Opinion ID: 1709998
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: edith critchett

Text: Critchett testified that Miller became angry with Mary for pulling Critchett out of the truck and made Mary apologize. When asked what she was doing there, Mary stated that she thought Miller might want to see his children. Miller told Mary to just leave the children, the oldest of whom was five years old, with him. Critchett had never met Mary or the children before that night. Critchett testified that at that point Miller opened the door to their room and everyone went inside. Critchett and the three children sat on the bed and Mary sat on the couch. Critchett stated that Miller became angry with Mary. He asked her why she came back and would not just leave him alone. Critchett told Mary that she should not have pulled her out of the truck. At that point Miller became really angry, yelling and hitting Mary while she was sitting on the couch. Mary put up her hands to protect her face, but Miller continued to hit her. Miller then removed a gun from a drawer. Critchett testified that at this point Miller: walked back over to her [Mary] and he was loading it and unloading it and he fired the first shot and I tried to stop him, I told him no, not to do that, I said that she wasn't worth it, the type of person she was and he wouldn't listen to me, he pushed me back on the bed and I don't quite remember what he said, you know, but he didn't want me involved and I tried to stop him but he wouldn't listen to me and the kids were yelling, no, daddy, no, daddy and kept saying that and then finally he shot and she just tilted her head over and he left. He said that he had to get out of there, he had to leave and so he left. Critchett stated that when Miller shot Mary in the head, Mary was sitting on the couch and was not threatening Miller in any way. After Miller left, Critchett took the children out of the room and got a neighbor. The neighbor called an ambulance and the police. When the police arrived, Critchett was put in a police car and taken to jail where she stayed until she was released the next afternoon. On cross-examination, Critchett admitted making three separate statements to police before being released. The first two differed significantly from her trial testimony in that she stated that she did not enter the hotel room with Miller and Mary, but stayed outside and did not witness the shooting. She also admitted telling police in her first two statements that she only heard one gunshot instead the two testified to at trial. Critchett testified that she lied in the first two statements to protect Miller and because she was afraid of Miller and thought to stay in his good graces by lying about what she saw. Later she decided to do something for Mary and the children and so she told the truth about being in the room at the time of the shooting. It was after giving this third statement that Critchett was released from jail. However, the time frame is unclear and there is no evidence that the changed statement and her release were related. After being released from jail Critchett returned to the same room at the Little Creek Motel where the murder had occurred and continued to live there. Critchett stated that after the shooting Miller moved in with his sister. He did continue to visit Critchett occasionally and at one point they rented a larger room and lived together for about a week. Critchett and Miller then had an argument and he moved out permanently.