State v. Padilla

722 P.2d 697, 104 N.M. 446
CourtNew Mexico Court of Appeals
DecidedJuly 1, 1986
Docket8785
StatusPublished
Cited by25 cases

This text of 722 P.2d 697 (State v. Padilla) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering New Mexico Court of Appeals primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
State v. Padilla, 722 P.2d 697, 104 N.M. 446 (N.M. Ct. App. 1986).

Opinions

OPINION

BIVINS, Judge.

A grand jury indictment charged defendant and his two companions with murder, conspiracy to commit murder, and two counts of aggravated assault. While the evidence would have supported convictions on any one of those charges, the jury, for whatever reason, convicted defendant only of voluntary manslaughter under an instruction as to that lesser offense. The trial court gave that instruction at defendant’s request and over the state’s objection. This appeal solely concerns defendant.

Defendant appeals from his conviction of voluntary manslaughter claiming, contrary to his position at trial, that the evidence failed to raise an issue as to provocation, an essential element of voluntary manslaughter, and, therefore, the trial court erred in giving the very instruction defendant himself urged. His argument is threefold and simple: Because defendant and his companions chased down and shot the victim, the conviction of voluntary manslaughter, without a showing of provocation, constituted fundamental error and must be set aside. And because fundamental error cannot be waived, defendant’s inconsistent position and his affirmative action in requesting the instruction on voluntary manslaughter will not change that result. And because defendant was acquitted of charges of murder, conspiracy to commit murder and aggravated assault, double jeopardy precludes retrial of those charges, and, therefore, defendant must be discharged.

While we agree that the evidence will not support an instruction on voluntary manslaughter, we hold that because no state action was involved in the giving of that instruction under the circumstances of this case, defendant was not denied due process. Therefore, no fundamental error occurred. On that basis, we affirm defendant’s conviction.

We first discuss whether substantial evidence supports the conviction. In doing so, we must view the evidence in the light most favorable to the conviction, resolving all conflicts therein and indulging all permissible inferences in favor of the verdict. State v. Lankford, 92 N.M. 1, 582 P.2d 378 (1978). The test is whether substantial evidence exists of either a direct or circumstantial nature to support a verdict of guilt beyond a reasonable doubt with respect to every essential element of the crime. State v. Brown, 100 N.M. 726, 676 P.2d 253 (1984). If the evidence must be buttressed by surmise and conjecture rather than logical inference, the conviction cannot stand. State v. Vigil, 87 N.M. 345, 533 P.2d 578 (1975).

On November 29, 1984, at about 9:30 p.m., defendant, along with his brother and a female companion, went to the apartment of the victim, a heroin dealer, to obtain heroin. Hearing the people drive up, the victim asked his girl friend to get his gun, which he tucked into his pants before opening the door. After a brief conversation at the doorway, the victim, defendant and his companions went outside where an argument ensued. Defendant affixed a silencer to his pistol. The three visitors tried to force the victim into their vehicle, but he escaped and went back to his apartment, attempting to close the door behind him. Defendant and his companions pushed the door open; there was a scuffle; and defendant shot the victim just as the victim said: “If you’re going to shoot me, shoot me.” Defendant and his companions fled in their pickup truck. The victim’s girl friend went for help.

To support a conviction of voluntary manslaughter, there must be evidence that the killing was committed during a sudden quarrel or in the heat of passion. Smith v. State, 89 N.M. 770, 558 P.2d 39 (1976). As a general rule, however, there also must be evidence of acts of provocation by the victim that do not result from intentional acts of defendant. See State v. Manus, 93 N.M. 95, 597 P.2d 280 (1979). The circumstances must be such to arouse strong emotions. “The phrase ‘heat of passion’ includes a killing in circumstances which arouse anger, fear, rage, sudden resentment, terror or other extreme emotions. Such killings are held to be upon ‘sufficient provocation’ ”. State v. Smith, 89 N.M. 777, 779, 558 P.2d 46, 48 (Ct.App.1976), rev’d on other grounds, 89 N.M. 770, 558 P.2d 39 (1976). “The provocation must be such as would affect the ability to reason and [would] cause a temporary loss of self control in an ordinary person of average disposition.” NMSA 1978, UJI Crim. 2.22 (Repl.Pamp.1982).

In this case, defendant and his companions argued with the victim in front of the victim’s home and pursued him when he ran back into his apartment. The victim tried to close the door, but defendant and his companions forced their way inside. There was a scuffle inside just before the victim was shot.

The evidence does not support a logical inference that the victim provoked defendant to an extent that affected defendant’s ability to reason and caused a temporary loss of self-control. Any such determination could be based only on conjecture. Further, even assuming sufficient provocation on the part of the victim, the logical inference is that it resulted from the acts of defendant and his companions in intentionally pursuing the victim into his apartment.

According to our supreme court’s holding in Smith v. State, a voluntary manslaughter conviction must be reversed where there is insufficient evidence of provocation. The holding dictated that a jury may not return a verdict of guilty for the commission of a crime where there is no evidence that such crime was committed. To do so constituted fundamental error. Id.

This brings us to the critical inquiry: whether fundamental error occurred under the circumstances of this case where defendant, by his own actions in arguing for and obtaining an erroneous instruction, created the error. We hold it did not.

The state argues that defendant is precluded on appeal from even raising the issue of insufficiency of evidence of provocation because he requested the instruction on voluntary manslaughter. Other jurisdictions, under circumstances similar to this case, have refused to review invited error. See, e.g., People v. Curwick, 33 Ill.App.3d 757, 338 N.E.2d 468 (1975); State v. Heald, 292 A.2d 200 (Me.1972). This court also has refused, under different circumstances, to review invited error. Proper v. Mowry, 90 N.M. 710, 568 P.2d 236 (Ct.App.1977). See also State v. Ross, 100 N.M. 48, 665 P.2d 310 (Ct.App.1983) (defendant who urged court to adopt an instruction on the basis that such offense was a lesser included offense of the crime charged may not claim on appeal that his conviction of the lesser offense, based on substantial evidence, was error); State v. Mills, 94 N.M. 17, 606 P.2d 1111 (Ct.App.1980) (defendant may not complain of form of instruction he requested).

The state’s argument, however, is incomplete.

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State v. Padilla
722 P.2d 697 (New Mexico Court of Appeals, 1986)

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Bluebook (online)
722 P.2d 697, 104 N.M. 446, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/state-v-padilla-nmctapp-1986.