Lakin v. Stine

80 F. App'x 368
CourtCourt of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit
DecidedJune 12, 2003
DocketNo. 01-1671
StatusPublished
Cited by15 cases

This text of 80 F. App'x 368 (Lakin v. Stine) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Lakin v. Stine, 80 F. App'x 368 (6th Cir. 2003).

Opinions

GRAHAM, District Judge.

This is an appeal filed by Respondent-Appellant, Michigan Attorney General Wayne Stine, from a judgment entered in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan which conditionally granted a petition for writ of habeas corpus filed pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 2254 by Petitioner-Appellee, David Patrick Lakin.

I. History of the Case

Petitioner was convicted in the Circuit Court of Jackson County, Michigan, on June 26, 1990, on one count of kidnapping, one count of prison escape, one count of assault of a prison employee, and one count of unlawfully driving away an automobile. These charges stemmed from a prison escape by petitioner and four other inmates from the State Prison of Southern Michigan on January 26, 1990. The five prisoners escaped through a storm drainage pipe into a field. They were observed walking away from the prison by two corrections officers, Danny Norman and Sheila Duncan. One of the inmates was wearing street clothes. The others were dressed in prison uniforms, but carried clear plastic bags containing civilian clothing.

Norman and Duncan drove up in a state van and approached the five men to ask if they had been detailed to work in the area. One inmate answered affirmatively, holding up a piece of paper. The inmates then grabbed and subdued the officers, striking them several times. The officers were handcuffed together and forced into the state van. The five inmates also entered the van, and petitioner drove the van to various locations looking for another vehicle to commandeer. He eventually turned onto a street which was blockaded by a sheriffs vehicle, and he was stopped at gunpoint by a sheriffs deputy. The inmates exited the vehicle with their hands up and were taken into custody.

During the incident, Officer Duncan sustained broken blood vessels in one eye, a blow to the other eye, bruises, a split lip, a knot on her ear, an internal bruise on her kidney, and other injuries. Officer Norman sustained a cut lip and knots on his head from being kicked by petitioner.

Prior to trial, petitioner filed a notice pursuant to M.C.L. § 768.21b(1) of his intent to assert the defense of duress to the escape charge. Section 768.21b provides that duress may be a defense to the charge of breaking prison. M.C.L. § 768.21b(1) requires the filing of a notice at least ten days prior to trial setting forth “specific information relative to the defense” and “the names of witnesses to be called in behalf of the defendant to establish that defense.” § 768.21b(1). Petitioner also stated in this notice that he intended to assert the defense of necessity.1

[370]*370Petitioner’s original notice was a pro se filing dated March 19, 1990. He later filed an amended notice on June 7, 1990. In this amended notice, petitioner alleged generally that he was forced to flee the institution to avoid being assaulted or murdered. He further alleged that high-ranking prison officials were engaged in a criminal enterprise which included placing poison in his food, and that prison officials withheld medical treatment for symptoms which resulted from the ingestion of poisons. He listed sixty-one witnesses who would allegedly testify concerning assaults or attempted murder involving inmates and the presence of toxic chemicals and other environmental contaminants in the food and water supply at the institution. The prosecution filed a motion to strike the compulsion defenses.

On June 18, 1990, petitioner moved for the appointment of new counsel. When the court denied this request, petitioner elected to represent himself for the remainder of the proceedings.

On June 18, 1990, the trial court held an evidentiary hearing to determine whether the compulsion defenses, including the defense of duress under § 768.21b, were available.2 The prosecution argued that under People v. Travis, 182 Mich.App. 889, 451 N.W.2d 641 (1990),3 the defenses were not available when hostages were taken or violence was used during the escape.

The prosecution presented the testimony of Officers Duncan and Norman, who testified that they were assaulted and forced into the state vehicle by the defendants. Petitioner called Sergeant Royce Alston, the investigating officer on the case, to testify concerning various incident reports which contained witness statements. The defendants then indicated that they wished to call additional witnesses, and the hearing was recessed until June 20, 1990.

At the hearing on June 20, 1990, petitioner called Officer Dennis VanDusen, a prison employee. Mr. VanDusen testified [371]*371that he observed five or six people walking by a fence approximately 250 feet away. He later saw persons “scurrying around” and getting into a state vehicle which was on a road approximately 500 to 600 yards or half a mile from where he was standing. An object he could not identify fell from the vehicle as it was leaving, and the vehicle stopped briefly while someone got out of the vehicle to retrieve it. He stated that he did not see an assault, but could not say that an assault did not occur. After this testimony, petitioner and the other defendants indicated that they did not wish to call any additional witnesses.

In rebuttal, the prosecution called Paul Lenardson, a prison maintenance employee, who had also been identified by the defendants as a potential witness. Lenardson observed a state van approaching five persons who were walking across a field. At that time, Lenardson was standing with VanDusen about a quarter of a mile away from the road. He observed the five persons approach the van. A few minutes later, he saw someone fall from the back of the van. Several people ran to the back of the van, picked the person up and pushed the person into the van.

Relying on Travis and other authorities, the trial court concluded that petitioner’s compulsion defenses were not available as a matter of law because hostages were taken during the escape. The trial court indicated that this ruling applied to all counts. The trial court permitted the parties to argue any objections to this and other rulings on the record, and the case then proceeded to a jury trial. Petitioner was convicted on one count of kidnapping, one count of prison escape, one count of assault of a prison employee, and one count of unlawfully driving away an automobile.

Petitioner was sentenced on August 29, 1990. He pursued a direct appeal, and on June 14, 1993, the Michigan Court of Appeals affirmed his convictions.4 On November 30, 1993, the Michigan Supreme Court denied petitioner’s application for leave to appeal.

On May 16, 1996, petitioner filed a petition for writ of habeas corpus in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan. In this petition, petitioner alleged: 1) that he was denied his right to the effective assistance of counsel; 2) that he was denied a fair and impartial trial when the trial court prevented him from presenting a duress and necessity defense; 3) that he was denied a fair trial because of a court rule limiting the number of peremptory challenges to seven; 4) that he was denied a fair trial due to the trial court’s refusal to charge the jury on lesser included offenses; and 5) that he was denied a fair trial because he was shackled during the trial.

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Bluebook (online)
80 F. App'x 368, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/lakin-v-stine-ca6-2003.