533 So.2d 270, 277 (Fla.1988)). Moreover, we have noted that the fact that the attack occurred within the supposed safety of the victim's own home adds to the atrocity of the crime. Williams v. State, 967 So.2d 735, 763 (Fla.2007) (quoting Perry v. State, 522 So.2d 817, 821 (Fla.1988)). Zommer contends that competent, substantial evidence does not support this aggravating circumstance because Robinson was rendered unconscious almost immediately. See generally Buzia, 926 So.2d at 1212 ([N]othing done to the victim after the victim is dead or unconscious can support this aggravator. Therefore, awareness of impending death is critical in determining whether a beating unnecessarily tortured the victim. (citations omitted)). This is the only remotely possible manner for Zommer to challenge this aggravator given the events as described by Zommer himselfhe beat Robinson with a ukelin, struck her with a hurricane lamp, stepped on her head, kicked her, attempted to strangle her, and finally cut her throat. The medical examiner testified that being struck with the ukelin and the hurricane lamp and being strangled with the mouse cord would have caused Robinson pain. This Court has previously upheld the HAC aggravating factor in cases where a conscious victim was beaten or strangled prior to his or her death. See, e.g., Conde v. State, 860 So.2d 930, 955 (Fla.2003) (Strangulation with great force applied around the victim's neck after a violent beating until unconsciousness takes over [is] heinous, atrocious, or cruel. (quoting trial court's order)); Randolph v. State, 562 So.2d 331, 338 (Fla.1990) (affirming HAC where defendant repeatedly hit, kicked, strangled, and knifed victim who was conscious during various stages of the attack); Perry, 522 So.2d at 821 (HAC aggravating factor established where victim was choked and repeatedly stabbed while she attempted to ward off a knife attack). Moreover, the lack of defensive wounds on the body of the victim has not precluded this Court from holding the HAC aggravator applicable. See, e.g., Francis v. State, 808 So.2d 110, 121, 134-35 (Fla.2001) (approving HAC aggravator where 66-year-old victim who was repeatedly stabbed had only one defensive wound); Guzman v. State, 721 So.2d 1155, 1160 (Fla.1998) (HAC aggravator upheld in stabbing/hacking murder where victim only suffered one defensive wound to his hand). Finally, Zommer's own statement that he taunted Robinson as he beat her reflects his utter indifference to her suffering. We conclude that the trial court properly rejected Zommer's contention that Robinson was unconscious during most of the attack. First, Zommer in prior statements admitted that Robinson struggled. Zommer told OCSO detectives that during the attack Robinson was rolling around and grabbing [his] leg. Zommer also informed acquaintance Matthew Druckenmiller that during the attack, Robinson was scratching and fighting with him and that she used her hands in an attempt to block the mouse cord from strangling her. Although these facts are derived from Zommer's own statements, and during trial Zommer contended that his earlier statements were fabrications, this Court has held that [a] trial judge is not prevented from relying on specific statements made by the defendant if they have indicia of reliability, even if the defendant has given several conflicting statements. Barnhill, 834 So.2d at 850. Evidence corroborates Zommer's earlier statements that Robinson was conscious through most of the attack. The medical examiner testified that Robinson suffered multiple contusions on the back, side, and front of her body, as well as her head, and that it would have taken several minutes for these wounds to have been inflicted. During trial, Zommer himself stated that the time frame [of the murder] isn't as short as people are ... making it seem. Further, the medical examiner stated that these injuries were consistent with a person who was being hit, falling, getting up, being hit, falling, getting up and being hit. Moreover, the two defensive wounds on Robinson's hands were consistent with someone struggling with an attacker. Additionally, the trial court made a finding when it denied Zommer's motion for judgment of acquittal on the HAC aggravating circumstance which supports the conclusion that Robinson was conscious throughout the attack. Zommer testified that his attempt to strangle Robinson had failed because when he tried to pull the cord around her neck, it slipped out of his hand. In support of this testimony by Zommer, defense counsel noted during argument on the motion that there was no evidence of petechial hemorrhaging with regard to Robinson's neck or eyes. However, in denying the motion, the trial court reached a different conclusion as to the lack of petechial hemorrhaging: The very evidence that you speak of ... that the medical examiner found no evidence of petechia ... that suggests a strangulation indicates to the court that she was in fact awake and aware and fighting the strangulation, so she was aware of her impending death as he was attempting to strangle her with the cord. In fact, her efforts in fighting this off are what kept her from being strangled with the cord, which also suggests to the court that she likely was conscious when her throat was slashed, because the last thing that was done to her before slashing the throat was the attempted strangulation, which was not successful in killing her. The trial court's finding is supported by the evidence in that a crime scene technician testified that she collected pieces of a mouse cord that were found near Robinson's body and throughout the house. Zommer advised Druckenmiller that the cord ripped several times, and Druckenmiller testified that [i]t was my understanding that [when the cord ripped is] when her fingers got in the way. The presence of a broken cord is more consistent with a failed strangulation than it is with the cord merely slipping out of Zommer's hands. In light of the foregoing, we agree with the trial court that Robinson was conscious through most of the attack and may even have been conscious when her throat was cut. Given the brutality of the prolonged attack on this 77-year old woman in her home, she unquestionably experienced fear, pain, and anxiety of impending death. We therefore hold that competent, substantial evidence supports the HAC aggravating circumstance.