Scott next argues that the circuit court erred in denying her Batson v. Kentucky, 476 U.S. 79, 106 S.Ct. He'll blame me or he'll try to hurt his self. (R. Morris Brown, a former firearms and toolsmark expert with the Alabama Department of Forensic Sciences, testified that in his opinion the smoke detector had been forcibly removed, or pulled from the wall, before the fire started and it was lying on the floor, undamaged by the fire. As the Alabama Supreme Court stated: [W]hen a defendant is found guilty of a capital offense, any aggravating circumstance which the verdict convicting the defendant establishes was proven beyond a reasonable doubt at trial shall be considered as proven beyond a reasonable doubt for purposes of the sentencing hearing. Ala.Code 1975, 13A545(e), Because the jury convicted Waldrop of two counts of murder during a robbery in the first degree, a violation of Ala.Code 1975, 13A540(a)(2), the statutory aggravating circumstance of committing a capital offense while engaged in the commission of a robbery, Ala.Code 1975, 13A549(4), was proven beyond a reasonable doubt. Ala.Code 1975, 13A545(e); Ala.Code 1975, 13A550. The TV was off and Noah Riley was still awake. Affording the circuit court's ruling the deference that it is due, we find no abuse of discretion in the circuit court's denial of Scott's Batson motion. Clark v. State, 896 So.2d 584, 609 (Ala.Crim.App.2000). The Court does consider the impact on her family, particularly her younger son, and gives this circumstance its due weight. In this case, the 2006 fires and the 2008 fire were in houses owned and occupied by Scott. (R. [Defense counsel]: Objection. Oh, no, not my babies. The Supreme Court stated: Section 122113, Ala.Code 1975, provides: Physical evidence connected with or collected in the investigation of a crime shall not be excluded from consideration by a jury or court due to a failure to prove the chain of custody of the evidence. After detailing Munger's qualifications, the Supreme Court stated: [W]e are persuaded that Munger possessed the qualifications to testify as an expert in matters of fire science and technology. 643 So.2d at 1343. at 33839 (Stevens, J., concurring in the judgment) (citations to the record omitted). (R. 1859, 114 L.Ed.2d 395 (1991).. Both of Scott's experts testified that the fire originated in the television cabinet and not near or around outlet number 3. Alabama law requires the existence of only one aggravating circumstance in order for a defendant to be sentenced to death.. v. Jernigan, 883 So.2d 646 (Ala.2003), the Supreme Court revisited its holding in Bethea and found reversible error in the trial court's failure to remove five prospective jurors for cause. Scott next argues that the circuit court erred in excusing prospective juror A.C. outside her presence. Nothing about these words implies that the other acts' to which Rule 404(b) refers must be bad. Indeed, to read the Rule as such violate[s] the cardinal principle of statutory interpretation that courts must give effect, if possible, to every clause and word of a statute. Triestman v. United States, 124 F.3d 361, 375 (2d Cir.1997) (quoting United States v. Menasche, 348 U.S. 528, 53839, 75 S.Ct. A jury composed exclusively of jurors who have been death-qualified in accordance with the test established in Wainwright v. Witt, 469 U.S. 412, 105 S.Ct. It may, however, be admissible for other purposes such as proof of motive, opportunity, intent, preparation, plan, knowledge, identity, or absence of mistake or accident, provided that upon request by the accused, the prosecution in a criminal case shall provide reasonable notice in advance of trial, or during trial if the court excuses pretrial notice on good cause shown, of the general nature of any such evidence it intends to introduce at trial.. 1787.) In order to justify disqualification, a juror must have more than a bias, or fixed opinion, as to the guilt or innocence of the accused ; [s]uch opinion must be so fixed that it would bias the verdict a juror would be required to render. Oryang v. State, 642 So.2d 979, 987 (Ala.Cr.App.1993) (quoting Siebert v. State, 562 So.2d 586, 595 (Ala.Cr.App.1989)).. because of a family emergency. ), aff'd 500 So.2d 1064 (Ala.1986), cert. Jana Boyd, a stylist at the WalMart hair salon, testified that a lady came in the store on the Monday after the fire and that Swinney got upset and Boyd had to wait on the customer. indicated that she was impartial, that she could follow the law, and that she could apply the law to the facts of the case. The record clearly shows that the venire was not biased based on any pretrial publicity. While the jury's recommendation concerning sentence shall be given consideration, it is not binding upon the court.. The Supreme Court stated the following concerning the scope of 13A547(e), Ala.Code 1975: We take this opportunity to further explain the effect of a jury's recommendation of life imprisonment without the possibility of parole. Dr. Franco testified that there were five electrical outlets in the boys's bedroom, that the wiring ran under the floor, that the outlets were all on one circuit breaker, that he inspected every outlet and receptacle, except outlet number 1, that he took 425 photographs of the scene, that he examined the wiring underneath the house, that he examined the attic, that the night-light was not the cause of the fire, that there was no damage to the underground wiring in the house, that the fire did not originate in outlet number 1 because the electrical box that housed the outlet was intact, and that, in his opinion, the fire was not electrical in origin. Join Facebook to connect with Scott Christie and others you may know. Noah was still up and she had him come to bed with her. Accordingly, Scott's argument is without merit. The State argues, and we agree, that Belisle, like the inmates in Baze, cannot meet his burden of demonstrating that Alabama's lethal-injection protocol poses a substantial risk of harm by asserting the mere possibility that something may go wrong. While it is true that it is not necessary for the prosecution to prove a motive for murder, if a motive is proveable, it certainly is relevant to a material issue which the state must provethe guilt of the accused. Fountain v. State, 681 S.W.2d 858, 864 (Tex.App.1984). All right. We think that this is such a case., Because it focused on the fact that the test results in Gingo were part of the State's case-in-chief, and were necessary to convict the defendants, 605 So.2d at 1240, the Alabama Supreme Court appears to have aligned itself with the materiality and prejudice analysis' advocated by Justice Stevens, several commentators, and a growing minority of other courts that have rejected Youngblood's single bad faith standard. Because the qualification of a juror is a matter within the discretion of the trial judge, on appeal this Court will look to the questions asked and the answers given only to see if the trial court's discretion was properly exercised. Ex parte Cochran, 500 So.2d 1179, 1183 (Ala.1985). See Rule 45A, Ala. R.App. Deputy Edwards read Scott's statement to the jury. Gurley v. State, 639 So.2d 557, 56368 (Ala.Crim.App.1993). WebChristie Michelle Scott Women On Death Row. Now, most of your instructions were the intentional spoliation of evidence. More significantly, the trial judge instructed the jury: If you find that the State has allowed to be destroyed or lost any evidence whose content or quality are in issue, you may infer that the true fact is against the State's interest. As a result, the uncertainty as to what the evidence might have proved was turned to the defendant's advantage. Scott made no objection when this exhibit was admitted into evidence. Top 3 Results for Michelle Christie. Outlet number 3 was located between Noah's bed and the window but had been misidentified as coming from another room in the house. [Defense counsel]: Objection, Your Honor. Therefore, we conclude that the multiple errors on the part of the trial court in improperly denying GM's challenges for cause were not harmless, whether or not it could have been shown that the jury ultimately seated was unbiased and impartial. The sentencing judge had the opportunity to view the family members as they testified in the penalty phasean opportunity that this Court lacksand he specifically found that the family members believed that Scott was innocent of the charges. Thomas v. State, 372 Md. What do you think about that? [Defense counsel]: Can you tell us what your views are about the death penalty, sir? 615 (1955)). Did Jeremy Scott Kill Michelle Schofield? [T]he harmless error rule does apply in capital cases at the sentence hearing. Ex parte Whisenhant, 482 So.2d 1241, 1244 (Ala.1983).. The circuit court issued the following order granting the State's request to introduce evidence concerning the two 2006 fires: The Court finds that the State may introduce evidence of the January 12, 2006, fire and the January 14, 2006, fire. See, e.g ., International Telecommunications Sys. 1489.) 166 (1941), as imposing on the police an undifferentiated and absolute duty to retain and preserve all material that might be of conceivable evidentiary significance in a particular prosecution. Thornton's custody until May 22, 2009, when it was mailed to one of the defense experts. Web788k Followers, 4,238 Following, 1,086 Posts - See Instagram photos and videos from @chrisettemichele The decision of the trial court on such questions is entitled to great weight and will not be interfered with unless clearly erroneous, equivalent to an abuse of discretion. Nettles, 435 So.2d at 153.. Scott objected and requested that she be allowed to voir dire Munger. In support of his argument, the appellant cites Williams v. State, 350 So.2d 708 (Ala.1977). Before trial, Scott moved to dismiss the indictment, arguing that the State had failed to disclose the outlets that had been taken from Mason's bedroom. The Court: Either side? [S.S.]: The only reason I'm saying that is I have had discussions with his family as to what he may or may not know. 1419, 128 L.Ed.2d 89 (1994). Sgt. We have repeatedly upheld the practice of death-qualifying prospective jurors in a capital-murder case. (R. Select the best result to find their address, phone number, relatives, and public records. @michellescottxx.Watch the latest video from MICHI (@michellescottt). Scott next argues that the court's instructions erroneously allowed the jury to believe that it could not consider a mitigating circumstances unless the entire jury agreed upon its existence. 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