Henderson v. Commonwealth

563 S.W.3d 651
CourtMissouri Court of Appeals
DecidedDecember 13, 2018
Docket2016-SC-000484-MR
StatusPublished
Cited by16 cases

This text of 563 S.W.3d 651 (Henderson v. Commonwealth) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Missouri Court of Appeals primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Henderson v. Commonwealth, 563 S.W.3d 651 (Mo. Ct. App. 2018).

Opinions

OPINION OF THE COURT BY JUSTICE KELLER

A Jefferson County jury convicted Cleosey Darnell Henderson, II of Assault, first degree, Sexual Abuse, first degree, and Unlawful Imprisonment, first degree. The jury also found Henderson was a persistent felony offender (PFO) in the first-degree. He was sentenced, per the jury's recommendation, to a total sentence of sixty years. Henderson now appeals his conviction and sentence as a matter of right on several grounds. For the following reasons, we affirm his conviction.

I. BACKGROUND

Alice,1 Henderson's neighbor, walked over to his home to request money that she alleged Henderson owed her. After answering the door and engaging in some conversation, Henderson grabbed Alice by the throat and attacked her. She lost consciousness and, at some point, awoke, tied up in Henderson's bedroom. Alice lost consciousness multiple times throughout the encounter but testified that Henderson had removed her pants and panties and digitally penetrated her vagina. Henderson cut Alice multiple times with a sharp object that Alice could not specifically identify in her testimony. Alice was ultimately able to free herself and leave through a window, during which her legs were cut from the broken glass. She escaped to a neighbor's home where she obtained help and was taken to the hospital for treatment. She had multiple cuts and bruises from the assault.

Henderson was arrested in November of 2011, yet his trial did not occur until June of 2016. For this reason, on appeal, he argues that his constitutional right to a speedy trial, under both the United States Constitution2 and the Kentucky Constitution,3 was violated and he is entitled to a dismissal with prejudice. Henderson also alleges prejudicial error in: (1) the trial *658court's failure to appoint substitute counsel; (2) the trial court's failure to advise Henderson of his right to stand-by or hybrid counsel; (3) the trial court's denial of Henderson's motion to suppress; (4) the exclusion of evidence under the Rape Shield Law; and (5) the trial court's inaccurate curtailing of Henderson's right to recall a witness. For the following reasons, we find no reversible error and affirm the judgment of the Jefferson Circuit Court.

A timeline of this case is integral to the speedy trial analysis. As such, the Court must, in detail, describe exactly what occurred during Henderson's case and the dilatory nature of any delay.

Timeline

Henderson was indicted on December 28, 2011 and arraigned in January of 2012. His jury trial was scheduled at that time for July 17, 2012. His first appointed public defender was present with him at a bond reduction hearing on January 27, 2012, but he had to be appointed a new attorney when his original counsel left the DPA. The newly-appointed attorney appeared with him at his next pretrial conference on April 23, 2012. It seemed that it was this court's practice, from the record and from counsel's statements at appearances, to schedule fewer pretrial conferences until trial. Thus, from Henderson's court record, it was not unusual, absent motions or issues, for two to four months to pass between appearances in the circuit court. While that delay is not necessarily excusable, the description of local practice4 is important to understanding the context of Henderson's case.

The first suppression motion was filed on May 30, 2012 and set for hearing on June 22, 2012. Rather than utilizing that date for the hearing, defense counsel, with agreement from the Commonwealth, moved to remand the jury trial date and utilize that date as the suppression hearing. The reason is unclear from the record, but that date was also rescheduled, and the suppression hearing was held on September 11, 2012. The parties set the jury trial for May 7, 2013. The context of the May date is also important; the dissent focuses on the length of time between trial dates and the inevitable delay to Henderson's case. While attempting to reschedule dates, the trial court, prosecutor, and defense attorney all had burdensome schedules with which to arrange possible dates for Henderson's trial. Both the prosecutor and defense attorney were working on other murder cases and there was at least one reference to a capital case. The trial court also had a cumbersome schedule with multiple civil jury trials; each time the parties had to reschedule, the judge contacted his assistant on speaker phone to tell him the next possible date. This May 7, 2013 date was the first time that all the parties were available for another trial. Although this is a long period, this context must be appreciated and understood. The parties were not being intentionally dilatory but were, instead, attempting to cooperate with three diverse and busy schedules to accommodate Henderson's need for access to the court.

Henderson's attorney filed some uncomplicated motions over the next few months, including a second suppression motion. After that motion was filed, the parties attempted to schedule a second hearing. The lead detective for the Commonwealth was unavailable until the trial date as she was on medical leave. The dissenting opinion states that the Commonwealth was unable to proceed to hearing on February 11, 2013 after the filed motion. However, from review of the record, February 11 was a pretrial conference at which time the parties *659were to schedule a hearing because of Henderson's recently filed motion (filed on February 5, 2013). The Commonwealth was ready to proceed with the jury trial date in May; it simply was unable to produce its witness before that time. The parties agreed to convert the trial date to a suppression hearing and reschedule the trial. Thus, the prosecution, from this review of the record, never requested a continuance for its preparation but merely consented to defense requests for such.

On March 4, 2013, Henderson filed a demand for a speedy trial. In May, although the reasons are unclear from the record, the suppression hearing was rescheduled for June 26, 2013 and a jury trial date was scheduled for October 28, 2013. The suppression hearing occurred on the June 26 date. In October, and for reasons that are once again unclear from the record, the court entered an order rescheduling the jury trial for June 3, 2014.

On November 11, 2013, Henderson filed a pro se motion to dismiss for violating his right to a speedy trial. The hearing, from pleadings, was rescheduled by the trial court twice. It finally occurred on May 7, 2014. By that time, Henderson had filed a second pro se motion for an expert witness. At the May 7 hearing, Henderson first stated that he would like to dismiss his attorney and have a new lawyer appointed. The judge asked him to file that in writing so that the court could address it later but specifically pointed out to Henderson that such a motion would definitely delay the trial even longer, in spite of his request for a speedy trial. Henderson stated that the request was necessary and "it would just have to happen." Based on these motions requiring an ex parte hearing, the court scheduled those motions to be heard on May 12, 2014.

On May 12, Henderson filed his pro se motion for conflict counsel and the hearing went forward. Henderson there stated that he "refuse[d]" to go to trial with his appointed attorney.

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Bluebook (online)
563 S.W.3d 651, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/henderson-v-commonwealth-moctapp-2018.