Norton v. State

745 S.E.2d 630, 293 Ga. 332, 2013 Fulton County D. Rep. 2052, 2013 WL 3287157, 2013 Ga. LEXIS 601
CourtSupreme Court of Georgia
DecidedJuly 1, 2013
DocketS13A0301
StatusPublished
Cited by43 cases

This text of 745 S.E.2d 630 (Norton v. State) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Supreme Court of Georgia primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Norton v. State, 745 S.E.2d 630, 293 Ga. 332, 2013 Fulton County D. Rep. 2052, 2013 WL 3287157, 2013 Ga. LEXIS 601 (Ga. 2013).

Opinion

HINES, Justice.

David Robert Norton appeals his convictions and sentences for malice murder, arson, criminal attempt to commit the crime of concealing the death of another, possession of a firearm by a first offender probationer, and possession of a firearm during the commission of a felony, all in connection with the shooting death of Amy Ayers (“Amy”).1 For the reasons that follow, we affirm.

[333]*333Construed to support the verdicts, the evidence showed that Norton was Amy’s live-in boyfriend. David Ayers (“David”) was Amy’s ex-husband; they had two children together. In September or October 2007, Amy went to David’s house to discuss the children and spent the night there. On October 7, 2007, Norton sent David an e-mail discussing the incident, and stating, “[t]ake this seriously and to heart... that i do not want ANYONE sniffin around my girl.” [sic]. On October 26, 2007, Amy told David that she was going to ask Norton to leave. On the morning of October 30, 2007, Amy’s son, Wesley Ayers, left the house for school; Amy and Norton were still there. When Wesley returned, there was smoke in the house and he called 911. After extinguishing a fire in an upstairs bedroom, a firefighter found Amy’s burned body on the floor; a roll of duct tape was nearby, a sheet was under the body, and the smoke detectors on the first and second floors of the house had been removed from the walls. Amy had been killed by a shotgun blast to the back of her skull; the shot was directed slightly upward from a distance of one foot or less. Two separate fires had been started in the bedroom: one originated on Amy’s body and the other in a chair. Debris tested positive for gasoline. A detective spoke to Norton by cell phone shortly after examining the scene; Norton refused to reveal his location and said that he knew Amy was dead.

Norton was found, taken to a law enforcement facility, given his Miranda2 warnings, and interviewed. He said that he and Amy argued, she retrieved a “sawed-off” shotgun from the closet and pointed it at him, they wrestled, the shotgun fell to the floor, and discharged. He also said he did not know how she was shot, and speculated that his thumb had hit the trigger. Norton further stated that, as he did not wish her sons to see Amy’s body, he attempted to wrap the body in a sheet with duct tape and move it for burial before they returned from school, but was unable to do so; he then poured gasoline on the body and set it on fire. Although Norton stated that he threw the shotgun into a lake, it was never found.

[334]*3341. The evidence authorized the jury to find Norton guilty beyond a reasonable doubt of the crimes for which he was convicted. Jackson v. Virginia, 443 U. S. 307 (99 SCt 2781, 61 LE2d 560) (1979).

2. Norton contends that evidence of his interview with law enforcement investigators, and the written statement he made at the time, should have been suppressed, asserting that he was then under the influence of drugs and alcohol such that his waiver of his Miranda rights was not made knowingly and voluntarily. After a JacksonDenno3 hearing, the trial court denied Norton’s motion to suppress.

In deciding the admissibility of a statement during a JacksonDenno hearing, the trial court “must consider the totality of the circumstances” and must determine the admissibility of the statement under the “preponderance of the evidence” standard. Unless the factual and credibility findings of the trial court are “clearly erroneous,” the trial court’s decision on admissibility will be upheld on appeal. [Cits.]

Jones v. State, 285 Ga. 328, 329 (2) (676 SE2d 225) (2009).

During the hearing, Norton’s expert witness, a psychiatrist, testified that Norton reported that, before the interview, he had taken 15-20 pills of Xanax, two pills of Adderall, and had been drinking bourbon and beer. The expert further testified that he had viewed the recording of the interview, had conducted his own interview of Norton, and concluded that Norton had a history of substance abuse that had created in him a tolerance for the substances such that he would appear to be functioning normally, but would not in fact be able to make intelligent decisions, and that, in the expert’s opinion, at the time of the interview, Norton was not able to knowingly or intelligently waive his Miranda rights. Another expert witness, also a psychiatrist, testified on behalf of the State that she reviewed the interview and, given the statements Norton made and the answers to questions he was asked, he understood that giving a statement to investigators could have legal consequences, did not display a “significant level of impairment,” and knowingly, intelligently, and voluntarily waived his Miranda rights. The detective who was the primary interviewer testified that he did not promise Norton anything in exchange for speaking with the detective, that Norton appeared to understand both what was occurring and his Miranda rights, even discussing the fact that he could not afford an attorney, [335]*335and that he wished to speak with the detective nonetheless. After its own review of the recorded interview, the trial court denied the motion to suppress.

The mere fact that Norton may have been somewhat intoxicated at the time of the interview does not automatically render evidence thereof inadmissible. Jones, supra. See also Shelby v. State, 265 Ga. 118, 119 (453 SE2d 21) (1995); Fowler v. State, 246 Ga. 256, 258 (3) (271 SE2d 168) (1980). The trial court was faced with conflicting evidence, and determined that Norton made his statement knowingly and voluntarily; there was evidence to support this determination; and there is no reversible error in the court’s denial of the motion to suppress. See Miller v. State, 288 Ga. 286, 286-287 (1) (702 SE2d 888) (2010).4

3. Norton contends that the trial court wrongly admitted into evidence two autopsy photographs that showed the victim’s head, one with a portion of the scalp excised and one with a portion of the skull removed.

A photograph that depicts the victim after autopsy incisions or after the pathologist changes the state of the body is admissible when “necessary to show some material fact which becomes apparent only because of the autopsy.” Brown v. State, 250 Ga. 862, 867 (5) (302 SE2d 347) (1983).

Bunnell v. State, 292 Ga. 253, 258 (5) (733 SE2d 281) (2013). The photographs aided the medical examiner in testifying as to the range and direction of travel of the shotgun pellets, which, coming from the rear of the right side of Amy’s head, served to rebut the defense of accident, and it was not error for the court to admit them into evidence. Id.

4. During closing argument, the State presented a demonstration with a piece of wood 18 inches long, which represented the sawed-off shotgun that Norton told investigators he and Amy struggled over.5 Norton did not object to the demonstration at trial, but even [336]*336absent procedural waiver, such a demonstration is not beyond the bounds of permissible argument, and Norton cannot show an abuse of discretion in permitting it. See Scott v. State, 290 Ga. 883, 885 (2) (725 SE2d 305) (2012); Laney v. State, 271 Ga.

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Bluebook (online)
745 S.E.2d 630, 293 Ga. 332, 2013 Fulton County D. Rep. 2052, 2013 WL 3287157, 2013 Ga. LEXIS 601, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/norton-v-state-ga-2013.