Hughes v. People

59 V.I. 1015, 2013 WL 5862656, 2013 V.I. Supreme LEXIS 80
CourtSupreme Court of The Virgin Islands
DecidedOctober 31, 2013
DocketS. Ct. Criminal No. 2012-0030
StatusPublished
Cited by10 cases

This text of 59 V.I. 1015 (Hughes v. People) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Supreme Court of The Virgin Islands primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Hughes v. People, 59 V.I. 1015, 2013 WL 5862656, 2013 V.I. Supreme LEXIS 80 (virginislands 2013).

Opinion

OPINION OF THE COURT

(October 31, 2013)

Hodge, Chief Justice.

Khareem Hughes appeals the Superior Court’s September 5, 2012 Amended Judgment and Commitment, which found [1017]*1017him guilty of voluntary manslaughter, the lesser included offense of first-degree murder, and reckless endangerment. For the reasons that follow, we reverse his convictions.

I. STATEMENT OF RELEVANT FACTS AND PROCEDURAL POSTURE

The People of the Virgin Islands charged Khareem Hughes2 and his two codefendants, Joh Williams and Jalani Williams, with numerous offenses — including first-degree murder — stemming from an event that took place on the early morning of August 2, 2009, when a shooting erupted in the vicinity of a restaurant parking lot and a nearby gas station on St. Croix. Almonzo Williams, who was shot thirteen times, died shortly after being transported from the scene. Lester Roberts and Kamal Lewis also sustained gunshot wounds in the shooting incident, but both survived.

Shortly after the shooting, Officer Orlando Benitez observed an individual — later identified as Khareem — slowly driving away from the restaurant in what turned out to be his aunt Lynell Hughes’s vehicle, and saw another man — whom he later identified as Jalani — jump into the vehicle through the passenger window, at which point the vehicle sped away. (App. 697-99.) Benitez pursued the vehicle, and a high-speed chase ensued, resulting in Khareem’s car speeding through a police roadblock and colliding with a truck. Although Khareem and Jalani fled on foot following the collision, another officer, Jose Ramos, apprehended Khareem. (App. 704-06, 830.)

Arkiesa Hughes — also Khareem’s aunt — was present with Lynell at the restaurant the night of the shooting. According to Detective Richard Matthews, both Arkiesa and Lynell voluntarily came to the police station the night of the shooting and gave statements of what they observed. (App. 293, 304.) Their statements identified Joh as the person who shot Almonzo. (App. 319, 359.)

Detective Matthews met a second time with Lynell on October 7, 2009, and then with Arkiesa on November 13, 2009. (App. 375.) According to Detective Matthews, Lynell stated that immediately before the shots were [1018]*1018fired, Khareem told her and Arkiesa to “move from around here.” (App. 381.) Lynell also allegedly admitted to seeing Jalani “come from across the road and fire two shots while [Almonzo] was on the ground.” (App. 382.) Arkiesa allegedly told Matthews that on August 2, 2009, she first saw Khareem across the street from where the shootings occurred with Joh and a couple other people. (App. 394.) Arkiesa went up to Khareem to ask him for something, and Khareem responded that she should go home. (App. 395.) Additionally, when asked who she saw with Joh and/or Jalani on August 2, 2009, before the shootings occurred, she responded with “my nephew, Khareem.” (App. 383.)

Trial began on October 18, 2011, during which the People called Arkiesa and Lynell, as well as Benitez and Matthews, as prosecution witnesses; however, both Arkiesa and Lynell recanted their prior statements. Specifically, Arkiesa testified that she was in a verbal altercation with another woman when Khareem came over and told her to stop attempting to provoke a physical fight with her and go home. (App. 41.) Arkiesa also denied seeing Joh or anyone else shooting that night. (App. 68.) Lynell denied seeing Joh shoot anyone that night. (App. 177.) However, Lynell did testify that immediately before the shootings, Khareem told her and Arkiesa to “move from [the area].” (App. 197.) Furthermore, both Lynell and Arkiesa admitted to signing and initialing the statements given to Detective Matthews, but they denied being able to read and thus did not know the contents of the papers they signed. (App. 89, 155.)

Trial ended on November 4, 2011. The jury found Khareem guilty of the lesser included offense of voluntary manslaughter of Almonzo and reckless endangerment. On March 14, 2012, the Superior Court denied Khareem’s December 5, 2011 renewed motion for judgment of acquittal, and from the bench sentenced Khareem to incarceration of ten years for the voluntary manslaughter and five years for the reckless endangerment conviction, both to run concurrently. Khareem filed a timely notice of appeal on March 28, 2012. (App. 1-3.)

II. DISCUSSION

A. Jurisdiction and Standard of Review

“The Supreme Court [has] jurisdiction over all appeals arising from final judgments, final decrees or final orders of the Superior Court. . . .” [1019]*1019V.I. Code Ann. tit. 4, § 32(a). An order is considered to be “final” for purposes of this statute if it “ends the litigation on the merits, leaving nothing else for the court to do except execute the judgment.” Williams v. People, 55 V.I. 721, 727 (V.I. 2011). In addition, it is well established that in a criminal case, a written judgment or order embodying the adjudication of guilt and imposing the sentence based on that adjudication is final and appealable under this statute. Frett v. People, 58 V.I. 492, 502 (V.I. 2013). Because the Superior Court’s September 5, 2012 Amended Judgment and Commitment is a final judgment, this Court has jurisdiction over this appeal.

Ordinarily, the standard of review for this Court’s examination of the Superior Court’s application of law is plenary, while findings of fact are reviewed for clear error. St. Thomas-St. John Bd. of Elections v. Daniel, 49 V.I. 322, 329 (V.I. 2007). When reviewing a challenge to the sufficiency of the evidence supporting a conviction, we view all issues of credibility in the light most favorable to the People. Latalladi v. People, 51 V.I. 137, 145 (V.I. 2009). If “ ‘any rational trier of fact could have found the essential elements of the crime beyond a reasonable doubt,’ ” we will affirm. DeSilvia v. People, 55 V.I. 859, 865 (V.I. 2011) (quoting Mendoza v. People, 55 V.I. 660, 667 (V.I. 2011)). The evidence offered in support of a conviction “ ‘need not be inconsistent with every conclusion save that of guilt, so long as it establishes a case from which a jury could find the defendant guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.’ ” Mulley v. People, 51 V.I. 404, 409 (V.I. 2009) (quoting United States v. Carr, 25 F.3d 1194, 1201 (3d Cir. 1996)). A defendant seeking to overturn his conviction on this basis bears “ ‘a very heavy burden.’ ” Latalladi, 51 V.I. at 145 (quoting United States v. Losada, 674 F.2d 167, 173 (2d Cir. 1982)).

B. Sufficiency of the Evidence

Khareem argues that the evidence was insufficient to establish beyond a reasonable doubt that he aided and abetted his codefendants in the unlawful killing of Almonzo. Khareem was charged with his codefendants both as a primary actor and as an aider and abettor to the homicide. Under Virgin Islands law, a person charged as a primary actor can be convicted as an aider and abettor. Todman v. People, 59 V.I. 675, 683 (V.I. 2013) (quoting United States v. Standefer,

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Bluebook (online)
59 V.I. 1015, 2013 WL 5862656, 2013 V.I. Supreme LEXIS 80, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/hughes-v-people-virginislands-2013.