People v. Nelson

617 N.E.2d 28, 246 Ill. App. 3d 824, 186 Ill. Dec. 789, 1993 WL 54783, 1993 Ill. App. LEXIS 244
CourtAppellate Court of Illinois
DecidedMarch 2, 1993
DocketNo. 1-91-199
StatusPublished
Cited by14 cases

This text of 617 N.E.2d 28 (People v. Nelson) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Appellate Court of Illinois primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
People v. Nelson, 617 N.E.2d 28, 246 Ill. App. 3d 824, 186 Ill. Dec. 789, 1993 WL 54783, 1993 Ill. App. LEXIS 244 (Ill. Ct. App. 1993).

Opinion

PRESIDING JUSTICE MANNING

delivered the opinion of the court:

Defendant Paul G. Nelson was charged by indictment number 90 — CR—5406 with felony murder of Michael Guzzetta, home invasion and residential burglary (Ill. Rev. Stat. 1989, ch. 38, pars. 9— 1(a)(1), 12 — 11(a)(2), 19 — 3). Following a bench trial defendant was convicted of murder and home invasion and sentenced to 25 years in the Illinois Department of Corrections on the murder count, and a concurrent six-year sentence on the home invasion count. On appeal defendant alleged that: (1) he was denied a fair trial where the court drew inferences about the effects of PCP on the decedent; (2) he was denied his constitutional right to confront witnesses where the trial court restricted his cross-examination of a State witness; and (3) the Illinois homicide statute is unconstitutional. For the reasons set forth below, we affirm the judgment of the trial court.

The following evidence was presented at trial.

Officer Shaffer testified that on November 26, 1989, he was employed as a Chicago police officer and assigned to the 16th district. He responded to a call of a disturbance and headed to 5658 West Leland Street. Once there, Shaffer was directed by two men standing in front of the building to the basement apartment, where the door was ajar. Shaffer testified that he saw the decedent’s bloody body inside the apartment lying nude on the floor. At that time, he spoke with defendant and defendant said that decedent was an intruder. Shaffer also stated that defendant acted nervous and anxious. Shaffer walked into the kitchen where he observed Collen Brueck crying. He stated that Brueck was injured in her head and face, but that he did not observe any injuries to defendant. Shaffer later arrested defendant.

Richard Provax testified for the State that at about 1:30 a.m. on November 25, 1989, he and defendant left a party after heavily drinking. Provax stated that defendant asked him to drive to Collen Brueck’s (defendant’s girl friend’s) home and he did so. Provax drove to her building and double parked his vehicle while defendant went inside the apartment. He stated that after a few minutes he heard a woman scream, parked the vehicle and went inside the apartment. Provax stated that as he entered the apartment, he saw defendant fighting with decedent while Brueck lay in bed. Provax testified that defendant hit Brueck, then continued fighting with decedent inside the kitchen. Provax stated that decedent begged defendant to stop hitting him; Provax then left the apartment and walked out to his vehicle.

Provax testified that he continued to hear noises and went back into the apartment, where he saw the decedent’s body lying on the floor in the kitchen. Provax stated that he observed defendant again hit Collen and return to the kitchen, where he punched and kicked the decedent. Provax stated that defendant asked him to help remove decedent’s body to Provax’s vehicle, but Provax refused to do so.

Provax returned to his car a second time, then reentered the apartment, where he saw defendant dragging decedent’s body toward the kitchen door. He stated that decedent was breathing at that time and that defendant did not hit or kick decedent. Defendant hit Collen and shouted names at her. Provax testified that he never heard defendant threaten to kill decedent on the three occasions that he entered the apartment.

The State questioned Provax about his statement given to police on November 26, 1989, in which he did not mention that a struggle or fight had occurred between defendant and decedent. Provax admitted that he had not mentioned that fact. However, on cross-examination Provax stated that he saw defendant and decedent fighting when he entered the apartment and that both men were standing. The State also produced Provax’s grand jury testimony in which he had not mentioned that the decedent and defendant were fighting.

Kirk Duncan, called as a State witness, testified that in early November 1989, he was at defendant’s mother’s home with Brueck when defendant walked inside the house. Duncan stated that defendant asked him whether he knew Guzzetta (the decedent), to which Duncan replied that decedent was once his roommate. Duncan testified that defendant then said that he did not like Guzzetta and that he would kill Guzzetta the next time that he saw him.

Michael Chambliss, deputy medical examiner for Cook County, testified that he performed an autopsy on decedent. Chambliss stated that decedent was 5 feet 7 inches tall and weighed 136 pounds. He testified that decedent died as a result of multiple blunt trauma injuries to the head. Chambliss further testified that decedent’s toxicology report indicated that he had a blood-alcohol level of .085 and a PCP blood level of 29 nanograms per milliliter. Chambliss opined that this was a low level of PCP in the blood stream. He stated that 100 nanograms would be a high PCP blood level. Chambliss stated that there were 640 nanograms per milliliter of PCP in decedent’s urine. He opined that PCP normally stays in the body from 7 to 16 hours, and that PCP in the urine does not affect a person as it would if it was in the blood. This is true because PCP in the urine does not affect any particular active centers in the body.

On cross-examination Chambliss stated that he knew about the effects of PCP. He stated that PCP is generally used as an animal tranquilizer, but that humans often ingest the drug. He explained that he had seen PCP cause death in humans. Although Chambliss testified that he was unsure if PCP was classified as a “volatile” drug, in response to a later question by defense counsel he stated that PCP caused mood changes, euphoria and depression. When defense counsel asked Chambliss whether PCP could cause a human user to become aggressive, the prosecution objected and the court sustained the objection, finding that the question was outside Chambliss’ expertise. Chambliss was asked by defense counsel whether PCP deadened pain, caused flashbacks, or ignited aggression, the State again objected, and the court also sustained that objection.

Chambliss admitted that he had studied PCP from the point of view of toxicology and what some of the symptoms and signs of PCP are. He also stated that he had read an article of PCP, but the court did not allow defense counsel to ask questions about the article.

Collen Brueck testified that on the evening of November 25, 1989, she and the decedent had been drinking at a bar. Decedent drank beer and whiskey and had been involved in three fights with patrons at the bar. Collen and decedent left the bar and went to her apartment, where they continued to drink, watched television and later had sex. The two fell asleep in the bed.

Brueck testified that about .2:30 a.m. she awoke when defendant pulled decedent from the bed. Defendant began to kick and punch decedent, then pushed his head into a wall. Brueck testified that defendant told decedent “I am going to kill you,” and continued to punch and kick decedent into the bathroom area. Decedent begged defendant to stop. Brueck stated that defendant returned to the bedroom, screamed at her, asked her where the drugs were and then hit her across the face. Defendant told her that he had warned her that “if he ever caught her with this hippie he’d kill him.” She testified that he then returned to the bathroom and dragged decedent into the kitchen and began stomping him.

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Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
617 N.E.2d 28, 246 Ill. App. 3d 824, 186 Ill. Dec. 789, 1993 WL 54783, 1993 Ill. App. LEXIS 244, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/people-v-nelson-illappct-1993.