Fredrick Lee Ford, Jr. v. State of Indiana (mem. dec.)

Indiana Court of Appeals

Fredrick Lee Ford, Jr. v. State of Indiana (mem. dec.)

DecidedNovember 13, 2020

Docket19A-CR-2588

StatusPublished

This text of Fredrick Lee Ford, Jr. v. State of Indiana (mem. dec.) (Fredrick Lee Ford, Jr. v. State of Indiana (mem. dec.)) 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.

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Fredrick Lee Ford, Jr. v. State of Indiana (mem. dec.), (Ind. Ct. App. 2020).

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Opinion

MEMORANDUM DECISION Pursuant to Ind. Appellate Rule 65(D), this Memorandum Decision shall not be FILED regarded as precedent or cited before any Nov 13 2020, 9:45 am

court except for the purpose of establishing CLERK the defense of res judicata, collateral Indiana Supreme Court Court of Appeals and Tax Court estoppel, or the law of the case.

ATTORNEY FOR APPELLANT ATTORNEYS FOR APPELLEE Deborah Markisohn Curtis T. Hill, Jr. Marion County Public Defender Agency Attorney General of Indiana Indianapolis, Indiana Jodi Kathryn Stein Deputy Attorney General Indianapolis, Indiana

IN THE COURT OF APPEALS OF INDIANA

Fredrick Lee Ford, Jr., November 13, 2020 Appellant-Defendant, Court of Appeals Case No. 19A-CR-2588 v. Appeal from the Marion Superior Court State of Indiana, The Honorable Shatrese Flowers, Appellee-Plaintiff Judge Trial Court Cause No. 49G02-1802-MR-4613

May, Judge.

Court of Appeals of Indiana | Memorandum Decision 19A-CR-2588 | November 13, 2020 Page 1 of 18 [1] Fredrick Lee Ford, Jr., appeals following his conviction of murder.1 He raises

two issues on appeal, which we revise and restate as: (1) whether the trial court

committed reversible error when it admitted into evidence portions of Ford’s

recorded police interrogation, and (2) whether the trial court’s written order

erroneously ordered Ford to pay a $100 supplemental public defender fee. We

affirm Ford’s conviction and remand for correction of the court’s clerical error.

Facts and Procedural History [2] Ford and Catrina Russell began dating in August 2017, and Ford moved into

Russell’s apartment shortly thereafter. In January 2018, Russell went on a

cruise with an older male friend, Ronnie Rudolph, and Rudolph’s adult

daughter. Ford began to suspect that Russell and Rudolph were romantically

involved. On Friday, January 26, 2018, Dontoria Gilbert, Russell’s adult

daughter, visited Russell at Russell’s apartment, and Ford called Russell while

Gilbert was visiting. Gilbert heard Ford “hollering” at Russell over the

telephone, and Russell asked Gilbert to get on the phone to assure Ford that

Russell was not lying to him about where she was. (Tr. Vol. II at 153.) Later

that day, Russell told Ford that he needed to find a new place to live.

[3] Around 3:00 pm on Sunday, January 28, 2018, customers at the New York

Express convenience store located at the corner of Rural Street and New York

1 Ind. Code § 35-42-1-1.

Court of Appeals of Indiana | Memorandum Decision 19A-CR-2588 | November 13, 2020 Page 2 of 18 Street in Indianapolis observed a dark Lexus sedan, later identified as Russell’s

vehicle, pull into the parking lot. Aranda Rodriguez, Silvia Martinez, and their

children were at the New York Express and observed an African American

couple arguing in the Lexus. The female was in the driver’s seat and the male

was in the passenger seat. Rodriguez and Martinez then heard a gunshot.

They saw the woman’s body, later identified as Russell, get pushed out of the

vehicle. The Lexus backed over the woman’s body, went forward again over

her body, and then left the convenience store parking lot. A camera installed by

the City of Indianapolis at the intersection of Rural Street and 10th Street

captured the Lexus travelling north on Rural Street. Martinez took pictures of

the car and its license plate with her phone and called 911. Russell had a

gunshot wound to her head and died at the scene.

[4] Sometime between 3:00 pm and 5:00 pm that same day, Ford visited his friend

Reginald Batts at Batts’ house in the 1600 block of Gladstone Avenue. Batts

did not expect a visit from Ford that afternoon. Ford told Batts that his car

stopped running and “he spilt a bunch of Ketchup on him in the car.” (Id. at

242.) Ford talked about how Russell “was probably playing around on him”

and called her a “gold digger or something.” (Id.) Ford used Batts’ bathroom

to try to wash the stains off his pants. Ford then used Batts’ phone to call for a

ride and left Batts’ house. Ford did not return to the apartment he shared with

Russell to collect his possessions after Russell’s death. Ford also did not answer

phone calls from Russell’s father after Russell died, even though Ford had

talked regularly with Russell’s father when Russell was alive.

Court of Appeals of Indiana | Memorandum Decision 19A-CR-2588 | November 13, 2020 Page 3 of 18 [5] Roughly a mile from the New York Express and near Batts’ residence,

Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department (“IMPD”) officers found

Russell’s vehicle running, with significant blood staining inside the vehicle.

Marion County Crime Lab analysis found most of the blood matched Russell’s

DNA profile. Officers found Russell’s cell phone inside the vehicle, and near

the vehicle, officers found Russell’s purse, a black leather jacket, a black

stocking cap, and Russell’s 357 magnum revolver. The revolver contained one

fired cartridge and four unfired cartridges. Crime Lab analysis revealed DNA

found on the gun belonged to Russell and an unidentified male.

[6] Detective Harry Dunn met with Gilbert and Gilbert’s father after Russell’s

death, and then he attempted to contact Ford. Ford did not return Detective

Dunn’s phone calls, but he did come for an interview at the IMPD homicide

office on February 2, 2018. At the beginning of the interview, Detective Dunn

read Ford his Miranda rights, 2 and Ford signed a form waiving those rights.

Ford told Detective Dunn that on the day of Russell’s death, Ford got off work

and returned to the apartment he shared with Russell. Ford and Russell left the

apartment to grab something to eat. Russell drove with Ford in the passenger

seat. According to Ford’s account, near the intersection of 35th Street and

Keystone Avenue, Russell told Ford “to get out, [she] didn’t like [Ford’s]

attitude and this and that[.]” (Ex. 113 at 7:39 to 7:41; Ex. 113A at 3.) Ford

told Detective Dunn that he left his phone, keys, and debit card in the vehicle,

2 Miranda v. Arizona, 384 U.S. 436, 86 S. Ct. 1602 (1966), reh’g denied.

Court of Appeals of Indiana | Memorandum Decision 19A-CR-2588 | November 13, 2020 Page 4 of 18 but he exited the car and flagged down a stranger. The stranger then drove

Ford to an area near Ford’s sister’s house. Ford said he then ran into his

nephew and his nephew gave him some clothes. Ford’s nephew and some of

his nephew’s friends then drove Ford to a hotel and paid for his room. When

Detective Dunn asked Ford questions about the hotel, Ford gave only a general

location. He could not name the hotel, nor could he say when he arrived at the

hotel. Detective Dunn asked Ford additional questions, including why Ford

did not contact law enforcement after finding out about Russell’s death:

[Det. Dunn:] Okay. And so, uh; now, I, okay. So, and that’s pretty much . . . and so, and the reason why you didn’t call was what?

[Ford:] Man, I was you know, uh; s[***], surprised, after that happened. I didn’t know what to do. I’m just have to get my thoughts together. ‘Cause I know they’re going to be asking me stuff and, you know, like I said, I was blown away. And I was grieving. I’m done.

[Ford brushes his hand across his neck in a slashing motion]

[Det. Dunn:] You was blown away and you was grieving.

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