State v. Kimberly Fry

130 A.3d 812, 2016 R.I. LEXIS 17, 2016 WL 369449
CourtSupreme Court of Rhode Island
DecidedFebruary 1, 2016
Docket2013-221-C.A.
StatusPublished
Cited by12 cases

This text of 130 A.3d 812 (State v. Kimberly Fry) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Supreme Court of Rhode Island primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
State v. Kimberly Fry, 130 A.3d 812, 2016 R.I. LEXIS 17, 2016 WL 369449 (R.I. 2016).

Opinions

OPINION

Justice INDEGLIA for the Court.

On October 6, 2011, a Washington County Superior Court jury found the defendant, Kimberly Fry (defendant or Kimberly), guilty of second degree murder of her eight-year-old daughter in violation of G.L. 1956 § 11-23-1. On May 22, 2012, the trial justice sentenced the defendant to a term of forty years’ imprisonment, with twenty years to serve and the remaining twenty years suspended, with probation.

On appeal, the defendant contends that the trial justice erred in: (1) declining to instruct the jury on voluntary manslaughter due to diminished capacity and inadequately instructing the jury on accident; (2) permitting the state to elicit testimony from a witness through improper impeachment and leading questions; (3) failing to declare a mistrial following the state’s violation of the court’s sequestration order; and (4) allowing admission of a video depicting the scene of the murder, including the victim’s body. For the reasons set forth in this opinion, we affirm the judgment of the Superior Court.

I

Facts and Travel

On October 8, 2010, Kimberly was charged by indictment with the murder of her daughter, Camden. The case was tried before a jury over the course of three weeks in September and October 2011. Throughout the course, of this trial, the following facts were revealed through the testimony of the various witnesses.

Camden Alexis Fry was bom on May 6, 2001 to Kimberly and Timothy (Tim) Fry1 in New Hampshire, where the family lived at the time. While Tim went to work during the day, Kimberly stayed home and took care of Camden. During Camden’s early-childhood years, Tim and Kimberly began to notice that she had difficulty with transitioning from one activity to another, often protesting when she was forced to end an activity.

In August 2007, the Fry family moved to North Kingstown and Camden started first grade at Fishing Cove Elementary School. After the move, Camden began to struggle academically and continued to have difficulty with transitioning between activities. For instance, Camden would cry and scream when taken to the store if she did not get what she wanted, forcing Kimberly to drag her out of the store. On one occasion, when Tim was away on business, Kimberly reported to him that Camden had a “really bad crying episode” and that Camden had “been punching her and hitting her and that [Kimberly] had to sit on her.”

In the belief that Camden might have attention deficit disorder (ADD) or attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), the Frys sought to have her evaluated through the school but, according to Tim, the school did not want to spend the funds [817]*817to get her tested. Eventually, while Camden was in second grade, the Frys took matters into their own hands. Kimberly began researching private schools that might provide a better academic environment for Camden, and, in April 2009, the family began seeing a family therapist, Wendy Phillips (Phillips), to aid them in developing strategies to help Camden cope with the symptoms that she was exhibiting. In addition, the Frys scheduled a neuropsychological evaluation for Camden with Christine Trask, Ph.D. (Dr. Trask). As a result of this evaluation, Dr. Trask issued a report diagnosing Camden with ADHD and mild anxiety.

On July 1, 2009, based upon the diagnosis from Dr. Trask, Camden was prescribed medication used to treat ADHD. Tim and Kimberly noticed that the medication helped keep Camden calm and helped with her ability to transition. Nevertheless, Tim and Kimberly observed that she sometimes became more irritable in the evening as the medication wore off.

Throughout this period of time, Kimberly was also suffering from various mental health issues, including depression, insomnia, anxiety> and panic attacks. During a counseling session on May 4, 2009, Kimberly explained to Phillips that she felt as though Camden’s crying and. screaming episodes lasted longer for her than for Tim. Kimberly further reported .to Phillips that Camden’s tantrums caused her stress and, after about twenty minutes, she would put her hands over her ears to block out the sound of Camden’s crying and screaming.

Phillips testified at trial that the last two therapy sessions before Camden’s death, on July 28 and August 4, 2009, were particularly difficult for Kimberly. Throughout these, two sessions, Phillips observed that Kimberly seemed overwhelmed by -the process of buying a new car, necessitated by her involvement in a car . accident several days prior to the July 28 session. In addition, Phillips reported that Kimberly was upset and angry with Tim; in fact, at the July 28 session, Phillips asked Camden to leave the room because Tim and Kimberly were arguing. Phillips’s notes from that session indicated, that, during their arguments, “Kim[berly] began to triangle Camden with her father” by asking- Camden to take sides between her and Tim “[i]p an inappropriate manner.” Phillips further reported that, after Camden had left the room, Kimberly told her that “she blamed Gamden for her depression” and that “she was an incompetent mother and she felt hopeless.” By the end of the session, Phillips instructed Tim that “if he was concerned about [Kimberly’s] behavior, that if she appeared to not be safe or he was concerned about her, to take her to the emergency room immediately.” Phillips also recommended that Kimberly make an appointment with an individual therapist. At the session on August 4, Kimberly “seemed better than the prior session.” Nevertheless, Phillips again recommended that she make an appointment with an individual therapist.

Tim testified that, on August 10, 2009, Kimberly told him that she “wished that Camden wasn’t around because it was so much easier when it was just the two- of us.” Tim replied that he didn’t think that this was an appropriate thing for her to say. After this discussion ended, Tim and Kimberly spent the day signing the paperwork for Kimberly’s new car and returned home at around 3:30 that afternoon. Camden, who had spent the day at the beach with friends, returned home sometime between 4 and 4:30. At approximately 5:50 that evening, Tim left the, house to play hockey. When he left, Kimberly and Camden were sitting next to each other in the living room watching television.

[818]*818Tim- received a phone call from Kimberly just after 9:00 that night.' He asked her how the night was going, to which she responded that “after a two-hour crying fit Camden had finally settled down and gone to bed.” Tim testified during trial that Kimberly “sounded a little groggy” during this conversation, but that she was nevertheless clear in speaking-to him.- He further testified that it was not out of the ordinary for Kimberly to be groggy, as “[s]he normally had taken [Cjlonazepam or Benadryl at night * * * so'she could get to sleep.”

Tim arrived home at approximately 9:40 that night and, upon entering the living room, noticed that Kimberly was “kind of falling asleep, leaning over against the side of the couch.” He testified that she seemed “more groggy than she was on the phone” and suggested that she should go to bed. He then removed his hockey equipment from his car and again told Kimberly that she should go to bed. Tim went to shower, passing Camden’s bedroom on the way. When he passed Camden’s bedroom, he looked in and noticed that she Was in bed under the covers. After showering, Tim realized that Kimberly was still sitting on the couch, so he helped her up and walked her into the bedroom.

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Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
130 A.3d 812, 2016 R.I. LEXIS 17, 2016 WL 369449, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/state-v-kimberly-fry-ri-2016.