Phillips v. State

863 S.W.2d 309, 314 Ark. 531, 1993 Ark. LEXIS 581
CourtSupreme Court of Arkansas
DecidedOctober 25, 1993
DocketCR 93-642
StatusPublished
Cited by7 cases

This text of 863 S.W.2d 309 (Phillips v. State) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Supreme Court of Arkansas primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Phillips v. State, 863 S.W.2d 309, 314 Ark. 531, 1993 Ark. LEXIS 581 (Ark. 1993).

Opinion

Robert L. Brown, Justice.

The appellant, Corelanius Phillips, appeals his capital murder conviction and sentence to life imprisonment without the possibility of parole. His argument on appeal concerns essentially one issue: whether he established his affirmative defense of insanity based on an intermittent explosive disorder so as to render the State’s evidence of capital murder insubstantial and so as to warrant a directed verdict of acquittal. We affirm the conviction and judgment.

During the morning of October 13,1991, the appellant went to the home of Christine Rainey in Warren where Angela Durden, his former girlfriend and the mother of his son, was living. When Angela Durden came to the door, the appellant pulled her outside and to the road and began beating and kicking her. Ms. Rainey and her son observed the assault and called the emergency telephone number, 911. By the time the Warren police officers arrived, Angela Durden was dying from multiple injuries to the head and abdomen. The appellant was arrested on the scene after attempting to escape. He was charged with capital murder, and the death penalty was waived at the beginning of the trial.

At trial, Warren Police Officer Lane Smith testified that he and Officer Tommy Reed were called to Butler Street the morning of the crime. They found Angela Durden lying in a pool of blood and severely beaten. Smith stated that the appellant ran from the scene when the two officers arrived. He added that Phillips was difficult to get into the car and that he told them to shoot him because he was going to kill himself. Officer Smith further testified that the appellant told them that he caught Angela Durden “messing around on him” and he took care of “the problem.” The officer then related that he went with Ms. Durden to the hospital and that she died there shortly after she arrived.

Officer Reed testified that the appellant was very uncooperative and seemed like he did not care. The appellant explained his actions to the police officer by saying that he had been wronged by Ms. Durden and “something just went off-” and “that he clicked.” The officer added that the appellant also stated that, “it’s going to be all right.. . . I’m going to plead temporary insanity.. . . I’ll get off.”

Mr. Leander McEntire testified that he lives near Ms. Rainey and that he observed the appellant’s attack on Ms. Durden. He stated that he saw the appellant drag her from the house and pull her towards the road. Mr. McEntire added that the victim broke free and the appellant caught her and dragged her back to the road. He testified that the appellant began to beat Ms. Durden. He knocked her down, and then stamped her face and stomach. The witness added that he heard the appellant tell the victim that he was going to kill her. He tried to stop the appellant but went back to his house because he thought the appellant had a gun.

Christine Rainey testified'that Ms. Durden and her daughter were friends. The victim was living with her on October 13, 1991. She said that at about 5:30 a.m. the appellant knocked on her door and asked to see the victim. When Ms. Durden finally went to the door, the appellant grabbed her and carried her out to the road. Ms. Rainey testified that the appellant started hitting Ms. Durden. She said that while he was assaulting her, the appellant reached into Ms. Durden’s bra and took out her money. She testified that the appellant knocked Ms. Durden down and then jumped on her and beat her in the face. She added that the appellant called the victim pejorative names while he beat her.

Monica Domineck testified that she was six months pregnant with the appellant’s child in October of 1991. She said that she saw Phillips at about 3:00 a.m. at the Warren Social Club and that the appellant walked her home at about 6:00 a.m. She testified that the appellant smelled like he had been drinking alcoholic beverages.

Dr. W.R. Oglesby, a psychiatrist with Delta Counseling Associates, a community mental health center, testified for the defense. He had evaluated Phillips’s mental competency pursuant to court order. Dr. Oglesby’s diagnosis was: (1) intermittent explosive disorder; and, (2) alcohol abuse. His report stated that in his opinion the appellant:

has no impairment of his capacity to appreciate the criminality of his conduct. However, because of a mental disorder (Intermittent Explosive Disorder) I believe there was some impairment of his ability to conform his conduct to the requirements of the law at the time of the alleged criminal conduct. The exact degree of impairment would be difficult to estimate from a clinical standpoint.

At trial, Dr. Oglesby testified that he could not say to what degree the disorder affected the appellant’s ability to control his behavior. Dr. Oglesby admitted that the appellant was not psychotic. He said that the disorder may have affected the appellant’s behavior as much as 100 % or as little as 25 %. Phillips told him that he had gone over to see Ms. Durden to talk about seeing their son. Ms. Durden began to argue with him and matters escalated. He then just blanked out and did not remember what happened. Dr. Oglesby testified that the appellant was not dangerous unless he was provoked.

There was also testimony at trial that Phillips’s blood alcohol content was. 11 per cent on the day of the crime and that he tested positive for marijuana usage within two to three weeks before his arrest. The Associate Medical Examiner, Dr. David DeJong, testified that cause of death was due to blunt trauma to the head and abdomen. The jury found the appellant guilty of capital murder and sentenced him to life imprisonment without possibility of parole.

I. AFFIRMATIVE DEFENSE OF INSANITY

The appellant’s first claim of error is that the verdict is against the weight of the evidence. This court, however, does not weigh the evidence on appeal. Gruzen v. State, 267 Ark. 380, 591 S.W.2d 342 (1979). Our standard of review when sufficiency of the evidence is the issue is whether there was substantial evidence to support the verdict. Tisdale v. State, 311 Ark. 220, 843 S.W.2d 803 (1992); Johnson v. State, 306 Ark. 399, 814 S.W.2d 908 (1991). Substantial evidence is evidence of sufficient force and character that it will, with reasonable certainty, compel a conclusion one way or another without resorting to speculation or conjecture. Hodge v. State, 303 Ark. 375, 797 S.W.2d 432 (1990). This court will affirm a judgment if there is any substantial evidence to support the verdict. Davasher v. State, 308 Ark. 154, 823 S.W.2d 863 (1992); Traylor v. State, 304 Ark. 174, 801 S.W.2d 267 (1990).

The appellant raised the affirmative defense of insanity which is set out by statute:

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Corelanius Phillips v. Aundrea Culclager, Warden, Cummins Unit
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971 S.W.2d 219 (Supreme Court of Arkansas, 1998)
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913 S.W.2d 789 (Supreme Court of Arkansas, 1996)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
863 S.W.2d 309, 314 Ark. 531, 1993 Ark. LEXIS 581, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/phillips-v-state-ark-1993.