Court Opinion

ID: 9682316
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-24 08:09:22.996816+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T18:17:38.728495
License: Public Domain

TEAGUE, Judge,
dissenting.
Based upon what the majority opinion states, I am compelled to expressly dissent to the majority opinion’s overruling appellant’s first, sixth, and eighth grounds of error.
First-off, I dissent to the majority opinion overruling appellant’s sixth ground of error, which asserts that the evidence is insufficient to sustain the jury’s “Yes” answer to the probability question. See Art. 37.071, V.A.C.C.P.
The majority opinion expressly states the following: “This deliberate and brutal murder coupled with appellant’s subsequent callous conduct evidences a total lack of regard for the sanctity of life, ownership of property, and respect for the personal dignity of individuals who had gone out of their way to help appellant.” In making this statement, the majority opinion implicitly minimizes the fact that the husband-victim of the deceased testified at the punishment stage of the trial on behalf of Jeffery Allen Barney, appellant.
The majority opinion holds that the evidence is sufficient to support the jury’s affirmative finding that there is a probability that appellant would commit future criminal acts of violence that would constitute a continuing threat to society. In light of the husband-victim’s testimony, I am compelled to disagree with the majority opinion.
The majority opinion, understandably from a Federal constitutional standpoint, declines to apply in full to this cause the erroneous rule of law that this Court gave birth to several years ago, namely, “that the circumstances of the capital offense, if severe enough, can be sufficient to sustain an affirmative finding to the second special issue,” which rule of law flies in the face of what the Supreme Court of the United States stated and held in, among other cases, Furman v. Georgia, 408 U.S. 238, 92 S.Ct. 2726, 33 L.Ed.2d 346 (1972), which decision may be read as eliminating systems of capital punishment which vest in juries the power to return death sentences in discriminatory, freakish, and infrequent patterns. The sentencing authority’s discretion, however, must be “guided and channeled by requiring examination of specific factors that argue in favor of or against the imposition of the death penalty, thus eliminating total arbitrariness and capriciousness in its imposition.” Proffitt v. Florida, 428 U.S. 242, 258, 96 S.Ct. 2960, 2969, 49 L.Ed.2d 913 (1976). In Texas, the issues that are submitted to a jury in a death penalty case are part of the “channeling” process that in part causes the Texas death penalty statute to continue to be held constitutional by this Court, as well as by Federal Courts. A general verdict by a jury, finding the accused guilty of the offense of capital murder, is no longer sufficient to support the assessment of the death penalty. Thus, a jury no longer has unbridled discretion in a capital murder case to cause the punishment of death to be inflicted solely because it has found the defendant guilty of the offense of capital murder. Today, among other things, before the death penalty may be lawfully imposed, the jury is required to find that the evidence shows beyond a reasonable doubt that there is a (reasonable) probability that the defendant who has been found guilty of capital murder would commit (future) criminal acts of violence that would constitute a continuing threat to society. Art. 37.071, supra.
*129In this cause, there is no question but that the facts that gave rise to the jury-finding appellant guilty of capital murder are unpleasant, shocking, gruesome, and horrible. But, isn’t that true in every case that this Court has considered since the advent of Article 37.071, supra, where the murder was committed in the course of committing or attempting to commit the offense of aggravated rape? See and Cf. Roney v. State, 632 S.W.2d 598, 603 (Tex.Cr.App.1982), in which this Court stated the following: “Although this was a senseless murder, that fact is true of every murder committed in the course of a robbery.” Such statement is also true of every murder committed in the course of an aggravated rape.
However, and notwithstanding that the facts of this case are unpleasant, shocking, gruesome and horrible, the husband-victim of the deceased testified on behalf of appellant at the punishment stage of appellant’s trial. Given the facts of this case, it is difficult to understand or comprehend why the husband-victim testified at the punishment stage of this death penalty case on behalf of the appellant, unless there is more that meets the eye than what is stated in the majority opinion. Cf. O’Bryan v. State, 591 S.W.2d 464 (Tex.Cr.App.1979), where the defendant’s wife testified at the guilt stage of her husband’s, the defendant’s, trial. This testimony, unquestionably, had to have had a major impact on the jury and had to have been a major factor in the jury’s answering in the affirmative at the punishment stage the special issues that were submitted. Conversely, in this day and age, should we not at least give the husband-victim’s testimony that was given at the punishment stage of appellant’s trial that same kind of respect and deference?
The majority opinion, however, in rejecting appellant’s ground of error, tells us that “the record reflects more” than the commission of the offense itself in order to sustain the jury’s affirmative answer to the probability question. It states the following: “Appellant expressed a total lack of remorse for the instant offense and asserted a willingness to repeat the crime, even during the pendency of his trial.”
But, does appellant also not tell us through his confession that he strangled the deceased because she had angered him “by a remark?”
The majority opinion does not advise us what the “remark” might have been. The opinion, however, although not informing us just what caused appellant to hate the deceased, does inform us that there was a great deal of hatred by appellant for the deceased. Psychologically, and legally, the probative value of a given remark that might indicate or reflect one’s propensity “to fly off the handle” depends, of course, upon what the remark consisted of and the remark’s relationship to the act that might have been committed. A given remark might be sufficient to warrant a finding that one person killed another person solely because the remark would commonly produce a degree of anger, rage, resentment, or terror in a person of ordinary temper, sufficient to render the mind incapable of cool reflection. See V.T.C.A., Penal Code, Section 19.04. Such also might explain why that person did not later show any remorse for causing the death of the deceased, or why he might have expressed a desire to others that he would repeat the killing if given the opportunity to do so.
The majority opinion, notwithstanding its express declaration that “We need not rely upon the [facts of the] instant offense alone ...,” states that “the most compelling evidence of future dangerousness derives from appellant’s conduct during the guilt stage of his capital murder trial in possessing a homemade weapon, plotting an escape from custody, and contemplating the harm of the courthouse bailiff.” (My emphasis.)
The majority opinion places great emphasis on the fact that appellant declared that if he got the chance to escape he would do so. Because I dare say that such a thought has not gone through the mind of every single person who has ever been incarcerated, and also been expressed ei*130ther seriously or not so seriously by such persons, I am unable to agree that such remark has any value in deciding whether such a person will in the future commit acts of criminal violence that would constitute a continuing threat to society.
The majority opinion also places great emphasis upon the finding of “a shank” in the court’s holdover cell, and testimony that appellant was seen in possession of the “shank.” The latter testimony, however, was adduced from two fellow prisoners, and for this reason should be presumptively suspect. I find that it has little or no value in deciding whether the second special issue should be answered in the affirmative.
The majority opinion also emphasizes that appellant had declared to others that he intended to use the “shank” to escape from confinement during his trial and in doing so would harm the court’s bailiff if he had to. In light of the uncontradicted testimony of appellant’s female attorney that she had accompanied appellant and the bailiff during trips between the holdover cell and the courtroom and had never been placed in fear of death or bodily injury, I find that such is virtually worthless in deciding whether the evidence sustains the jury’s answer to the probability question.
Lastly, but in light of what the media informs us of what is happening in our penal institutions today, of which I for one am willing to take judicial notice of, an inmate’s possessing “a shank” certainly does not reflect a necessary probability that such person would commit in the future criminal acts of violence that would constitute a continuing threat to society. Today, we are informed that possession of “a shank” by an inmate probably only reflects or indicates that the individual possessed same in order to keep himself from getting abused, maimed, or killed by his fellow inmates or that the adopted security measures for seeing that inmates do not possess such weapons is lacking.
In light of what the majority opinion states, to support its conclusion that the evidence is sufficient to sustain the jury’s affirmative finding to the probability question, I am unable to agree that appellant’s sixth ground of error should be overruled.
Not only because of the cursory treatment that the majority gives to appellant’s first ground of error, but because of what this Court has stated and held in the past, I am also compelled to dissent to the majority’s disposition of appellant’s first ground of error, “That the trial court committed reversible error when it denied appellant’s motion for a mistrial and permitted juror Sherry Lynne Payne to serve in spite of her disqualifications due to her inability to be fair and impartial and do her duties as a juror.”
Because juror Payne was never replaced as a juror, the provisions of Art. 36.29(b), V.A.C.C.P., which governs the replacement of a juror who dies or becomes disabled during the trial of a case, are inapplicable to this cause. Furthermore, the record is clear that appellant objected to Payne being replaced by an alternate juror.
It is clear from the record that when juror Payne asked to speak to the trial judge on the second day of trial, after the State had presented at least six witnesses, the trial judge did not know what he was in for that day. Payne told the trial judge in no uncertain terms that she would conduct her deliberations with regard to her personal life rather than the case and that she could not be a fair and impartial juror. Appellant moved for a mistrial, but same was denied by the trial judge. Payne remained as one of the jurors. The majority opinion holds: “Appellant was not entitled to the more relief of a mistrial, which was demanded to the exclusion of any other relief.” I disagree. The trial judge had no choice about the matter. He should have declared a mistrial and commenced anew.
As a matter of law, had Payne expressed during her voir dire examination her inability to serve as a fair and impartial juror, she would have been subject to challenge for cause by either the State or the appellant pursuant to Art. 35.16(a)(8), V.A.C.C.P. Also see Noah v. State, 495 S.W.2d 260, 264 (Tex.Cr.App.1973); McCary v. State, *131477 S.W.2d 624, 628 (Tex.Cr.App.1972); Ransom v. State, 630 S.W.2d 904 (Tex.App.—Amarillo 1982). However, when Payne made known her inability to be a fair and impartial juror, the time for either side challenging her for cause had long since passed. Thus, this is a case where the juror laid behind the log and was not honest with the court, counsel for the State, or counsel for the appellant when she was being voir dired. Such concealment, if not contemptuous conduct, borders on contempt of court. Payne, however, was not held in contempt of court, but was permitted to sit as a juror in appellant’s cause.
I pause to point out that this is not a case where, prior to the selection of all twelve jurors, it was belatedly discovered that a juror should not have been permitted to serve on the jury and was stricken by the trial judge, but no mistrial was declared. See Bodde v. State, 568 S.W.2d 344 (Tex.Cr.App.1978); Black v. State, 46 Tex.Cr.R. 590, 81 S.W. 302 (Tex.Cr.App.1904). However, in this instance, Payne did not make it known to all that she could not be a fair and impartial juror until after all twelve jurors had been selected and after the State had presented at least six witnesses during its case in chief. This appears to be a case of first impression for this Court. However, the majority opinion, implicitly at least, gives the appearance that what occurred in this cause happens all of the time in our trial courts. I disagree.
I also pause to point out that appellant is not challenging by way of post-conviction habeas corpus the action of the trial judge in not declaring a mistrial, see Ex parte Bronson, 158 Tex.Cr.R. 133, 254 S.W.2d 117 (1953), which he cannot do, but is challenging the trial court’s action in not declaring a mistrial through direct appeal. Cf. Ex parte Lovelady, 152 Tex.Cr.R. 93, 207 S.W.2d 396 (1948), in which although a person who had been adjudicated insane was the jury foreman in that cause, this Court held that such could not be attacked collaterally.
It appears to me that when it is learned or discovered after a capital murder jury has been selected and has heard testimony from the State’s witnesses, and it was unknown to either the prosecuting attorney or the defense attorney that a juror serving thereon was contaminated because he or she could not serve as a fair and impartial juror, the only cure or remedy for such contamination is for the trial judge to declare a mistrial, and probably hold the contaminated juror in contempt of court and punish that person accordingly. Not to at least declare a mistrial greatly diminishes the great faith that we mortals have in the verdicts of juries.
Therefore, I would apply to this case what this Court has stated and held in those cases in which a juror who was absolutely disqualified from serving obtains a seat on the jury, and the defendant attacks the jury’s verdict on direct appeal. In that instance, this Court has held that a verdict rendered by such a jury is void ab initio. Gonzales v. State, 146 Tex.Cr.R. 452, 176 S.W.2d 195 (1943); Russell v. State, 84 Tex.Cr.R. 245, 209 S.W. 671 (1919).
Based upon the cursory treatment that the majority opinion gives to appellant’s first ground of error, as well as what is probably an erroneous conclusion, I respectfully dissent to the majority opinion overruling appellant’s first ground of error.
I further dissent to the majority opinion’s disposition of appellant’s eighth ground of error, in which he asserts that the trial court erred in denying his written motion for continuance that was made during the punishment stage of the trial.
The record reflects that when it became known to the appellant’s counsel that the State intended to introduce into evidence the “shank” that had been found in the court’s holdover cell, in which appellant was housed during the trial, counsel orally moved for a continuance, in order to investigate the facts and circumstances of the incident. The trial judge neither granted nor denied this motion. Later, counsel filed a written motion for continuance. Pursuant to the motion, the prosecuting attorney supplied appellant’s counsel with *132the names of all possible witnesses to the incident, “who were not going to be called to testify,” but declined to furnish counsel with the names of all possible witnesses to the incident “who were going to be called.” He declined to do so for “security purposes.” The written motion for continuance was denied.
In Garcia v. State, 581 S.W.2d 168 (Tex.Cr.App.1979), in the concurring opinion that Judge Truman Roberts of this Court filed in that cause, His Honor stated the following, inter alia: “Article 37.071 should not be construed as authorizing proof of unadjudicated, extraneous offenses if this comes as an unfair surprise to the defendant. Notice, a fundamental element of due process, must be provided. Allowing proof of unadjudieated, extraneous offenses comes close to allowing one or more ‘prosecutions’ of the defendant in the sentencing proceeding. Simple fairness requires that the defendant be given notice that the State intends to offer proof of unadjudicat-ed, [footnote deleted] extraneous offenses, so that the defendant and his counsel can investigate and prepare a response.” (180-181). (My emphasis.) The trial court erred in not granting the appellant’s motion for continuance. I dissent to the majority opinion’s contrary holding.
This concludes my dissenting opinion.
Although I do not write more, this does not mean that I am completely and totally satisfied with what the majority opinion states in disposing of appellant’s other grounds of error.