Walden v. State

57 So. 3d 248, 2011 Fla. App. LEXIS 3516, 2011 WL 890813
CourtDistrict Court of Appeal of Florida
DecidedMarch 16, 2011
DocketNo. 4D09-401
StatusPublished
Cited by2 cases

This text of 57 So. 3d 248 (Walden v. State) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court of Appeal of Florida primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Walden v. State, 57 So. 3d 248, 2011 Fla. App. LEXIS 3516, 2011 WL 890813 (Fla. Ct. App. 2011).

Opinion

POLEN, J.

Appellant seeks review of his conviction and sentence for attempted second-degree murder with a firearm. Appellant raises three issues on appeal, but we write only to address his argument that the trial court erred in admitting testimony about the shooting and death of another individual during the same incident. We agree with the State that the subject testimony was inextricably intertwined, and affirm.

Appellant was charged with attempted first-degree murder with a firearm. The charge arose from a fight at an apartment complex, during which Justin Matthews was shot. Justin identified appellant as the shooter. Prior to trial, the defense moved in limine to prohibit testimony about the shooting and death of Sharod Smith during the same incident. The State asserted that witness Eric Frazier (Justin’s brother) would testify that he saw appellant shoot Sharod. The State argued that Eric’s testimony was relevant because the shooting of Sharod was “inextricably intertwined” with the shooting in this case, and was also admissible as Williams1 rule evidence, to prove identity, opportunity or motive.

Eric testified that he and Sharod were best friends. At the time of the shooting, Sharod lived in the Dillard neighborhood with his mother. Eric, then fifteen years old, lived with them. The two boys grew up in another neighborhood, which seemed to upset the kids in Dillard. Three weeks before the shooting, Eric and Sharod fought with Dillard kids.

On the evening in question, the two boys passed the Dillard kids while walking to Sharod’s house. The Dillard kids were “talking like junk, like they wanted to fight,” and one of them shot a gun into the air. There were about twenty boys outside of Sharod’s apartment. Once inside the apartment, Eric called his brother Justin to pick him up.

A few minutes later, Justin arrived at Sharod’s apartment. As they all walked out, the Dillard boys surrounded them, and a fight broke out. Eric heard a gunshot and turned to see Sharod fall to the ground. He saw appellant with a gun in his hand. Sharod jumped back up and ran towards his house; Eric ran after him. Appellant shot again at Eric and Sharod. Once inside Sharod’s house, Eric saw him on the floor, bleeding. Eric heard another gunshot from outside.

Five days after the incident, Eric was asked to identify the shooter in a photo lineup. Eric was unable to do so, because he was too upset. Sharod was his best friend, and had died from his gunshot wounds.

Eric returned to the police station several weeks later, and identified appellant as the shooter. Eric did not know appellant, but referred to him as “Bookey’s brother.” Eric had seen appellant around the neighborhood before the shooting incident.

Justin, the victim in the ease being tried, also testified to the events on the day of the shooting. He received a call from his younger brother Eric, and Eric’s best friend, Sharod, who said that boys outside Sharod’s apartment were trying to jump on them. Justin agreed to come and get them, and drove over to Sharod’s house. Justin got out of the car and walked up to [250]*250appellant who was leaning on a car, and asked him if he saw anyone fighting. Appellant said no and pointed out Sharod’s apaz*tment.

Justin proceeded to Sharod’s apartment and picked up his brother. As they walked out, there were twenty people from Dillard standing around. A fight broke out. Justin was fighting someone he did not know, when he turned around and saw appellant in his face with a gun. Appellant shot Justin. Appellant continued to pull the trigger, but either there were no more bullets or the gun jammed. Justin ran towards a friend’s car and jumped in. Several more shots were fired at the car, though Justin could not see who was shooting. While in the hospital, Justin picked appellant out of a photo lineup. Justin did not see anyone else with a gun during the fight.

The State argued that the jury needed to hear the evidence regarding the shooting of Sharod Smith, because the events leading up to that shooting also led up to the shooting of the victim in this case, Justin Matthews. Specifically, the State argued:

It happens at Sharod’s house, in Shar-od’s neighborhood. It happens because of a problem that Sharod and Eric Frazier are having with the neighborhood guys in Dillard. We’ve heard from Eric Frazier that he saw the defendant frequenting in the area. He’s one of the neighborhood guys, knew him as Bookie’s [sic] big brother who is another neighborhood guy. Had this case not been lost to a speedy trial issue, the State’s of the firm belief that the two counts would be tried together. You have two shootings that happen moments from one another. In order for the jury to really have an understanding and hear all the evidence in the context of the witnesses, they need to hear about the shooting of Sharod and the shooting of Justin Matthews. It’s not, as defense counsel has couched it, that I want to put [appellant] in a bad light and inflame the jury. I don’t. It really is relevant to the shooting of Justin Matthews.

The State argued further, that the evidence was necessary to explain Sharod’s absence, and why Eric was initially unable to identify appellant:

[T]he jury is going to hear about Shar-od’s house, about Sharod’s fight, about the friendship of Eric and Sharod, but they’re not going to hear from Sharod. The reason they’re not going to hear from Sharod is because Sharod is dead. Sharod is dead because of the criminal conduct that took place that day. So that’s one reason.
Another reason why it’s so important is because according to Eric Frazier he can’t make an ID of [appellant] because he’s so distraught over the death of Sharod. So that’s another reason why the evidence of Sharod’s death needs to come into Justin’s trial.

The State also argued the evidence was relevant and should be admitted pursuant to Williams, as it went to prove intent, motive and identity.

The trial court denied appellant’s motion in limine, finding the evidence of Sharod Smith’s shooting was inextricably intertwined with the circumstances of the shooting of Justin Matthews. The court also found the evidence was relevant to show identity, intent and opportunity. The court further noted that the fact of Sharod’s death was important, “to explain why he didn’t testify at trial.” The court ruled that as long as the State did not make Sharod’s death a feature of the trial, and did not use the word “murder,” then the probative value outweighed any prejudicial effect.

[251]*251At trial, Eric Frazier testified as he did during the Williams rule hearing. A few weeks before the incident, he and Sharod fought with the guys from Dillard. On the day of the incident, he and Sharod were walking to Sharod’s house, when they encountered about twenty Dillard guys, who were “talking trash” like they wanted to fight. Someone fired a gunshot in the air, and Eric called his brother Justin to come and get him. Justin came and, as they left Sharod’s apartment, they were surrounded.

A fight broke out and Eric heard gunshots. Eric saw Sharod fall, and saw appellant with a gun in his hand. Sharod jumped up and he and Eric ran towards Sharod’s apartment; appellant continued shooting at them. Once inside Sharod’s house, Eric saw that Sharod was shot. Eric learned that his brother Justin had also been shot, but Eric did not see the person who shot Justin.

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Related

Quinten Walden v. State
162 So. 3d 84 (District Court of Appeal of Florida, 2014)
Walden v. State
121 So. 3d 660 (District Court of Appeal of Florida, 2013)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
57 So. 3d 248, 2011 Fla. App. LEXIS 3516, 2011 WL 890813, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/walden-v-state-fladistctapp-2011.