State v. Peal

393 S.W.3d 621, 2013 WL 1110707, 2013 Mo. App. LEXIS 341
CourtMissouri Court of Appeals
DecidedMarch 19, 2013
DocketNo. WD 74527
StatusPublished
Cited by30 cases

This text of 393 S.W.3d 621 (State v. Peal) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Missouri 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. Peal, 393 S.W.3d 621, 2013 WL 1110707, 2013 Mo. App. LEXIS 341 (Mo. Ct. App. 2013).

Opinion

CYNTHIA L. MARTIN, Judge.

Darris Peal (“Peal”) appeals from the trial court’s judgment convicting him of second degree (felony) murder after a jury trial. Peal claims that the trial court abused its discretion in allowing the State to introduce: (1) a video recording of Peal extracted from Peal’s cell phone, (2) evidence that Peal was unemployed, and (3) a photo display of booking photographs of Peal and others with whom he was alleged to have acted in concert, because all of the aforesaid evidence had no relevance other than to improperly show Peal’s propensity to commit the crimes with which he was charged. We affirm.

Factual and Procedural History1

On October 22, 2010, Aaron Hobson (“Hobson”) and five friends including [624]*624Floyd Morgan (“Morgan”) traveled from Kansas City to Columbia to watch Hob-son’s cousin play a University of Missouri football game. The group attended a party at the Peach Tree event center. Hob-son drove with Morgan to the Peach Tree in his vehicle, a black Impala with “Lamborghini” doors that opened vertically and large 24-inch rims. During the party, Hobson was flashing money.

After the party, Hobson and Morgan drove around the Peach Tree parking lot “stunting,” which consisted of driving around with the car doors up and flashing money in order to get attention. At some point, Hobson’s group got separated, and planned by cell phone to meet at a nearby Break Time gas station.

At approximately 1:15 a.m., Hobson and Morgan pulled into the busy Break Time parking lot. As Hobson entered the lot, the doors to his vehicle were up. Hobson had money in his hand. A group of men rushed the driver’s side of Hobson’s vehicle. One of the men pointed a gun at Hobson. Hobson threw the money at Morgan. Morgan fell out of the vehicle and ran. Hobson was pulled out of his vehicle and held with a gun to his head at the back of his vehicle. Some of the men collected the money falling out the side of his vehicle, and others beat Hobson and went through his pockets. Eventually, Hobson got back into his vehicle. Someone in the group of men yelled, “Shoot the n* ⅜ * ⅜ Gunshots were fired, and everyone fled. Hobson’s vehicle rolled up on to the curb and came to a stop. Hob-son’s friends returned to Hobson’s vehicle and found Hobson slumped over and semiconscious. When the police arrived, Hob-son no longer had a pulse. Hobson was transported to the hospital where he was declared dead from two gunshot wounds.

A police search of Hobson’s vehicle revealed $374 cash in the glove box. No weapons were found. At the scene, police collected two spent shell casings and a bullet fragment. A .22 caliber pistol was found in the parking lot of a business behind Break Time. The following day, the police collected two more spent shell casings from a nearby business. The police later obtained surveillance video of the Break Time parking lot. Peal was identified in the video.

On October 23, 2010, a complaint was filed against Peal. On October 27, 2010, Peal was arrested in Jennings, Missouri. Once in custody, Peal gave a videotaped statement to Columbia Police Detective Joseph Jackson (“Detective Jackson”). Detective Jackson testified that Peal told him he had gone to the party at Peach Tree on October 22, 2010, but never went into the party. Peal also told him that he then went to Break Time. Peal admitted that he was involved in the altercation at Hobson’s vehicle, but claimed he was only protecting his nephew, Patrick Marshall. Peal told Detective Jackson he did not know, or barely knew, most of the men identified in the surveillance video as involved in the altercation2 with Hobson. Peal denied seeing a gun during the altercation. Peal denied owning a cell phone.

A vehicle associated with Peal was towed for processing. The vehicle inventory resulted in the discovery of two cell phones with the numbers 573-356-9785 and 573-356-9786, and identification and receipts with Peal’s name and contact information including the phone number [625]*625573-356-9786. On October 28, 2010, Deputy Dustin Richards booked Peal into the Boone County jail. At that time, Peal reported his phone number to be 573-356-9786.

On December 2, 2010, the gun used to shoot Hobson was recovered from Jerel Bryant, one of the men identified in the video surveillance tape. The gun was matched to the spent shell casings and bullet fragment obtained from the Break Time parking lot, to the bullet retrieved from Hobson’s body, and to the spent shell casings found on the nearby business parking lot.

On June 24, 2011, Peal was indicted as a persistent misdemeanor offender3 with two alternative counts of the class A felony of second degree (felony) murder.4 As to count one, it was alleged that Hobson was killed by Peal acting in concert with another as a result of immediate flight from perpetration of the class B felony of robbery in the second degree. As to count two, it was alleged that Hobson was killed by Peal acting in concert with another as a result of immediate flight from perpetration of the class C felony of felonious restraint.

Following a jury trial, Peal was found guilty of second degree (felony) murder with robbery in the second degree as the predicate felony offense. Peal was sentenced to twenty-five years in the Missouri Department of Corrections. Peal filed a motion for new trial which was denied.

Peal appeals.

Standard of Review

“The standard of review for the admission of evidence is abuse of discretion.” State v. Freeman, 269 S.W.3d 422, 426 (Mo. banc 2008). “ ‘A trial court has broad discretion to admit or exclude evidence at trial.’” State v. Forrest, 183 S.W.3d 218, 223 (Mo. banc 2006) (citation omitted). “The trial judge is also in the best position to weigh the probative value of the evidence against its prejudicial effect.” State v. Oplinger, 193 S.W.3d 766, 770 (Mo.App. S.D.2006). Abuse of discretion occurs when a trial court’s ruling is “‘clearly against the logic of the circumstances and is so unreasonable as to indicate a lack of careful consideration.’ ” Freeman, 269 S.W.3d at 426 (citation omitted). “ ‘Reversal is warranted only if the error was so prejudicial that it deprived the defendant of a fair trial.’ ” State v. Tisius, 362 S.W.3d 398, 405 (Mo. banc 2012) (citation omitted). “Trial court error is not prejudicial unless there is a reasonable probability that the trial court’s error affected the outcome of the trial.” Forrest, 183 S.W.3d at 224.

Analysis

Point I

For his first point on appeal, Peal alleges that the trial court abused its discretion in allowing the State to introduce, over Peal’s objection, a video recording of Peal extracted from Peal’s cell phone (“the Video”). Peal claims the Video was inadmissible because it was improper character • evidence relevant only to show his propen[626]*626sity to commit the crimes with which he was charged. We disagree.

The Video begins with the camera focused on over $200.00 cash displayed on a car seat which Peal sifts through with his fingers before he turns the camera on himself and says, “This ain’t nothing but play money, dog.

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Bluebook (online)
393 S.W.3d 621, 2013 WL 1110707, 2013 Mo. App. LEXIS 341, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/state-v-peal-moctapp-2013.