United States v. Mapes

57 M.J. 569, 2002 CCA LEXIS 161, 2002 WL 1748612
CourtArmy Court of Criminal Appeals
DecidedJuly 30, 2002
DocketARMY 9900592
StatusPublished
Cited by2 cases

This text of 57 M.J. 569 (United States v. Mapes) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Army Court of Criminal Appeals primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
United States v. Mapes, 57 M.J. 569, 2002 CCA LEXIS 161, 2002 WL 1748612 (acca 2002).

Opinion

OPINION OF THE COURT

CAIRNS, Senior Judge:

A military judge sitting as a general court-martial convicted the appellant, pursuant to his conditional guilty pleas, of conspiracy to obstruct justice, false official statement, wrongful use of heroin (two specifications), wrongful distribution of heroin, wrongful introduction and distribution of heroin on a military installation,1 and involuntary manslaughter, in violation of Articles 81, 107, 112a, and 119, Uniform Code of Military Justice, 10 U.S.C. §§ 881, 907, 912a, and 919 [hereinafter UCMJ]. The court-martial sentenced the appellant to a dishonorable discharge, confinement for nine years, forfeiture of all pay and allowances, and reduction to Private El. Pursuant to a pretrial agreement, the convening authority approved confinement for seven years and the remainder of the sentence as adjudged. The case is before this court for review under Article 66(c), UCMJ, 10 U.S.C. § 866(c).

Background

Specialist (SPC) Coffin died of an overdose of heroin on 5 April 1998. Based on the evidence developed during the initial investigation, the government suspected that the appellant and Private (PVT) Smoyer delivered the lethal dosage of heroin to SPC Coffin. On 15 July 1998, the convening authority granted testimonial immunity to both suspects.2

On 22 July 1998, the appellant was the first of the two suspects to be interviewed under the grants of immunity. Two separate Criminal Investigation Command (CID) teams had been established to conduct independent investigations of the appellant and PVT Smoyer. The evidence does not reflect what, if anything, the appellant told CID during his initial interview. Sometime after CID’s interview of the appellant, a separate CID investigative team interviewed PVT Smoyer. However, in accordance with a pri- or agreement between PVT Smoyer and the appellant, PVT Smoyer lied about and denied their use of heroin with SPC Coffin.

On 2 September 1998, charges were preferred against PVT Smoyer. After preferral, but still during the first week of September 1998, PVT Smoyer informed his father over the telephone of his culpability in the death of SPC Coffin. He also told his father that [571]*571the government was offering a pretrial agreement that would limit confinement to eight years. Private Smoyer’s father firmly advised his son to not accept the deal. Despite this advice, PVT Smoyer later informed his father that he had made a definite decision to accept the deal because he was confident of the prosecution’s ability to convict him and he did not “want to risk being in jail too long.” At the time he made the decision to plead guilty, PVT Smoyer was confident that the appellant would stand by his agreement not to cooperate. In fact, PVT Smoyer’s defense counsel had told him that the appellant had disobeyed an order to testify under the grant of immunity. Private Smoyer made the decision to plead guilty and to cooperate prior to notification of his Article 32, UCMJ, investigation and of the witness list that included the appellant’s name.

On 29 September 1998, the appellant testified at PVT Smoyer’s Article 32, UCMJ, investigation that he provided the heroin with which PVT Smoyer injected SPC Coffin. The next day, PVT Smoyer gave an immunized statement to CID admitting that he injected SPC Coffin with heroin that appellant supplied. The government preferred charges against the appellant on 3 December 1998.

At trial, the appellant moved to dismiss the charges on the grounds that the government violated his Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination by using his immunized statement to induce PVT Smoyer to testify against the appellant. The appellant advanced three theories as to how the government violated his rights.

First, the appellant asserted that PVT Smoyer’s statements incriminating the appellant were made only after the appellant testified under a grant of immunity against PVT Smoyer at his Article 32, UCMJ, investigation. The appellant argued that PVT Smoyer’s statements were induced by, and therefore derived from, the appellant’s own immunized statements. The appellant further argued that the government’s decision to prosecute him was based upon PVT Smoyer’s tainted statements, in violation of the principles established in Kastigar v. United States, 406 U.S. 441, 92 S.Ct. 1653, 32 L.Ed.2d 212 (1972).

Second, the appellant asserted that the government breached a so-called “Chinese wall”3 erected at the time immunity was granted to separate the investigations and the prosecutions of the two suspects. The appellant alleges that the breach occurred when Special Agent (SA) Hill, the CID Special Agent>-in-Charge (SAC), had access to the separate investigative files pertaining to each suspect, made entries in both files, and spoke to members of each prosecution team regarding their separate investigations.

Third, the appellant asserted that the staff judge advocate (SJA) and the convening authority had access to his immunized testimony contained in the Smoyer report of investigation under Article 32, UCMJ, at the time the convening authority referred the charges against the appellant. Even though the evidence demonstrated that neither the SJA nor the convening authority had read the report of investigation or had any knowledge of the content of the appellant’s testimony, the appellant argued that the convening authority’s decision to refer charges against him was tainted simply because the convening authority had access to the appellant’s immunized testimony against PVT Smoyer.

After a thorough Kastigar hearing, the military judge made findings of fact, entered conclusions of law, and denied the appellant’s [572]*572motion.4 Thereafter, the appellant entered conditional pleas of guilty pursuant to R.C.M. 910(a)(2). Before this court, the appellant’s sole assignment of error asserts that:

APPELLANT WAS DENIED HIS FIFTH AMENDMENT RIGHT AGAINST SELF-INCRIMINATION WHEN THE MILITARY [JUDGE] RULED THAT APPELLANT’S GRANT OF IMMUNITY WAS NOT VIOLATED BY THE GOVERNMENT’S USE OF HIS IMMUNIZED STATEMENTS TO SUCCESSFULLY PROSECUTE AN ACCOMPLICE WHOSE STATEMENTS WERE THEN USED TO PROSECUTE APPELLANT.

Facts

a. Pre-Immunity Evidence

Before the convening authority granted the appellant immunity and ordered him to testify, the government had evidence of the following facts. The evening before SPC Coffin’s death, the appellant was returning from leave in New York. He telephoned PVT Smoyer and stated that he was “bringing the shit back,” which meant that he was returning with heroin. Private Smoyer purchased syringes that same evening.

Witnesses saw the appellant, PVT Smoyer, and SPC Coffin together in the appellant’s barracks room during the late evening hours before SPC Coffin’s death.

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Related

United States v. Mapes
59 M.J. 60 (Court of Appeals for the Armed Forces, 2003)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
57 M.J. 569, 2002 CCA LEXIS 161, 2002 WL 1748612, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/united-states-v-mapes-acca-2002.