Slaughter v. State

1998 OK CR 63, 969 P.2d 990, 69 O.B.A.J. 4077, 1998 Okla. Crim. App. LEXIS 60, 1998 WL 813108
CourtCourt of Criminal Appeals of Oklahoma
DecidedNovember 20, 1998
DocketPC-97-156
StatusPublished
Cited by13 cases

This text of 1998 OK CR 63 (Slaughter v. State) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Criminal Appeals of Oklahoma primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Slaughter v. State, 1998 OK CR 63, 969 P.2d 990, 69 O.B.A.J. 4077, 1998 Okla. Crim. App. LEXIS 60, 1998 WL 813108 (Okla. Ct. App. 1998).

Opinions

LUMPKIN, Judge:

¶ 1 Petitioner Jimmie Ray Slaughter was convicted of two (2) counts of First Degree Murder (21 O.S.1991, § 701.7) and five (5) counts of Perjury (21 O.S.1991, § 491), Case No. CF-92-82, in the District Court of Oklahoma County. The jury found the existence of one aggravating circumstance in Count 1 and two aggravating circumstances in Count 2 and recommended the punishment of death. In Counts 3-7, the perjury counts, Petitioner received sentences of two (2), four (4), five (5), three (3), and one (1) years imprisonment respectively. This Court affirmed the judgments and sentences in Slaughter v. State, 950 P.2d 839 (Okl.Cr.1997). Petitioner filed his Original Application for Post-Conviction Relief in this Court on December 1, 1997, in accordance with 22 O.S.Supp.1995, § 1089.

¶ 2 Before considering Petitioner’s claims, we must again consider the narrow scope of review available under the amended Post-Conviction Procedure Act.

As we have said numerous times, the Post-Conviction Procedure Act was neither designed nor intended to provide applicants another direct appeal. Walker v. State, 933 P.2d 327, 330 (Okl.Cr.1997) (interpreting Act as amended); Fox v. State, 880 P.2d 383, 384 (Okl.Cr.1994), cert. denied, 514 U.S. 1005, 115 S.Ct. 1318, 131 L.Ed.2d 199 (1995) (same conclusion under Act before amendments). The Act has always provided petitioners with very limited grounds upon which to base a collateral attack on their judgments. Accordingly, claims which could have been raised in previous appeals but were not are generally waived; and claims raised on direct appeal are res judicata. Thomas v. State, 888 P.2d 522, 525 (Okl.Cr.1994), cert. denied, 516 U.S. 840, 116 S.Ct. 123, 133 L.Ed.2d 73 (1995); Castro v. State, 814 P.2d 158, 159 (Okl.Cr.1991), cert. denied, 502 U.S. 1063, 112 S.Ct. 947, 117 L.Ed.2d 116 (1992).

Conover v. State, 942 P.2d 229, 230 (Okl.Cr.1997). These procedural bars still apply under the amended Act. We have noted the new Act makes it even more difficult for capital post-conviction applicants to avoid procedural bars. Walker, 933 P.2d 327, 331 (Okl.Cr.1997). Under 22 O.S.Supp.1995, § 1089(C)(1), the only claims which will be considered on post-conviction are those which “[wjere not and could not have been raised” on direct appeal and which “[sjupport a conclusion either that the outcome of the trial would have been different but for the errors or that the defendant is factually innocent.” A capital post-conviction claim could not have been raised on direct appeal if (1) it is an ineffective assistance of trial or appellate counsel claim which meets the statute’s definition of ineffective counsel; or (2) the legal basis of the claim was not recognized or could not have been reasonably formulated from a decision of the United States Supreme Court, a federal appellate court or an appellate court of this State, or is a new rule of constitutional law given retroactive effect by the Supreme Court or an appellate court of this State. 22 O.S.Supp.1995, §§ 1089(D)(4)(b), 1089(D)(9). Should a petitioner meet this burden, this Court shall consider the claim only if it “[sjupports a conclusion either that the outcome of the trial would have been different but for the errors [993]*993or that the defendant is factually innocent.” 22 O.S.Supp.1995, § 1089(C)(2). As we said in Walker,

The amendments to the capital post-conviction review statute reflect the legislature’s intent to honor and preserve the legal principle of finality of judgment, and we will narrowly construe these amendments to effectuate that intent. Given the newly refined and limited review afforded capital post-conviction applicants, we must also emphasize the importance of direct appeal as the mechanism for raising all potentially meritorious claims. Because the direct appeal provides appellants their only opportunity to have this Court fully review all claims of error which might arguably warrant relief, we urge them to raise all such claims at that juncture.

Walker, 933 P.2d at 331 (footnote omitted, emphasis in original). We now turn to Petitioner’s claims.

¶3 In Proposition I, Petitioner claims that newly discovered evidence obtained during post-conviction investigation demonstrates that he is factually and legally innocent. Petitioner argues that this claim could not have been raised previously as he did not have notice of many of the facts which form the basis for this claim, that the evidence could not have been discovered by the exercise of due diligence (as crucial evidence was either destroyed or withheld by law enforcement and the prosecution), and there is a reasonable probability that had the evidence been known, the result of the trial would have been different. In its response, the State asserts that the information which Petitioner now claims is newly discovered, was most likely, known by defense counsel at the time of trial and was surely known by the time of the direct appeal.

¶ 4 In support of his argument, Petitioner asserts that the newly discovered evidence was not available until the civil trial between Dennis Dill and the City of Edmond which occurred one year after the filing of the direct appeal brief. The record shows Dennis Dill was a detective with the Edmond Police Department who participated in the investigation of the Wuertz murders. During the course of his investigation, Detective Dill developed a theory of the case different from that of the prosecutors. Dill theorized that the murders occurred in the early morning hours of July 2, 1991, and not at noon of that same day as theorized by prosecutors. He also believed that further investigation should have been conducted on a suspect named Rick Gullotto. In his lawsuit against the City of Edmond, Dill claimed that his theories concerning the murders troubled those in charge of the investigation because Petitioner had already been designated as the primary suspect. As a result, Dill claimed he was removed from the investigation and later transferred from the detective division to the patrol division in an attempt to isolate him from the investigation and to prevent information he had gained concerning his theories from coming to light.

¶ 5 In the brief in support of his post-conviction application, Petitioner sets out in detail evidence pertaining to the pretrial investigation, trial and appeal of his criminal case which he claims was not known to defense counsel until Detective Dill’s civil trial. Having thoroughly reviewed both Petitioner’s brief, and the State’s response, the appendices submitted by each, and the entire record, we find the evidence Petitioner claims was newly discovered was either known by defense counsel at the time of appeal or at the least could have been discovered with due diligence.1 Therefore, the claim of innocence could have been raised on direct appeal. The failure to do so waives further consideration of the claim on its merits.

[994]*994¶ 6 Petitioner further argues that to the extent the above issues could have been identified at trial or developed in direct appeal but were not, trial and appellate counsel (who were the same)2 were ineffective for failing to do so. He asserts that counsel’s failure to investigate these issues was a part of the overall ineffectiveness of counsel addressed in Propositions V and VI of his application. The issue of ineffective assistance of counsel is addressed herein.

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Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
1998 OK CR 63, 969 P.2d 990, 69 O.B.A.J. 4077, 1998 Okla. Crim. App. LEXIS 60, 1998 WL 813108, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/slaughter-v-state-oklacrimapp-1998.