Arthula Miller v. State of Indiana

CourtIndiana Court of Appeals
DecidedNovember 21, 2013
Docket49A05-1212-PC-664
StatusUnpublished

This text of Arthula Miller v. State of Indiana (Arthula Miller v. State of Indiana) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Indiana Court of Appeals primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Arthula Miller v. State of Indiana, (Ind. Ct. App. 2013).

Opinion

Pursuant to Ind. Appellate Rule 65(D), this Memorandum Decision shall not be regarded as precedent or cited before any court except for the purpose of establishing Nov 21 2013, 8:54 am the defense of res judicata, collateral estoppel, or the law of the case.

APPELLANT PRO SE: ATTORNEYS FOR APPELLEE:

ARTHULA MILLER GREGORY F. ZOELLER New Castle Correctional Facility Attorney General of Indiana New Castle, Indiana MONIKA PREKOPA TALBOT Deputy Attorney General Indianapolis, Indiana

IN THE COURT OF APPEALS OF INDIANA

ARTHULA MILLER, ) ) Appellant-Defendant, ) ) vs. ) No. 49A05-1212-PC-664 ) STATE OF INDIANA, ) ) Appellee-Plaintiff. )

APPEAL FROM THE MARION SUPERIOR COURT The Honorable Lisa F. Borges, Judge The Honorable Stanley E. Kroh, Master Commissioner Cause No. 49G04-0702-PC-19096

November 21, 2013

MEMORANDUM DECISION - NOT FOR PUBLICATION

CRONE, Judge Case Summary

Pursuant to the Davis/Hatton procedure,1 Arthula Miller brings this consolidated direct

and post-conviction appeal challenging his convictions on eight felony counts and two

misdemeanor counts. Miller raises three issues for our review, which we restate as: (1)

whether the prosecutor engaged in misconduct; (2) whether the post-conviction court erred in

concluding that Miller was not denied the effective assistance of trial counsel; and (3)

whether the post-conviction court abused its discretion when it denied Miller’s request to

subpoena certain witnesses and documents for the post-conviction evidentiary hearing.

Finding no error or abuse of discretion, we affirm his convictions.

Facts and Procedural History

The facts most favorable to Miller’s convictions indicate that Miller first met Pamela

Taylor in 1995 when they were in the Army Reserves. They got in touch again in 2002, and

Miller moved into Taylor’s home in 2004. Within a few months, the two became

romantically involved. The relationship was very stressful for Taylor because Miller was

very controlling and did not get along with her son. In early 2006, a break-in occurred at

Taylor’s home. Someone came in through her son’s bedroom window and stole a video

1 The Davis/Hatton procedure involves the termination or suspension of a direct appeal that has already been initiated, upon appellate counsel’s motion for remand or stay, in order to allow a post-conviction relief petition to be pursued in the trial court. Slusher v. State, 823 N.E.2d 1219, 1222 (Ind. Ct. App. 2005) (citing Hatton v. State, 626 N.E.2d 442, 443 (Ind. 1993), and Davis v. State, 267 Ind. 152, 368 N.E.2d 1149, 1151 (1977)). If, after a full evidentiary hearing, the petition for post-conviction relief is denied, the appeal can be reinitiated. Id. Under such circumstances, the direct appeal and the post-conviction relief appeal are consolidated. Id. Therefore, in addition to the issues initially raised in the direct appeal, the issues litigated in the post-conviction relief proceeding may also be raised. Id. “This way, a full hearing and record on the issues will be included in the appeal.” Id. The Davis/Hatton procedure is particularly useful where a defendant needs to develop an evidentiary record to support a claim of ineffective assistance of counsel. See Peaver v. State, 937 N.E.2d 896, 899 (Ind. Ct. App. 2010), trans. denied (2011).

2 game collection. Miller insisted on and paid for the installation of a monitored security

system. Miller was the only one at the home when ADT came to install the security system.

After the installation, Miller told Taylor the password and passcode for the new system.

Thereafter, in September 2006, Taylor asked Miller to move out of the home. Miller finally

moved out on October 28, 2006.

On November 20, 2006, Taylor came home to discover that the screen had been cut on

her son’s bedroom window. While waiting for a police officer to arrive and take a report,

Taylor had a telephone conversation with Miller. Miller then came over to the house but

stayed out of view while the police officer was there. Immediately after the officer left,

Miller attacked Taylor. He pinned her against the wall and yelled that he did not understand

why they were no longer together. Miller ordered Taylor into the bedroom and told her to

take her clothes off. Miller pulled a knife from behind his back and held it to Taylor’s neck.

He told her repeatedly that they were going to have sex and that she had “better do it right.”

Trial Tr. at 66. As Taylor cried, Miller forced her to perform oral sex on him. He then bound

her hands together with zip ties. Miller put a condom on and had intercourse with Taylor.

Afterward, Taylor begged Miller to leave, but he held the knife to her and told her that he

would have to kill her so that he would not go to jail. Miller placed a pillow on Taylor’s face

attempting to smother her. He finally stopped, and Taylor promised that she would not tell

anyone about the incident. Taylor started to feel an allergic reaction from the latex condom

that Miller had used. Miller suddenly became calm and apologetic. After repeated

assurances that she would not tell anyone what had happened, Miller left. Taylor did not

3 report the incident that night because of her promises to Miller. Taylor also did not report the

incident the next day out of fear that no one would believe her because she had failed to

report it right away.

Miller called Taylor almost every day following that incident. Sometime in

December, Taylor agreed to meet Miller for dinner. The dinner was very upsetting for

Taylor. Miller also made arrangements to spend New Year’s Eve with Taylor. Taylor had

consensual sex with Miller that night. Because Taylor’s ex-husband is in prison for killing

an ex-girlfriend, Taylor hoped that being with Miller consensually would perhaps help them

end their relationship on a “good note.” Id. at 77.

On January 27, 2007, Taylor awoke to the sound of her car alarm. She called 911.

After reviewing video from surveillance cameras that she had installed, Taylor believed that

Miller had opened her Jeep with a key. Taylor left Miller a voicemail, and Miller arrived at

the house before police. Miller denied that it was him on the video. Due to the poor video

quality, the police were unsure of whether it was Miller on the video. Officers did not arrest

Miller. Taylor told Miller that she knew he was the perpetrator and that she was going to get

her locks changed.

On Monday, January 29, 2007, Taylor left work early to get a no-contact order against

Miller. She called Miller and told him to stay away from her. That same day, William Jones

was waiting for his children’s school bus near Taylor’s home when he observed a man, later

identified as Miller, park his vehicle a significant distance from Taylor’s home and then walk

to her home. Jones watched as Miller entered Taylor’s residence through the overhead

4 garage door. Jones found Miller’s activity suspicious and called 911 to report the activity.

The next evening, January 30, 2007, Taylor returned home from work and errands. As

she turned off her security system, she suddenly saw Miller standing in the hallway of her

home. Miller was wearing a mask and gloves. He demanded the videotape from her car

break-in. Taylor told him that she had taken the videotape to work. Miller ordered Taylor to

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