You can send your sympathy in the guestbook provided and share it with the . Bowen v. State, 680 N.E.2d 536, 540 (Ind.1997) (improper comments about defendant's criminal background did not require reversal because evidence independently supported conviction for burglary); United States v. Burke, 948 F.2d 23, 28 (1st Cir.1991) (erroneous admission of extrinsic acts was harmless because there was strong properly admitted evidence of guilt and prosecutor did not embellish upon the incident). Under these circumstances, the errors were not harmless.See footnote 11 See Wickizer v. State, 626 N.E.2d 795, 800-01 (Ind. And, he took Wesley Crandall's money that was there, and the marihuana. Percy's motive to implicate Thompson arose instantaneously because Percy essentially admitted to an accomplice role in the murders; Percy had every reason to shift culpability to Thompson while minimizing his own involvement. Douglas Percy. Whether it was necessary to show that Thompson shot Crandall is a closer question, but we need not decide that point because the other material admitted clearly went beyond the pale and requires reversal. United States v. Smith, 80 F.3d 1188, 1193 (7th Cir.1996) (internal quotation marks omitted). To prove that Thompson was the perpetrator, the State presented evidence that he stole the murder weapon, a handgun, in the course of committing a different murder a month earlier. It could be argued that the evidentiary errors during the guilt phase were therefore harmless. One of the aggravating circumstances was Thompson's prior conviction of the murder of Wesley Crandall Jr., discussed in more detail below.See footnote 4 Although it was proper to inform prospective, jurors of the crimes charged, the trial court erred in advising the jury of the death penalty information before the sentencing phase. If the extraneous details of the killing were inadmissible in Ostrowsky-a case involving car theft-the prejudice to Thompson in a second murder prosecution is an a fortiori case. 1990) (citing Brewer). Access to the murder weapon, particularly where the evidence is circumstantial as in this case, is such a permissible purpose. And, who does [the State] say was in Illinois in June of 1991, when [Thompson] was stopped by [Illinois police]? . Id. They have also lived in Phippsburg, ME and Beverly, MA. See, e.g., Taylor v. State, 659 N.E.2d 535, 542-43 (Ind. Although corroboration of collateral facts is sometimes permissible to show credibility, see, e.g., Ind. Percy testified that Thompson shot Crandall. Percy was the only witness conclusively placing Thompson at the scene. We cannot conclude that these evidentiary errors were harmless. Rather, the defense elicited from Percy that he had not been charged with any crime related to those events and that his charge for altering a vehicle identification number was dismissed in exchange for his cooperation in this case. View the profiles of people named Jerry Thompson. The only similarity here between the Crandall murder and the Indianapolis killings was the use of firearms to kill the victims (and different guns were used in each crime). Percy's credibility was critical to the State's case. at 368, 417 N.E.2d at 906. 1993) (in prosecution for child molesting, "[t]estimony regarding the previous [child molesting] conviction and details of the previous molestation were obviously highly prejudicial") (citation and footnote omitted); United States v. Cox, 536 F.2d 65, 72 (5th Cir. 2d 1028 (1964) (per curiam) (conviction reversed because five jurors had been present when the defendant's conviction of a similar charge was announced in open court before the trial); Scott v. Lawrence, 36 F.3d 871 (9th Cir. Ct. App. Even where a prior criminal act is relevant to a material fact, the potential for unfair prejudice dictates that the evidence of the prior misconduct be limited to that necessary to prove the disputed fact. Hardin v. State, 611 N.E.2d 123, 129 (Ind. The defense asked jurors to "think about what somebody's got to gain when they testify. Because the State was properly allowed to show that Thompson stole the murder weapon from Crandall, whether Crandall actually had a gun similar to that weapon at the time he was killed was also relevant. 338, 367-68, 417 N.E.2d 889, 905-06 (1981); Evans v. State, 563 N.E.2d 1251, 1259 (Ind. 1991) (distinguishing Ostrowsky and lauding trial court's "sanitized and tightly controlled" admission of evidence of prior murder and "vigilant efforts to minimize its prejudicial impact"). denied; Pirnat v. State, 612 N.E.2d 153, 155 (Ind. In sum, the parties and the court concluded before trial that Thompson's access to the murder weapon was relevant to proving that he was the killer. This occurred with the apparent assent of all counsel. That's what identifies him with being associated with that gun. 492, 355 N.E.2d 843 (1976), however, stand for nothing more than what we have already concluded was permissible-a showing, with reasonable factual context, of access to the murder weapon. Indeed, the State does not contend that these were signature crimes. doug percy jerry thompson. at 368, 417 N.E.2d at 906. Accordingly, over Thompson's objection, an officer with the New Castle Police Department was allowed to testify that he attended Thompson's trial in Henry County for Crandall's murder, thirty to forty witnesses were called (including Percy), and that the jury convicted Thompson. Application of the Indiana Rules of Evidence. There is enormous potential for prejudice in the guilt phase if the jury is permitted to know from the outset, in a murder case, that the defendant is a convicted killer. It is valid as a logical proposition only if one has an understanding of all the dynamics of the Crandall trial. It was noted at oral argument in this Court that due to the erroneous (but unobjected) reading of the death penalty information in voir dire, the jury was advised from the outset of Thompson's conviction of Crandall's murder. Brewer also established that the jury is impermissibly tainted "when the aggravating circumstance to be charged is either a prior murder conviction, a prior murder unrelated to the current offense, or a prior life sentence." . As of July 1, 2006 Home Page| Percy's credibility was critical to the State's case. Loveless v. State, 240 Ind. Jerry Don Thompson serves as President of Voyager Energy Services and Vice President of Granbury Thompson Group offering SandX and Super Loop Products. Ostrowsky, 501 F.2d at 324. Thompson retrieved a pillow from another room, placed it over Crandall's head, and fired. The proffered conviction here does not approach the probative value required to outweigh that prejudice under Rule 403. It may, however, be admissible for other purposes, such as proof of motive, intent, preparation, plan, knowledge, identity, or absence of mistake or accident Citing Evidence Rules 402 (relevance) and 403 (balance of probative value and prejudice), Thompson argues that the State elicited far more evidence about Crandall's death than was necessary to prove this aspect of its case. If Percy's testimony about Thompson's taking the murder weapon from Crandall was the permissible core evidence showing Thompson's access to the gun, the other details-an execution style shooting, Thompson's conviction for the Crandall murder-were a penumbra of dubious relevance and potentially inflammatory impact. See, e.g., Swain v. State, 647 N.E.2d 23 (Ind.Ct.App.1995) (evidence as to defendant's four prior convictions for dealing in cocaine should not have been admitted in prosecution for cocaine possession), trans. The State's closing argument was replete with references to the Crandall murder, to the extent that an uninformed reader would assume that Thompson was being tried for the Crandall murder in this case. In its opening argument, the State outlined the events surrounding the Hillis and Beeler murders, and then explained Percy's delayed decision to come forward to tell police what he knew about Thompson's involvement. He did not break 5'10, 130 pound Wesley Crandall's neck. And, who does [the State] say was in Illinois in June of 1991, when [Thompson] was stopped by [Illinois police]? Cf. The trial court ruled that the State would be allowed to simply explain presence and then cut it off and let's get on., Percy gave the following account. The State also claims that any prejudice to Thompson was offset by a limiting instruction to the jury to constrain its consideration of prior acts to the issue of identity. Join Facebook to connect with Jerry Thompson and others you may know. Specifically, prospective jurors were informed, verbatim, of the four aggravating circumstances the State had pleaded against Thompson in the death penalty information. [2] For this reason, it has long been established that prospective jurors are not to know of prior convictions until the penalty phase. Lived In Spokane WA, Brush Prairie WA, Veradale WA, Battle Ground WA. . Sometime after that 2 retarded men were coerced into admitting that they killed Wesley Crandall, were convicted; they went to prison, and but, for Doug Percy coming forward, they would probably still be there. This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google. 1992). Factual and Procedural History On March 14, 1991, Melvin Hillis and Robert Beeler were shot to death at Hillis Auto Sales in Indianapolis. Reading of Death Penalty Information in Voir Dire. 11. Evidence of Prior Uncharged Misconduct. The trial court ruled that the State would be allowed "to simply explain presence and then cut it off and let's get on." Thus it was error to inform jurors of Thompson's conviction of Crandall's murder prior to the penalty phase. We first examine what went on in the trial court. If the extraneous details, of the killing were inadmissible in Ostrowsky -- a case involving car theft -- the prejudice to Thompson in a second murder prosecution is an a fortiori case. Application of the Indiana Rules of Evidence The well established rationale behind Evidence Rule 404(b) is that the jury is precluded from making the "forbidden inference" that the defendant had a criminal propensity and therefore engaged in the charged conduct. Percy Femur is a character who appears only in the episodes "Doug Saves Roger", "Doug's Big Feat", and "Doug's Hoop Nightmare".He is the maternal nephew of Mr. The proffered conviction here does not approach the probative value required to outweigh that prejudice under Rule 403. Despite the fact that Percy's description of Crandall's killing was largely uncontradicted and unchallenged, the State pointed to the testimony of several witnesses -- the gun dealer who sold Crandall the murder weapon that Thompson eventually stole, the forensic pathologist who concluded that Crandall died of a gunshot wound to the head -- to corroborate Percy's account. Ct. App. Lila Thompson (1967-1971), Percy Douglas (1984-1988), Shynese Sangster (2002-2006) Control profile. at 368, 417 N.E.2d at 906. As the defense's opening statement put it: Who does [the State] say was with Mr. Thompson in New Castle? Prospective jurors were told the following: Jerry K. Thompson has been convicted of another Murder; that is, a judgment of conviction for the murder of Wesley A. Crandall, Junior, was entered against Jerry K. Thompson on the 15th day of June, 1993, in Henry County, Indiana, in cause #33D019207CF027 The three other aggravating circumstances were: (1) two counts of committing an intentional killing while committing or attempting to commit a robbery, Ind.Code 35-50-2-9(b)(1) (Supp.1990); and (2) one count of committing another murder at any time, Ind.Code 35-50-2-9(b)(8) (Supp.1990). It may, however, be admissible for other purposes, such as proof of motive, intent, preparation, plan, knowledge, identity, or absence of mistake or accident . The State's fallback position, advanced at oral argument in this Court, is that all evidence related to the Crandall murder was properly admitted because Percy's credibility was under attack. 1994) (in action against prison officials under 42 U.S.C. In April 1991, Thompson destroyed all the guns taken from Crandall except the handgun, a second gun also admitted in evidence, and a .22 derringer that was sold to a third party. 5. 1989) (testimony concerning prior robbery was admissible in murder trial because the defendant had stolen the same type of pistol used to kill the victim); United States v. Day, 591 F.2d 861 (D.C. Cir. Facebook gives people the power. Evidence Rule 801(d)(1)(B), corroborative proof is limited by several considerations: (1) whether the challenged witness actually testified to what is sought to be corroborated; (2) whether the corroboration helps prove a material fact (relevance); and (3) whether the corroborative evidence, assuming it is relevant, is nonetheless so prejudicial that it must be excluded under Evidence Rule 403. authorities those things that he knew, [Percy] solved 3 murders. III. . See Part I supra. at 367, 417 N.E.2d at 906. Once he got his hands on a gun, any target would do. Family and friends must say goodbye to their beloved Jerry Thompson of Sweetwater, Tennessee, born in Athens, Tennessee, who passed away at the age of 66, on December 2, 2020. Our cases have long admonished that one crime cannot be proved in order to establish another distinct crime even though they be of the same kind. BOEHM, Justice. United States v. Smith, 80 F.3d 1188, 1193 (7th Cir. About; Contact; Login; Search. This occurred with the apparent assent of all counsel. In March 1992, Percy approached Indianapolis police with what he claimed was information about Thompson's involvement in the killings. In and of itself, no. Wesley Crandall was a small time marihuana dealer; they went there in a pick-up truck, and Jerry Thompson took his shotgun along. Rather, he chose to attack Percy's credibility. Jerry Thompson Obituary. He appeals. Without that knowledge it is impossible to conclude what, if any, "validation" of Percy the conviction represents. The fact of a shotgun wound could perhaps have been established by a police officer or otherwise without getting into whether it was fatal. When the defendant objects on the ground that the admission of particular evidence would violate Rule 404(b), the following test should be applied: (1) the court must determine that the evidence of other crimes, wrongs, or acts is relevant to a matter at issue other than the defendant's propensity to commit the charged act; and (2) the court must balance the probative value of the evidence against its prejudicial effect pursuant to Rule 403. Brewer also established that the jury is impermissibly tainted when the aggravating circumstance to be charged is either a prior murder conviction, a prior murder unrelated to the current offense, or a prior life sentence. Id. Indeed, by the time of closing argument, the State referred to the discrete killings as a "circle" of criminal conduct for which Thompson should be held responsible. It cannot be expected to make its decision in a void United States v. Moore, 735 F.2d 289, 292 (8th Cir.1984). Because the effect of this testimony on the jury was at best speculative, and likely negligible in light of the more inflammatory evidence presented related to Crandall's murder, we see no basis for reversal on this point. More importantly, evidence of a prior conviction is as prejudicial as evidence can get, and requires a strong showing of probative value. Rule 404(b) is on the books because evidence of prior crimes is presumptively prejudicial. Percy did not assert his knowledge of that fact or whether Crandall died from the shot. 1983, trial court committed reversible error by informing jury sua sponte during voir dire of inmate's prior convictions for rape and sexual assault). The defense responded that the State was limited by Rule 404(b) to the least prejudicial way of proving access to the murder weapon and that Thompson could not be retried for the Crandall murder. Cf. Contact us. Rather than telling the jury to disregard the disputed evidence completely because it was not admissible for any purpose, the limiting instruction here instructed the jury to limit its consideration of prior acts to identity. We first examine what went on in the trial court. See, e.g., United States v. Currier, 821 F.2d 52 (1st Cir.1987) (in prosecution for unlawful gun possession, recorded conversation between a police informant and the defendant about sale of the gun was properly admitted, but it was error to admit subsequent exchange on the same tape concerning unrelated drug sale). 49G03-9204-CF-60651, I join fully in the majority opinion, but write separately to make an observation pertinent to the second trial. According to Percy, on the day of the killings, he and Thompson went to Hillis Auto Sales where, without any forewarning, Thompson shot both victims and Thompson and Percy robbed them. 1991) (erroneous admission of extrinsic acts was harmless because there was strong properly admitted evidence of guilt and prosecutor did not "embellish upon the incident"). 1995) (evidence as to defendant's four prior, convictions for dealing in cocaine should not have been admitted in prosecution for cocaine possession), trans. You are here: cape breton post latest obits; david caruso art business; doug percy jerry thompson . Percy testified that Thompson "shot" Crandall. The fact of Thompson's conviction for murdering Crandall was wholly irrelevant to establishing his access to the murder weapon. Cf. In its opening argument, the State outlined the events surrounding the Hillis and Beeler murders, and then explained Percy's delayed decision to come forward to tell police what he knew about Thompson's involvement. Champlain v. State, 681 N.E.2d 696, 702 (Ind. Wooden v. State, 657 N.E.2d 109, 111 (Ind. Join Facebook to connect with Percy Thompson and others you may know. United States v. Burke, 948 F.2d 23 (1st Cir. Illinois state police recovered a nine-millimeter handgun from the vehicle that ballistics tests later determined was the weapon used to kill Hillis and Beeler. We have little difficulty concluding that the fact and manner of Crandall's death, and Thompson's murder conviction, were highly prejudicial to Thompson. . One of the defendants had killed the possessor of the car (who apparently had stolen the vehicle himself) before the car was driven from Indiana to Illinois. Wesley Crandall was a small time marihuana dealer; they went there in a pick-up truck, and Jerry Thompson took his shotgun along. A friend of Percy's, Mike Featheringill, testified that Percy told him that [Percy] went over to this drug dealer's house, and they were going to purchase some marihuana, and Jerry shot the drug dealer with a shotgun, execution style.8 These witnesses actually added to Percy's account, rather than merely corroborating it, because Percy testified only that he assumed Thompson had shot Crandall in the head. The State's contention that the extra details of the Crandall murder helped prove identity is unpersuasive. They are far from justifying irrelevant and highly prejudicial evidence that has no relation to that point or to any other material fact in dispute. He has a very deep voice, and his hairstyle is a crew cut with a single strand of hair in a ponytail. Thompson argues that the trial court erred in admitting the testimony of Columbus, Indiana gun dealer Velma Brown. Far more importantly what somebody has to lose. . [W]hen you retire to that Jury Room after evaluating the credibility of Mr. Percy, listening to all the Evidence, you're going to have doubts." Thompson and Percy had the first two guns with them when they were detained by Illinois police in June 1991.7. Because the State alleged that Thompson stole the murder weapon from Crandall and subsequently used it to kill Hillis and Beeler, the theft of the gun was relevant to this trial. in the event that any such attack may open the door to the use of such evidence."
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