State v. Gaines

380 P.3d 540, 194 Wash. App. 892
Court of Appeals of Washington·Decided July 6, 2016·No. No. 46352-1-II·Published·Cited by 35 cases

Opinion

Worswick, J.

¶1 — Devennice Gaines appeals his convictions and sentence for the second degree murder of Bruce Price and for unlawful possession of a firearm. In the published portion of this opinion, we hold that (1) the trial court did not deny Gaines’s right to a fair and impartial jury when it denied his motion for a mistrial after jurors heard extrinsic information. In the unpublished portion of this opinion, we hold that (2) the trial court did not deny Gaines’s right to a unanimous verdict when it dismissed a juror without examining his ability to be fair, (3) the prosecutor did not commit misconduct by attributing a statement to Gaines during closing argument, (4) the trial court did not violate Gaines’s right to confront witnesses or his right to present a defense by limiting his cross-exami[894] nation of three witnesses, and (5) the trial court did not err by denying his motion to dismiss the case with prejudice due to governmental misconduct, but that (6) the trial court erred by failing to conduct an individualized inquiry into his ability to pay his legal financial obligations (LFOs). Consequently, we affirm Gaines’s convictions, but we remand to the trial court to consider Gaines’s ability to pay discretionary LFOs. Finally, we exercise our discretion and waive appellate costs.

FACTS

¶2 Gaines went to an after-hours party at a motorcycle club in Tacoma, accompanied by two female friends: Lakheea Thomas and Denise Green. During the party, Gaines had an altercation with Dashe Tate, who was in a wheelchair. Gaines knocked Tate out of his wheelchair. Several men then surrounded Gaines, shouting at him.

¶3 Thomas and Green left the club during the altercation, followed by Gaines. Outside, Price confronted Gaines for knocking Tate out of his wheelchair. Green heard Gaines tell her: “[B]itch, get to the car.” 9 Verbatim Report of Proceedings (VRP) (Mar. 31, 2014) at 1025. She also remembered someone instructing her to “get in the car, something’s about to go down,” but she was not sure if it was Gaines who said this entire statement to her. 9 VRP (Mar. 31, 2014) at 1026. Witnesses then heard several gunshots. Price was shot multiple times and died. Soon after the shooting, two witnesses identified Gaines as the shooter.

¶4 The State charged Gaines with one count of second degree murder with a firearm enhancement,1 one count of second degree felony murder committed in the course of [895] second degree assault with a firearm enhancement,2 and one count of first degree unlawful possession of a firearm.3

¶5 After all the evidence and arguments were presented, and a few hours into jury deliberations, the presiding juror sent the following note to the trial court: “One juror said out loud that he read in the newspaper 2 years ago, the ‘defendant has 2 priors.’ Eight jurors heard this. We heard during the trial of [one felony]—it was stipulated. All have said this would not give prejudice. Is this a problem?” Clerk’s Papers (CP) at 411. Gaines then moved for a mistrial.

¶6 The trial court decided to question the jurors. The court questioned each of the eight affected jurors individually, warning each juror not to mention their impressions of the case or their likely vote. Juror 11 told the court that juror 2 had said something like: “ ‘Why would he do it? He has two strikes against him already. Why would he do it. I don’t see why he would do it.’ ” 14 VRP (Apr. 10, 2014) at 1718. Other jurors said variously that juror 2 said something about Gaines’s multiple felonies, “two strikes,” or “three strikes.” 14 VRP (Apr. 10, 2014) at 1735, 1743. The jurors satisfied the court that they had quickly recognized the problem in hearing the statement and had avoided further tainting deliberations because of it. Some jurors reported that other jurors chastised juror 2 for bringing extraneous facts into the case.

¶7 In considering whether to declare a mistrial, the trial court said: “I got the feeling that [the jurors] were very adamant . . . that they could follow [the instructions] that they would be impartial.” 14 VRP (Apr. 10, 2014) at 1778. The court deferred ruling on Gaines’s motion for a mistrial.

¶8 The trial court dismissed juror 2, then impaneled the alternate juror and instructed the entire reconstituted jury [896] to begin deliberating afresh. Specifically, it instructed the jury that “[d]uring this trial juror number 13 was an alternate juror. Juror number 13 has now been seated as a juror in this case. You must disregard all previous deliberations and begin deliberations anew.” CP at 473. The trial court then denied Gaines’s motion for a mistrial.

¶9 The jury found Gaines guilty of second degree murder and second degree felony murder. These charges merged. The jury also found him guilty of first degree unlawful possession of a firearm. It further found the aggravating factor that Gaines was armed with a firearm. Gaines appeals.

ANALYSIS

¶10 Gaines argues that the trial court abused its discretion and denied his constitutional right to a jury trial when it denied his motion for a mistrial based on juror misconduct. We disagree.

A. Standard of Review

¶11 The Sixth Amendment to the United States Constitution and article I, section 22 of the Washington Constitution guarantee a fair trial by an impartial jury. “The right of trial by jury means a trial by an unbiased and unprejudiced jury, free of disqualifying jury misconduct.” State v. Tigano, 63 Wn. App. 336, 341, 818 P.2d 1369 (1991).

¶12 We review a trial court’s investigation of juror misconduct for abuse of discretion. State v. Earl, 142 Wn. App. 768, 774, 177 P.3d 132 (2008). Similarly, we review a trial court’s decision denying a motion for a mistrial based on juror misconduct for an abuse of discretion. State v. Balisok, 123 Wn.2d 114, 117, 866 P.2d 631 (1994). A trial court abuses its discretion when it acts on untenable grounds or its ruling is manifestly unreasonable. State v. Barnes, 85 Wn. App. 638, 669, 932 P.2d 669 (1997).

¶13 “As a general rule, the trial courts have wide discretionary powers in conducting a trial and dealing with [897] irregularities which arise.” State v. Gilcrist, 91 Wn.2d 603, 612, 590 P.2d 809 (1979). “[A] mistrial should be granted only when the defendant has been so prejudiced that nothing short of a new trial can insure that defendant will be tried fairly.” Gilcrist, 91 Wn.2d at 612. Only errors that may have affected the outcome of the trial are prejudicial. Gilcrist, 91 Wn.2d at 612.

B. Extrinsic Evidence

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State v. Gaines, 380 P.3d 540, 194 Wash. App. 892 (Wash. Ct. App. 2016).

380 P.3d 540 (State v. Gaines) — published by Counsel Stack Legal Research, free access to 12M+ legal documents.

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