Womack v. State

541 So. 2d 40, 1987 Ala. Crim. App. LEXIS 4669, 1987 WL 384
CourtCourt of Criminal Appeals of Alabama
DecidedApril 14, 1987
Docket3 Div. 445
StatusPublished
Cited by3 cases

This text of 541 So. 2d 40 (Womack v. State) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Criminal Appeals of Alabama primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Womack v. State, 541 So. 2d 40, 1987 Ala. Crim. App. LEXIS 4669, 1987 WL 384 (Ala. Ct. App. 1987).

Opinion

TAYLOR, Judge.

Petitioner, Clarence Womack, was indicted and convicted of intentionally killing Arthur Bullock during the course of a robbery, pursuant to § 13A-5-31(a)(2), Code of Alabama 1975. Upon the jury’s recommendation, Womack was sentenced to death. On direct appeal, in Womack v. State, 435 So.2d 754 (Ala.Cr.App.1983), this court affirmed the conviction and sentence. Thereafter, the Alabama Supreme Court affirmed in Ex parte Womack, 435 So.2d 766 (Ala.1983). For a sufficient understanding of the facts in this case, we quote a portion of this case as reported on direct appeal.

“The first witness for the state was Dora Helms, who, on February 2, 1981, lived a block away from the City Curb Market. She testified she had known the deceased, Arthur Bullock, for ten years. On February 2, 1981, Mrs. Helms went to the City Curb Market and purchased some groceries from Mr. Bullock. When she returned home, a friend of the family’s, Mattie Hunt, was there. Mrs. Hunt soon left the house to go to the City Curb Market. She returned with a six pack of beer. Mrs. Helms then sent her eight year old daughter, Demetrius, to the City Curb Market for a pack of cigarettes. Demetrius returned a few minutes later without the cigarettes because she was unable to find Mr. Bullock. Mrs. Helms became suspicious because [42]*42she knew Mr. Bullock always locked the store when he was away, even for a few minutes. She then walked outside and saw the police arriving at the City Curb Market. Mrs. Helms went back inside, turned on the radio, and learned that Mr. Bullock had been killed.
“Mattie Hunt testified that on February 2, 1981, sometime after 11:00 a.m., she went to the City Curb Market to purchase a six pack of beer. As she was leaving the store, the appellant came in and asked Mr. Bullock for a pack of cigarettes and some matches. She left and went back to the Helms home to watch television. Mrs. Hunt was there when Mrs. Helms sent her daughter to the City Curb Market and when Demetrius returned saying she couldn’t find Mr. Bullock. She went outside to see what was going on when she heard the police sirens.
“Mrs. Hunt testified she picked the appellant out of a photographic line-up and also a live line-up. She also made an in-court identification of the appellant.
“James Reffin testified he was employed as a route salesman for the Flowers Baking Company on February 2, 1981. Sometime between 11:30 a.m. and 12:00, he was making a delivery to the Pricebreaker Grocery Store, which is located in the same block as the City Curb Market. While he was there, a man came in and following a conversation with him, the two went to the City Curb Market and found Mr. Bullock lying on the floor behind the counter. There was blood on Mr. Bullock and on the floor and he appeared to be dead. The two men went back to the Pricebreaker and called the police.
(( * * *
“Rex Hussey Jones (also known as Black Bubba), an inmdte at Holman Prison, testified that at approximately 2:30 p.m. on February 2, 1981, he saw the appellant and Charles Johnson (also known as “Nanny Goat”) at the corner of Goode and Early Streets. The three had a conversation about getting high.
“The appellant told Jones that he and Johnson had been on ‘a lick’ at the City Curb Market. Jones asked the appellant how much money they got and he replied, ‘[T]he bitch wouldn’t give no money.’ ... so T had to shoot the bitch in the face.’ _ Johnson told Jones that he didn’t think anyone saw them because he was bent over as he ran to prevent the pistol from falling out of his pants.
<< * * «
“This witness said Neil Martin told him he was going to get out of this mess in some way. Martin asked Jones to burn him on the arm with a cigarette, which he did, so he could say police had burned him.
“[Corporal R.T.] Ward [of the Montgomery Police Department] informed the appellant that he had been picked out of a line-up by a witness, and the police had received other information indicating the appellant and Johnson were involved in the Bullock case. At this point, the appellant gave an oral statement to Ward, who wrote it down and then typed it. Ward then asked the appellant if the statement was correct. He replied that it was, and signed his name to the statement in the presence of four other officers. The appellant’s statement reads as follows:
“ ‘Monday me and Nanny-Goat was walking over on Jeff Davis Avenue and Nanny said, let’s get the man’s money. And we was right at the City Curb, so I knew what store he was talking about. We went into the store and walked around until this woman that was in there left. I asked the man at the counter for some cigarettes and matches. The man gave me a pack of Kool cigarettes and some matches. I paid him, and that’s when Nanny pulled the pistol and told the man that this was a stickup. The man turned around and started reaching under the counter, and Nanny shot him. I ran out the door and went home. I don’t know where Nanny went.’
a * * *
“The appellant testified he had been convicted of burglary, grand larceny and [43]*43robbery and had spent a number of years in the penitentiary. He was paroled in March of 1979, and since that time had been working as a laborer.
t( * * *
“At the sentencing phase of the trial, A1 Smith testified for the State. He is employed by the State Board of Pardons in the Field Office in Montgomery as a probation and parole officer. The appellant had been under his supervision.
“The appellant was sentenced to twenty-five years in the penitentiary for robbery in December, 1971. His sentence went into effect in March, 1973 and [he] served time until he was paroled in March, 1979. The appellant was on parole at the time of the offense in question in this case.
“According to a classification summary prepared by the Prison Department, the appellant has average intelligence. Smith indicated that the appellant seemed to understand what was said when they had conversations.”

Having established the factual content of the case, we will now review petitioner’s contentions in his petition for a writ of error coram nobis.

He asserts as grounds for the writ that there is newly discovered evidence, that he was subjected to ineffective assistance of counsel, and that exculpatory evidence was withheld from him at trial.

I

We will first review petitioner’s contention that sufficient new evidence has been presented to warrant a new trial.

Petitioner produced an alleged new witness, Mary Allen. She testified that she was a friend of the appellant’s mother and had seen him grow up and that she would like to help him in any way she could. Mary Allen testified that she went to the Bullock store on the day of the murder. She said that as she approached the store she saw two persons known to her as Chick Bush and Nookie. Nookie was at the door of the store and Chick Bush was sitting in a ear in front. She entered the store, where she purchased a moon pie and a Coke from Mr. Bullock and then proceeded up the street towards Johnson’s Cafe.

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Related

Brown v. State
816 P.2d 818 (Wyoming Supreme Court, 1991)
Ex Parte Womack
541 So. 2d 47 (Supreme Court of Alabama, 1988)

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Bluebook (online)
541 So. 2d 40, 1987 Ala. Crim. App. LEXIS 4669, 1987 WL 384, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/womack-v-state-alacrimapp-1987.