Gaddis v. State

1968 OK CR 193, 447 P.2d 42
CourtCourt of Criminal Appeals of Oklahoma
DecidedOctober 16, 1968
DocketA-14579
StatusPublished
Cited by29 cases

This text of 1968 OK CR 193 (Gaddis v. State) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Criminal Appeals of Oklahoma primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Gaddis v. State, 1968 OK CR 193, 447 P.2d 42 (Okla. Ct. App. 1968).

Opinions

BUSSEY, Judge.

Howard Gaddis, hereinafter referred to as defendant, was convicted of the murder of Jeanette R. Morroone, allegedly committed on the 12th day of January, 1967. He was tried by a jury, found guilty, and from the judgment and sentence fixing his punishment at death, he appeals.

From the record it appears that on the evening of January 12, 1967, Sally Holden returned to her apartment at 1645 North Lindsey in Oklahoma City, where she found her roommate, Jeanette Morroone, dead. She notified the police who conducted an extensive search of the premises which yielded stained sheets, pubic hair of Caucasion origin and hair from the head of a member of the Negroid race. There was also discovered feed dust consisting of wheat, oats, corn and milo on the sheets in the apartment where the homicide occurred. An autopsy of the victim of the homicide disclosed that there were three wounds which appeared to be gunshot wounds in the left chest, and the cause of death was extensive aspiration and hemorrhage of the left lung. The results of the autopsy also revealed marks evidencing strangulation on the victim’s neck and spermatozoa was present in the victim’s vagina.

The evidence above referred to, together with evidence obtained as a result of a search of the defendant’s premises, conducted under authority of a search warrant, and a .380 caliber Llama automatic pistol recovered from one Otis Hammons, brother-in-law of the defendant, to whom the defendant had given the weapon the next day after the homicide was committed, were transmitted to laboratory technicians of the Oklahoma Bureau of Investí-[44]*44gation and the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Their relevant testimony may be summarized as follows:

It was established by Ray Lambert, firearms examiner for the Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation, that as a result of comparisons made of test bullets fired by him into a recovery box from the gun which was established to have been given the officers by Otis Hammons and certain spent bullets recovered from the body and underneath the body of Jeanette Morroone, it was his opinion that the latter were fired by the gun admitted in evidence.

Paul N. Stombaugh, Special Agent of the F.B.I., testified that he was a specialist with the hair and fiber unit of the F.B.I. In substance, this witness testified that he analyzed certain fragments of hair obtained from the sheets and from the vacuuming of Jeanette Morroone’s apartment. He also analyzed fragments of hair removed from the clothing obtained through a search of defendant’s residence. He determined that these fragments were head hair of Negroid origin. He concluded that all of the fragments originated from the same individual or from two individual members of the Negro race whose head hairs were identical in all of the characteristics seen under the microscope, and considered this latter possibility to be very remote. He further testified, that on one pair of undershorts which he examined and which belonged to the defendant, he found a single full length light brown pubic hair which he determined to be of Caucasian origin. He also examined IS or 16 hairs taken from the sheets removed from the victim’s apartment. He determined these to also be pubic hairs of Caucasian origin and further concluded that the hair removed from the defendant’s undershorts came from the same person as the 15 or 16 hairs from the sheets, or from two members of the Caucasian race whose pubic hairs were identical in all microscopic characteristics.

Paul Rene Bidez, another Special Agent of the F.B.I., testified that his work consisted principally of the examination and identification of blood and other body fluids. He testified that he analyzed stains found on the sheets taken from the victim’s apartment to be blood of human origin. He also found semen within the blood stains. On the fly of a pair of the trousers which belonged to defendant and on the fly of a pair of undershorts belonging to defendant, he also found stains which he determined to be blood of human origin. He found semen on the front area of the undershorts.

Richard W. Flach, the third Special Agent, testified that he was a specialist in soils, minerals and botanical material. He examined certain substances removed from the gloves and articles of clothing belonging to defendant and compared it with that removed from the bed sheets from the victim’s apartment. It was his conclusion that all of this debris consisted of particles of wheat, oats, corn and milo and that it all could have come from the same source.

On the trial, Harold F. Middleton testified that he was manager of the Hammond Mills and that the defendant worked there during the time that this homicide occurred. Basically he testified that Hammond Mills manufactured livestock and poultry feed, which was produced by grinding up corn, oats, milo, barley and other such ingredients, and anyone working there would necessarily get such feed dust on their clothing.

No evidence was offered on behalf of the defendant, nor did he take the stand in his own behalf.

On appeal, defendant first contends that the trial court erred in admitting evidence obtained as a result of an illegal search and seizure. This argument in substance is that while the affidavit was in positive terms, he should be able to go behind the affidavit for the search warrant and show that the officer upon whose affidavit the search warrant was issued did not have positive knowledge that the articles sought to be seized under the search warrant were in the possession of the defendant and he [45]*45refers to some of the testimony of Officer LeMay upon whose affidavit the search warrant was issued, as supporting his position.

We are of the opinion that this assignment of error is wholly without merit, for we have repeatedly held, in an unbroken line of decisions, that:

“Where an affidavit to procure a search warrant is in positive terms, one will not be permitted to go behind the affidavit and show the officers did not have knowledge of the charges alleged in the affidavit.”

See Baker v. State, (September 4, 1968), Okl.Cr., 448 P.2d 282, and Crossland v. State, Okl.Cr., 266 P.2d 649. To this same effect, see Griffin v. State, 95 Okl.Cr. 421, 246 P.2d 424; Padgett v. State, 96 Okl.Cr. 82, 248 P.2d 1055; Workman v. State, 83 Okl.Cr. 245, 175 P.2d 381; and Blair v. State, 55 Okl.Cr. 280, 29 P.2d 998.

It is next contended that this cause should be reversed because of the prejudicial remarks of the prosecutor in his closing argument, when he stated:

“I will point out to you that this defendant through his counsel has never denied that he is guilty.”

(CM 322). The defendant argues that although no objection was interposed at the time this statement was made, nor exception taken to the ruling of the court, that the error was so fundamental as to require reversal. We believe this argument is so clearly and succinctly dealt with in the excellent brief of the State, prepared by the Assistant Attorney General, Mr. Charles Owens, that we here take the liberty to quote therefrom.

“The particular remark of the prosecutor which counsel asserts to be cause for reversal of this case is this (CM 322) :

‘I will point out to you that this Defendant through his counsel has never denied that he is guilty.’

It is his contention that such remark is clearly within the prohibition of 22 O.S. 1961, § 701, which provides:

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Bluebook (online)
1968 OK CR 193, 447 P.2d 42, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/gaddis-v-state-oklacrimapp-1968.