Opinion ID: 3187215
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: Ledford’s Defense

Text: In his written confession, Ledford stated he acted in self-defense. Ledford’s counsel did not rely on that theory at trial, but instead presented evidence of Ledford’s long history of substance abuse. Counsel argued, primarily, that Ledford was intoxicated when he killed Dr. Johnston and that his intoxication was involuntary because he was coerced into becoming an alcoholic at a very young age. Ledford’s counsel argued, in the alternative, that Ledford’s intoxication, regardless of its voluntariness, negated the requisite mens rea for premeditated murder. In the guilt phase, defense counsel presented unrefuted evidence of how Ledford began drinking heavily at age eight. Greg and Tony Headrick, who grew up with Ledford, testified that Ledford began drinking “a pretty good bit” of beer at the age of eight, and began smoking marijuana at the age of ten. Ronnie Jones, another childhood friend, testified that Ledford began drinking alcohol at the age of eight. Robert Lee Pack, Jr., another childhood friend, offered similar testimony and further testified that he had observed Ledford use “speed” and “acid.” 10 Case: 14-15650 Date Filed: 03/21/2016 Page: 11 of 103 Ledford’s older sister testified that Ledford’s mother was always at work, leaving the children with their alcoholic father. Ledford’s sister “got [Ledford] to drinking” when he was eight years old. Ledford’s sister would drink with the young Ledford nearly every weekend. Ledford’s sister also testified that their father did not care that his children drank alcohol. In fact, Ledford’s father dealt drugs out of the family home and exposed his children to marijuana and Quaaludes at an early age. Nancy DeLoach, an employee at a Georgia substance abuse treatment facility, testified that for four days in November 1991, Ledford received treatment for detoxification from cocaine, marijuana, and alcohol. The trial evidence indicated that Ledford consumed alcohol and drugs on the day of the murder. There was a general consensus that Ledford consumed three to six beers and smoked between two and ten marijuana joints between 11:00 AM and 1:00 PM on January 31, 1992. A pawn shop employee and one police detective smelled alcohol on Ledford’s breath that afternoon.3 Defense counsel employed Dr. Dennis Lloyd Herendeen, a licensed psychologist, who testified about Ledford’s mental health and that Ledford became involuntarily addicted to alcohol at age eight. Prior to the trial, Dr. Herendeen 3 Mrs. Johnston, another pawn shop employee, and another police detective did not smell alcohol on Ledford’s breath. 11 Case: 14-15650 Date Filed: 03/21/2016 Page: 12 of 103 interviewed many of Ledford’s family members and familiarized himself with various materials, including several transcribed statements of Ledford’s acquaintances, reports concerning the murder of Dr. Johnston, transcripts of an interview with Ledford, a copy of Ledford’s substance abuse treatment records, and Dr. Perri’s September 10, 1992 report. On November 8, 1992, the day before trial, Dr. Herendeen interviewed Ledford for approximately nine hours and performed a comprehensive psychological battery, including the Shipley Institute of Living Scale, on which Ledford scored an 85, and the revised version of the Wide Range Achievement Test. Dr. Herendeen performed various other tests and fed the results into a computer program that returned a psychological profile. Dr. Herendeen concluded that Ledford suffered from chemical dependency, antisocial personality disorder, and organic thought disorder induced by substance abuse. According to Dr. Herendeen, Ledford’s substance abuse problems would have caused him to be in an “altered state” on the day of Dr. Johnston’s death. Dr. Herendeen recounted Ledford’s family history to the jury. Ledford grew up “relatively unsupervised” with “inadequate parenting” and “a lot of neglect.” When he was only six years old, Ledford tried to bring a loaded rifle to school. Importantly, Dr. Herendeen testified that Ledford became involuntarily addicted to alcohol at the age of eight. According to Dr. Herendeen, Ledford continued to 12 Case: 14-15650 Date Filed: 03/21/2016 Page: 13 of 103 suffer from an involuntary alcohol addiction into adulthood, which affected certain practical life skills, such as the ability to get and hold a job. Dr. Herendeen also testified that Ledford had an “extensive history of chemical abuse,” starting at age 11, which included the use of marijuana, LSD, amphetamines, barbiturates, cocaine, tranquilizers, prescription pills, and heroin. Dr. Herendeen testified that Ledford began selling personal property at a young age in order to sustain his drug habit. Dr. Herendeen opined that Ledford’s addictions would have interfered with his judgment. Dr. Herendeen estimated that Ledford had an IQ of about 85, which would put him in the “low average range of intelligence.” While Ledford was 20 at the time of Dr. Johnston’s death, Dr. Herendeen opined that Ledford only had the intellectual and cognitive functioning of a 13-year-old. 4