Willis v. State

936 S.W.2d 302, 1996 WL 288102
Court of Appeals of Texas·Decided November 27, 1996·No. 12-94-00016-CR·Published·Cited by 32 cases

Opinion

HADDEN, Justice.

Appellant was convicted by a jury of the offense of murder. Punishment was assessed at life confinement in the Texas Department of Criminal Justice, Institutional Division, and a fine of $10,000. Appellant raises four points of error on appeal. We will affirm.

The record reflects that on January 12, 1993, Appellant shot his stepson, Johnny West, Jr. (“West”), over a disagreement about a vehicle. Prior to the shooting, Appellant was in the process of selling a car to West. West had paid Appellant $200 of the $300 purchase price; however, West had not paid the remaining $100 because Appellant did not have clear title to the ear. Appellant’s ex-wife, Diane Willis (“Diane”), testified that on the date of the shooting, Appellant became angry about West’s failure to pay the balance, and asked for the keys to the car. Diane obtained the keys for Appellant. West later asked Appellant to give back the keys, but Appellant refused. Appellant claimed that he would not give West the keys because he did not have insurance on the car, and because he believed that West was using the car to transport drugs. West finally asked for a refund of his purchase money, but Appellant also refused that request.

After this conversation with Appellant, West walked out of the house and smashed the windows of the car with a brick. He also broke a window in Appellant’s van. West then went back inside the house to his sisters’ bedroom. Appellant called 911 to report that someone was breaking into his car, and then walked outside to inspect the damage. Shortly thereafter, Appellant retrieved a gun from his and Diane’s bedroom, and walked into his stepdaughters’ bedroom. West was standing near the closet. Appellant shot West repeatedly, and the wounded West collapsed inside the closet.

The shooting was witnessed by West’s sister, LaSonya, who called out to Diane. Diane begged Appellant not to shoot West anymore, but Appellant shot West again. Diane then retrieved a gun, and ordered her other children to lock themselves in her bedroom and call 911. She went back into the bed *306 room with Appellant, and asked him to put the gun down and to stop shooting. Instead, Appellant turned and pointed the gun at Diane. Diane then shot Appellant, and Appellant fell in front of the closet where West lay. Before LaSonya or Diane could get the gun away from Appellant, he shot West again. Forensic evidence indicated that West died from several gunshot wounds in the back.

Both LaSonya and Diane testified that they had not seen West threaten Appellant in any manner prior to the shooting, and no gun was found in the closet near West’s body. Officer Beverly Grage stated that none of the evidence indicated that West had a weapon, and no other weapons were found at the scene. However, Appellant testified in his videotaped statement that West had a .25 caliber pistol when Appellant entered the bedroom to talk to him about the car. According to Appellant, West told him that he would “finish what he started” three years ago, referring to an incident in which West stabbed Appellant. Appellant then turned his back to look out the window for the police, and he felt a bullet go by his head. He stated that the bullet may have been fired by either West or Diane. Appellant turned back towards West and shot him three or four times.

In his first point of error, Appellant contends that the trial court erred in instructing the jury on the law of “provoking the difficulty.” The jury was charged as follows:

15.
You are further instructed as part of the law of this case, and as a qualification of the law on self defense, that the use of force by a defendant against another is not justified if the defendant provoked the other’s use or attempted use of unlawful force, unless
(a) the defendant abandons the encounter, or clearly communicates to the other his intent to do so reasonably believing he cannot safely abandon the encounter; and
(b) the other person, nevertheless, continues or attempts to use unlawful force against the defendant.
So, in this case, if you find and believe from the evidence beyond a reasonable doubt that the defendant, ROSS EARL WILLIS, immediately before the difficulty, if any, then and there did some act, or used some language, or did both, as the case may be, with the intent on his, the defendant’s part, to produce the occasion for shooting the deceased, JOHNNY RAY WEST, JR., and to bring on the difficulty with JOHNNY RAY WEST, JR., and that such words and conduct on defendant’s part, if there were such, were reasonably calculated to, and did, provoke a difficulty, and that on such occasion JOHNNY RAY WEST, JR. attacked defendant with deadly force, or reasonably appeared to defendant to so attack him or to be attempting to so attack him, and that the defendant then shot the said JOHNNY RAY WEST, JR ... .in pursuance of his original design, if you find there was such, then you will find against the defendant on the issue of self defense.
On the other hand, if you find from the evidence that the acts done or language used by the defendant, if any, were not, under the circumstances, reasonably calculated or intended to provoke a difficulty or an attack by JOHNNY RAY WEST, JR. upon the defendant, or if you have a reasonable doubt thereof, then in such event, defendant’s right of self defense would in no wise be abridged, impaired, or lessened, and, if you so find, or if you have a reasonable doubt thereof, you will decide the issue of self defense in accordance with the law on that subject given in other portions of this charge, wholly disregarding and without reference to the law on the subject of provoking the difficulty.

Appellant argues that there was no evidence to warrant the submission of this instruction. The issue of whether Appellant’s conduct was reasonably calculated to provoke the difficulty is a question of fact for jury determination, under appropriate instructions from the court. Garcia v. State, 522 S.W.2d 203, 206 (Tex.Cr.App.1975). A *307 “provocation” instruction is used to inform the jury that if they find that the defendant provoked the difficulty in order to have a pretext to kill or injure the victim, then the defendant forfeits his right of self-defense. Lee v. State, 903 S.W.2d 845, 848 (Tex.App.—Beaumont 1995, n.p.h.). A charge on “provoking the difficulty” is properly given if:

1. Self-defense is an issue;
2. There are facts in evidence which show that the victim/deceased made the first attack on the defendant;
3. The defendant did some act or used some words intended to and calculated to bring on the difficulty in order to have a pretext for inflicting injury on the victim/deceased.

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Willis v. State, 936 S.W.2d 302, 1996 WL 288102 (Tex. Ct. App. 1996).

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