State v. Walters

2007 NMSC 050, 168 P.3d 1068, 142 N.M. 644
CourtNew Mexico Supreme Court
DecidedAugust 28, 2007
Docket29,806
StatusPublished
Cited by28 cases

This text of 2007 NMSC 050 (State v. Walters) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering New Mexico Supreme Court primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
State v. Walters, 2007 NMSC 050, 168 P.3d 1068, 142 N.M. 644 (N.M. 2007).

Opinion

OPINION

MAES, Justice.

{1} As a result of the death of Defendant’s five-month-old daughter, Baby Briana, a jury convicted Defendant, Andrew Walters, of intentional child abuse resulting in death or great bodily harm, contrary to NMSA 1978, § 30-6-1 (2001); conspiracy to commit intentional child abuse resulting in death or great bodily harm, contrary to NMSA 1978, § 30-28-2 (1979) and Section 30-6-1; criminal sexual penetration of a child under thirteen in the first degree, contrary to NMSA 1978, § 30-9-ll(A), (C)(1) (2001); intentional child abuse not resulting in death or great bodily harm, contrary to Section 30-6-1; and negligently permitting child abuse, contrary to Section 30-6-1. Defendant was tried with four codefendants who faced various charges related to Baby Briana’s death. Previously, this Court examined the appeal of Defendant’s codefendant, Baby Briana’s mother, Stephanie Lopez (Mother). See State v. Lopez, 2007-NMSC-037, 142 N.M. 138, 164 P.3d 19. Like Mother, Defendant appealed his convictions to the Court of Appeals, asserting that his right to confrontation was violated when the statements of his codefendants were admitted as evidence at his joint trial. The Court of Appeals held that the admission of the codefendants’ statements resulted in a violation of Defendant’s Sixth Amendment right to confrontation and that this constitutional error was not harmless. State v. Walters, 2006-NMCA-071, ¶ 1, 139 N.M. 705, 137 P.3d 645. The Court of Appeals reversed Defendant’s conviction and remanded his case with the instruction that Defendant be tried separately. Id. The State petitioned this Court to review the Court of Appeals’ Opinion. We granted certiorari on the State’s petition and hold that the introduction of the codefendants’ statements violated Defendant’s Sixth Amendment right to confrontation. However, we hold that this error was harmless as to Defendant’s convictions for intentional child abuse resulting in death or great bodily harm, criminal sexual penetration of a child under thirteen years of age, intentional child abuse not resulting in death or great bodily harm, and negligently permitting child abuse, and we affirm each of these convictions. With regard to Defendant’s conviction for conspiracy to commit intentional child abuse, we hold the violation of Defendant’s right to confrontation was not harmless, and we affirm the Court of Appeals’ decision to reverse Defendant’s conspiracy conviction. BACKGROUND

{2} Baby Briana died on July 19, 2002. At the time of Baby Briana’s death, Defendant lived in the mobile home of his mother, Patricia Walters (Grandmother), along with Mother. Lopez, 2007-NMSC-037, ¶2. Defendant and Mother shared one bedroom of the mobile home with Baby Briana, the couple’s eighteen-month-old son, Andy Jr., and Mother’s twin brother, Steven Lopez (Uncle). Id. Also living in the home was Defendant’s brother, Robert Walters (Second Uncle), as well as Grandmother’s partner. Id. ¶ 3.

{3} The events of July 19, 2002, as well as Baby Briana’s extensive injuries, were detailed by this Court in Lopez.

On the morning of July 19, 2002, Defendant made a 911 call to report that Baby Briana had stopped breathing. Defendant and [Mother] administered C.P.R. on Baby Briana until paramedics arrived and transported her to the hospital. When Baby Briana arrived in the emergency room she had bruises and bite marks on her body and head, and she appeared lifeless. After unsuccessful attempts to resuscitate her, Baby Briana was pronounced dead---The autopsy of Baby Briana revealed that she died from cranial cerebral injuries. She had bruising and scraping injuries throughout her head, as well as on her upper forehead. She had numerous human bite marks all over her body and head, fifteen in total. There were extensive injuries to Baby Briana’s head and fatal injuries to her brain. She had bleeding within the membranes around the brain as well as around the nerves of her eyes. The autopsy revealed that Baby Briana’s skull was fractured in two places, on two different bones, and that the fractures were 5-7 days old. An examination of the membranes around the brain showed the presence of both old and new blood, indicating that Baby Briana had received a separate brain injury in the past. Baby Briana’s optical nerves were filled with both fresh and old blood which meant that she had been violently shaken on at least two occasions. Baby Briana suffered two rib fractures on the right side of her chest several weeks before her death. She also had bucket handle fractures on both her right and left thigh bones as well as a fracture through the top of her left arm. These injuries were the result of her limbs being forced, twisted, or yanked----Baby Briana’s death was characterized as a homicide.

Id. ¶¶ 3-4.

{4} Additionally, Baby Briana’s anus and vagina were injured. Walters, 2006-NMCA-071, ¶ 5. She had a significant abrasion on her buttocks, which went into the buttocks and was consistent with sexual assault. Id. The attending emergency room nurse observed that her anus gaped open with no muscle tone. Id. Baby Briana’s autopsy revealed that her anal opening was dilated to a full inch, and the internal examination showed a half-inch to an inch injury inside the anal opening as well as vaginal injuries inside Baby Briana’s labia minora, including three small injuries to her hymen. Id. DNA testing showed the near certain presence of Baby Briana’s blood on Defendant’s underwear, near the fly.

Statements of Defendant and his Codefendants

{5} On the day of Baby Briana’s death, Defendant was transported by police investigators to the Sheriffs Department where he was interviewed. Defendant’s interview lasted several hours and was taped. In the first portion of his interview, Defendant described the events of the previous night. Defendant told police that he went home after he got off work and was drinking beer and playing video games with Mother, Uncle, and Second Uncle until he went to bed between 12:30 and 1:00 a.m. He said that he woke up sometime after 3:00 a.m. and noticed Baby Briana on the floor, so he put her in her bouncer chair and went to bed. He changed her diaper at approximately 7:00 a.m. and went back to sleep. Defendant said that at 10:00 a.m., he and Mother discovered that Baby Briana was not breathing, and they called 911. In this portion of the interview, Defendant stated that Baby Briana had fallen off her bed during the night. He also admitted he caused two bite marks on Baby Briana’s ribs, after initially claiming that his 18-month-old son made the bite marks.

{6} After a break, the police continued interrogating Defendant and informed him that Baby Briana was dead. Defendant then admitted to throwing Baby Briana into the air and said that she hit her head on the ceiling four days before she died. Defendant admitted to bruising Baby Briana, stating “I didn’t mean for it to leave a bruise like that. Like I left her a bruise like that before, just from messing with her. [Mother] gets mad.” Defendant admitted that on the night of July 18, 2002, he and Uncle were “playing a little rough” with Baby Briana. Defendant said he threw Baby Briana into the air so that she hit the ceiling, and allowed her to drop to the floor when he “missed” her. Defendant identified a particular bruise on a photo as being caused when Baby Briana hit the ceiling and another when she landed on the floor.

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Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
2007 NMSC 050, 168 P.3d 1068, 142 N.M. 644, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/state-v-walters-nm-2007.