Court Opinion

ID: 9582537
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-21 22:28:29.078525+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T13:37:56.166392
License: Public Domain

*611Justice Mitchell
concurring in the result.
I concur in the result reached by the majority. I disagree, however, with the conclusion of the majority, relying upon State v. Silhan, 302 N.C. 223, 273, 275 S.E.2d 450, 484 (1981), that evidence of a defendant’s bad character may not be introduced in a capital sentencing proceeding unless and until it is offered in rebuttal of evidence introduced by the defendant tending to show his good character.
It should be kept firmly in mind here that we are discussing a capital sentencing proceeding, rather than the determination of guilt. The constitutional purpose of a capital sentencing proceeding is to determine the proper sentence to be imposed in light of the particular circumstances of the crime committed and the particular characteristics of the defendant. See, e.g., Lockett v. Ohio, 438 U.S. 586, 602-603, 57 L. Ed. 2d 973, 988-89 (1978) (as a matter of due process, the sentencer must have the “fullest information possible concerning the defendant’s life and characteristics, which are highly relevant ‘if not essential [to the] selection of an appropriate sentence....’ ”). For this reason, in a case decided subsequent to Silhan, we quoted with approval the following language from the Supreme Court of Florida indicating that the State’s evidence tending to show the life and characteristics of a defendant is always relevant and admissible,
“[B]ecause we believe the purpose for considering aggravating and mitigating circumstances is to engage in a character analysis of the defendant to ascertain whether the ultimate penalty is called for in his or her particular case. Propensity to commit violent crimes surely must be a valid consideration for the jury and the judge. It is matter that can contribute to decisions as to sentence which will lead to uniform treatment and help eliminate ‘total arbitrariness and capriciousness in [the] imposition’ of the death penalty. (Citation omitted.)”
State v. Taylor, 304 N.C. 249, 280, 283 S.E.2d 761, 780-81 (1981), cert. denied, 463 U.S. 1213, 77 L. Ed. 2d 1398 (1983) (quoting Elledge v. State, 346 So. 2d 998, 1001 (Fla. 1977)).
I believe that under Lockett the evidence of the defendant’s bad character was admissible for purposes of the sentencing proceeding in this case. I also think it is clear that this is exactly the result the General Assembly of North Carolina intended when it expressly and specifically provided in the clearest English possible that the North *612Carolina Rules of Evidence, as set forth in Chapter 8C of the General Statutes of North Carolina, do not apply in sentencing proceedings. N.C.G.S. § 8C-1, Rule 1101(b)(3) (1992). See N.C.G.S. § 15A-2000(a)(3) (1988) (any evidence the court deems relevant to sentence may be introduced). Therefore, I disagree with the conclusion of the majority that evidence of a defendant’s bad character is not generally admissible in a capital sentencing proceeding. I believe that such evidence is generally admissible in any sentencing proceeding and may be considered by the jury for all sentencing purposes.
As I am unable to join the reasoning of the majority in this opinion, I concur in the result only.
Justices Meyer and Parker join in this concurring opinion.