Opinion ID: 6536853
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: Application of Garcia in Fry's and Allen's cases

Text: {217} Review of how Garcia was applied in Fry's and Allen's direct appeals shows that Garcia sensibly construed the statutory language. Fry's death sentence was compared with six cases. These cases involved the aggravating circumstance of kidnapping-the aggravating factor that made Fry death eligible. Four of the comparison cases were death sentences: Allen , 2000-NMSC-002 , 128 N.M. 482 , 994 P.2d 728 ; Clark , 1999-NMSC-035 , 128 N.M. 119 , 990 P.2d 793 ; Guzman , 1984-NMSC-016 , 100 N.M. 756 , 676 P.2d 1321 ; Gilbert , 1983-NMSC-083 , 100 N.M. 392 , 671 P.2d 640 . Two of the comparison cases were life sentences: McGuire , 1990-NMSC-067 , 110 N.M. 304 , 795 P.2d 996 and Hutchinson , 1983-NMSC-029 , 99 N.M. 616 , 661 P.2d 1315 . This Court was persuaded that the extremely violent nature of Fry's criminal acts, in conjunction with the horror his victim likely suffered in the process of the murder, amply supported the conclusion that Fry's death sentence was not comparatively disproportionate. Fry's criminal acts were sufficiently similar to other cases where juries imposed death sentences and sufficiently deplorable to distinguish it from those cases where life sentences were imposed. See Fry , 2006-NMSC-001 , ¶ 44, 138 N.M. 700 , 126 P.3d 516 . {218} In Allen , the Court relied on the comparative proportionality analysis in Clark given the similarities between Clark's and Allen's crimes. In Clark , this Court identified two cases where defendants received death sentences for murders involving the aggravating factors of kidnapping and murder of a witness-  Guzman , 1984-NMSC-016 , 100 N.M. 756 , 676 P.2d 1321 and Gilbert , 1983-NMSC-083 , 100 N.M. 392 , 671 P.2d 640 -and two cases where the defendants received life sentences for murders involving these same aggravating circumstances- McGuire , 1990-NMSC-067 , 110 N.M. 304 , 795 P.2d 996 and Hutchinson , 1983-NMSC-029 , 99 N.M. 616 , 661 P.2d 1315 . Clark , 1999-NMSC-035 , ¶ 79, 128 N.M. 119 , 990 P.2d 793 . Clark also received a death sentence for a murder involving these aggravating circumstances. Id. ¶¶ 78, 82. The aggravating factors of kidnapping and murder of a witness, along with the fact that Allen's victim was a child, satisfied this Court that Allen's crime was more equivalent to murders where a death sentence was imposed. Allen , 2000-NMSC-002 , ¶ 111, 128 N.M. 482 , 994 P.2d 728 . {219} There is nothing wrong or inadequate about the Court's analysis in either case. In both instances, the Court paid appropriate deference to the respective jury determinations while simultaneously examining death and life sentences in similar cases.