State of Missouri v. Gary L. Blue, Jr.

Missouri Court of Appeals·Decided September 20, 2022·No. ED109911·Published

Opinion

In the Missouri Court of Appeals Eastern District DIVISION ONE

STATE OF MISSOURI, ) No. ED109911 ) Respondent, ) Appeal from the Circuit Court ) of Washington County vs. ) 19WA-CR00137-01 ) GARY L. BLUE, JR., ) Honorable Wendy Wexler Horn ) Appellant. ) Filed: September 20, 2022

Introduction

Gary L. Blue, Jr. (Appellant) appeals from the judgment, following a jury trial,

convicting him of three counts of child molestation in the third degree in violation of section

566.069. 1 The jury recommended eight-year sentences on each count, which the trial court

ordered to run consecutively. We affirm.

Factual and Procedural Background

Appellant does not challenge the sufficiency of the evidence supporting his conviction,

and we therefore only briefly summarize the evidence presented at trial. The evidence showed

the following, viewed in the light most favorable to the verdict.

At the time of the incidents, J.R. (Victim) was five years old and lived in a cabin with her

mother (Mother), her father (Father), and her older siblings. Victim’s grandparents also lived in

1 All statutory references are to the Revised Statutes of Missouri (2016). another residence on the same property. Victim’s parents were very close with Appellant, who

was Father’s cousin, and Appellant often stayed at their property, including during the summer

of 2017. At times, Appellant would be left to watch the children. Appellant gave Victim more

attention than the other children, including buying Victim more toys, taking her places, and

playing with her more often. Victim’s sisters recalled times when Victim would be in

Appellant’s lap and he would cover her with a coat or a blanket, or Victim would be underneath

Appellant’s shirt. One sister described entering a room to find Victim wrapped in a blanket, with

Appellant’s hand under the blanket. Both sisters recollected times when they were in a room

with Victim and Appellant, and Appellant would instruct Victim to have her sisters leave.

In 2017, Victim told Mother that she had a nightmare about Appellant. In December

2018, an investigator with the Children’s Division received a hotline report about Victim. When

the investigator went to interview Victim, Victim disclosed that Appellant touched her

inappropriately multiple times during the summer of 2017, including putting Appellant’s “stuff”

and “bad spot” in Victim’s mouth. A week later, Kelly Tesson conducted a forensic interview

with Victim at the Children’s Advocacy Center (CAC). During the interview, Victim disclosed

that Appellant placed his penis in her vagina and in her mouth on multiple occasions, and once

put his mouth on her breast and his mouth on her anus. Victim also relayed that Appellant told

her not to tell anyone. Tesson later interviewed Victim’s two sisters. Recordings of the three

CAC interviews were admitted into evidence and played for the jury at trial. Victim was also

taken to the hospital to undergo a sexual assault forensic examination (SAFE), the results of

which were admitted into evidence at trial. The SAFE records indicated that Victim had a

history of rectal bleeding that was reported to occur during the time of the suspected abuse, and

that she had previously been treated for urinary tract infections and unusual vaginal discharge.

2 Appellant was charged by information with one count of statutory rape in the first degree

and three counts of statutory sodomy in the first degree. A jury found Appellant guilty of three

counts of child molestation in the third degree for touching Victim with his genitals (Count II),

touching Victim’s genitals (Count III), and touching Victim’s anus (Count IV). The jury found

Appellant not guilty of statutory rape in the first degree (Count I). The jury recommended an

eight-year sentence for each count of child molestation. Following the jury’s recommendation,

the trial court sentenced Appellant to consecutive eight-year sentences on each count, for a total

of 24 years in the Missouri Department of Corrections.

This appeal follows. 2

Discussion

In his two points on appeal, Appellant challenges the trial court’s failure to intervene sua

sponte and issue a curative instruction or declare a mistrial following allegedly improper

comments from the State during its guilt- and penalty-phase closing arguments.

Standard of Review

We typically review claims of error relating to closing argument for an abuse of

discretion. State v. Brooks, 158 S.W.3d 841, 852 (Mo. App. E.D. 2005). But neither claim of

error in this case was properly preserved for our review because Appellant did not object to the

State’s remarks at the time they were made or raise these issues at any time prior to this appeal.

See State v. Fisher, 575 S.W.3d 508, 511, 511 n.3 (Mo. App. S.D. 2019). Appellant

acknowledges his claims of error were not preserved, and he requests plain error review under

Rule 30.20. 3

2 Additional facts will be set forth, as needed, in the discussion of Appellant’s points on appeal. 3 All rule references are to the Missouri Supreme Court Rules (2021).

3 Rule 30.20 provides that, “[w]hether briefed or not, plain errors affecting substantial

rights may be considered in the discretion of the court when the court finds that manifest

injustice or miscarriage of justice has resulted therefrom.” Rule 30.20. Plain errors are only

those that are “facially ‘evident, obvious, and clear.’” State v. Wood, 580 S.W.3d 566, 579 (Mo.

banc 2019), quoting State v. Jones, 427 S.W.3d 191, 195 (Mo. banc 2014). To constitute

reversible error, any plain error found must result in manifest injustice or a miscarriage of

justice. Rule 30.20. Further, in relation to an allegedly improper argument, “reversal is

warranted only if the defendant shows the improper argument ‘had a decisive effect on the jury’s

determination.’” Wood, 580 S.W.3d at 579, quoting State v. McFadden (McFadden I), 369

S.W.3d 727, 747 (Mo. banc 2012). An argument has a decisive effect and amounts to manifest

injustice where there is a reasonable probability that the jury’s verdict would have been different

had the error not taken place. Fisher, 575 S.W.3d at 513, citing State v. Thompson, 390 S.W.3d

171, 176 (Mo. App. E.D. 2012). The appellant bears the burden of demonstrating this decisive

effect resulting in manifest injustice. Id., citing State v. O’Haver, 33 S.W.3d 555, 561 (Mo. App.

W.D. 2000).

Statements made in closing argument rarely constitute reversible plain error. Wood, 580

S.W.3d at 579, citing McFadden I, 369 S.W.3d at 747. “Such situations rarely merit plain error

review because in the absence of objection and request for relief, the trial court’s options are

narrowed to uninvited interference with summation and a corresponding increase of error by

such intervention.” State v. Sanchez, 186 S.W.3d 260, 265 (Mo. banc 2006), citing State v.

Silvey, 894 S.W.2d 662, 670 (Mo. banc 1995). We are cognizant that “a holding that would

require the trial judge to interrupt counsel would present myriad problems.” Brooks, 158 S.W.3d

at 853, citing State v. Radley, 904 S.W.2d 520, 524 (Mo. App.

Free access — add to your briefcase to read the full text and ask questions with AI

State of Missouri v. Gary L. Blue, Jr., (Mo. Ct. App. 2022).

State of Missouri v. Gary L. Blue, Jr. (State of Missouri v. Gary L. Blue, Jr.) — published by Counsel Stack Legal Research, free access to 12M+ legal documents.

Related

State v. Brooks
158 S.W.3d 841 (Missouri Court of Appeals, 2005)
State v. Burton
219 S.W.3d 778 (Missouri Court of Appeals, 2007)
State v. Collins
150 S.W.3d 340 (Missouri Court of Appeals, 2004)
State v. Wade
535 S.W.2d 492 (Missouri Court of Appeals, 1976)
State v. Radley
904 S.W.2d 520 (Missouri Court of Appeals, 1995)
State v. Dixon
70 S.W.3d 540 (Missouri Court of Appeals, 2002)
State v. Schaefer
855 S.W.2d 504 (Missouri Court of Appeals, 1993)
State v. O'HAVER
33 S.W.3d 555 (Missouri Court of Appeals, 2000)
State v. Silvey
894 S.W.2d 662 (Supreme Court of Missouri, 1995)
State v. Sheridan
188 S.W.3d 55 (Missouri Court of Appeals, 2006)
State v. Thomas
272 S.W.3d 421 (Missouri Court of Appeals, 2008)
State v. Wolf
326 S.W.3d 905 (Missouri Court of Appeals, 2010)
State v. Sanchez
186 S.W.3d 260 (Supreme Court of Missouri, 2006)
State v. Cobb
875 S.W.2d 533 (Supreme Court of Missouri, 1994)
State v. Brass
781 S.W.2d 565 (Missouri Court of Appeals, 1989)
State v. Roberts
709 S.W.2d 857 (Supreme Court of Missouri, 1986)
State v. Clayton
995 S.W.2d 468 (Supreme Court of Missouri, 1999)
State v. Vorhees
342 S.W.3d 446 (Missouri Court of Appeals, 2011)
State of Missouri v. Christopher C. Claycomb
470 S.W.3d 358 (Supreme Court of Missouri, 2015)
State of Missouri, Plaintiff/Respondent v. Scott Marshall Davis, Jr.
474 S.W.3d 179 (Missouri Court of Appeals, 2015)