Perry v. United States

571 A.2d 1156, 1990 D.C. App. LEXIS 57, 1990 WL 31506
CourtDistrict of Columbia Court of Appeals
DecidedMarch 14, 1990
DocketNos. 88-194, 88-424 and 88-510
StatusPublished
Cited by2 cases

This text of 571 A.2d 1156 (Perry v. United States) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District of Columbia Court of Appeals primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Perry v. United States, 571 A.2d 1156, 1990 D.C. App. LEXIS 57, 1990 WL 31506 (D.C. 1990).

Opinion

KERN, Senior Judge:

A jury found both appellants guilty of burglarizing and then attempting to steal clothing from a Georgetown store in the early morning hours. The jurors also convicted appellant Perry of shooting to death a member of the Metropolitan Police Department who responded to the store’s alarm system which the break-in had triggered. We affirm but remand for further proceedings as to the sentencing.1

Perry was caught a few blocks away from the store a few minutes after he had committed this burglary and murder. His capture was due (1) to the “general alert” to all law enforcement personnel transmitted over radio by the police who arrived on the scene in response to the fatally-wounded officer’s call for back-up and discovered him dying with five gunshot wounds, his revolver missing, and a trail of blood leading out of the store onto Wisconsin Avenue, south along its sidewalk to P Street, and then around the corner and east along P Street; (2) to citizens who spotted a man (who turned out to be Perry) running in an eastward direction in the 3000 block of P Street and holding his hand as if it were injured, and so reported their observation and description of this man to police; and, (3) to the keen reaction of several law enforcement officers on patrol who, having heard over their radio the report of the shooting and the description of the injured man leaving a trail of blood and fleeing east on P Street, anticipated the perpetrator’s flight would take him across the Q Street bridge. These officers proceeded to Q Street and saw a man matching the description of the suspect approaching this bridge. When he saw them, they noted him turn away. Aware that there had been a shooting and alert to the possibility that he might be armed, they confronted him at gunpoint. The man, Perry, shouted that he was hurt and needed help because he had a bullet in his hand. These officers then asked him where the gun was, to which he replied, “I ain’t got no gun. He shot me.”

These officers placed Perry on the ground while other police arrived. Thereafter, he took the officers to the place where he had thrown away the murder weapon, viz., the officer’s service revolver, during his flight and then made a full [1158]*1158confession in which he implicated appellant Straite. Armed with this confession, the police obtained an arrest warrant for Straite, went to his home and there arrested him. Several hours later, after being fully apprised of his rights, he also confessed and implicated Perry.

Each appellant prior to trial moved to suppress his confession: Perry argued that both his initial seizure and his subsequent arrest were unlawful in violation of the Fourth Amendment and hence his post-arrest confession and the murder weapon should have been suppressed. Straite argued that his post-arrest confession was unlawful because it had been unknowingly and involuntarily given and hence should have been suppressed. The trial court conducted an extensive hearing on each motion and denied the motions. We are not persuaded that the trial court’s denial of these motions constituted reversible error.

In the case of Perry, when the law enforcement officers stopped him at gunpoint shortly after the commission of the crime and a short distance from the crime’s occurrence, they had information that (1) a police officer had been shot and that the perpetrator might be carrying the officer’s gun, (2) a trail of blood led out of the place of the shooting eastward on P Street, and (3) a person, described by race, gender, height and clothing was running eastward on P Street, “cradling his hand,” as if he had been injured. These officers then saw a man proceeding eastward on Q Street who matched the description of the fleeing suspect and who turned away from them when he saw them. As they approached him he called out that he had a bullet in his hand and needed help. Under these particular circumstances the officers clearly were not obliged to shrug their shoulders and allow the man before them to pass by, but had articulable facts and circumstances to justify their forcible stop of this man, appellant Perry. Adams v. Williams, 407 U.S. 143, 92 S.Ct. 1921, 32 L.Ed.2d 612 (1972); Brown v. United States, 546 A.2d 390, 393 (D.C.1988).

When these officers then asked Perry, “where’s the gun?” He replied, “I ain’t got no gun. He shot me.” Under these additional circumstances, the trial court correctly ruled that the law enforcement officers had probable cause to arrest Perry for the shooting of the deceased policeman. See In re A.G., 482 A.2d 1243, 1246-47 (D.C.1984).

As to Straite, the trial court found after a hearing that his confession was both knowing and voluntary, and we must affirm such finding “unless it was without substantial support in the evidence.” Calaway v. United States, 408 A.2d 1220, 1225 (D.C.1979); see also Bliss v. United States, 445 A.2d 625, 631 (D.C.1982), cert. denied, 459 U.S. 1117, 103 S.Ct. 756, 74 L.Ed.2d 972 (1983).

The evidence supporting the ruling was that the police arrested Straite in his home pursuant to a warrant and read him his Miranda rights there. He again was advised of his rights at the homicide office and then presented with a standard police form, which set forth his rights in writing and accorded him the opportunity to make a waiver of these rights. He signed this form, and expressly waived his rights. After being questioned, and confronted with Perry’s confession, Straite confessed and was videotaped while giving his confession. The trial court viewed the videotape, noted Straite’s familiarity with the criminal justice system, and, had before it evidence that on a prior occasion he had in fact invoked his right to remain silent. The trial court also reviewed the police treatment of Straite while being questioned in this case. We are not persuaded that the trial court was without substantial evidence to support its conclusion that Straite, with full knowledge of his rights, voluntarily confessed.

Appellant Straite contends that the trial court committed reversible error by refusing during the trial to sever his case from that of appellant Perry. The matter of severance of codefendants in the midst of a trial is left to the broad discretion of the trial court which has the best vantage point from which to determine whether or not under the particular circumstances the [1159]*1159movant would be denied a fair trial unless there was severance. Carpenter v. United States, 430 A.2d 496, 502 (D.C.) (en banc), cert. denied, 454 U.S. 852, 102 S.Ct. 295, 70 L.Ed.2d 143 (1981). We will reverse only upon a showing of “clear abuse” by the trial court in the exercise of its broad discretion. Christian v. United States, 394 A.2d 1, 20 (D.C.1978), cert. denied, 442 U.S. 944, 99 S.Ct. 2889, 61 L.Ed.2d 315 (1979). We discern no such abuse of discretion here.

Straite argues that the evidence of his guilt of burglary and attempted theft was de minimis

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Related

Wright v. United States
608 A.2d 763 (District of Columbia Court of Appeals, 1992)
Price v. United States
602 A.2d 641 (District of Columbia Court of Appeals, 1992)

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Bluebook (online)
571 A.2d 1156, 1990 D.C. App. LEXIS 57, 1990 WL 31506, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/perry-v-united-states-dc-1990.