He has a very deep voice, and his hairstyle is a crew cut with a single strand of hair in a ponytail. Indeed, the jury could have convicted Thompson on Percy's testimony alone. A. He did not break 510, 130 pound Wesley Crandall's neck. Bone.. Looks. His testimony was an essential element in the chain of evidence pointing to Thompson as the killer. 1993) (holding that improperly admitted evidence of prior acts was not harmless error where the State emphasized the disputed conduct in its opening and closing arguments); James v. State, 622 N.E.2d 1303, 1309-10 (Ind. When Featheringill was asked about the events in New Castle, the defense objected on hearsay grounds. Although corroboration of collateral facts is sometimes permissible to show credibility, see, e.g., Ind. Facebook gives people the power. Douglas Percy. Our cases have long admonished that one crime cannot be proved in order to establish another distinct crime even though they be of the same kind. ." As of July 1, 2006 Home Page| Inexplicably, Featheringill was also permitted to relate Percy's account of an execution style shooting.10 The fact that Crandall was killed, and how that occurred, was potentially as prejudicial as any fact can be and had no bearing on whether Thompson stole the murder weapon from Crandall that day. As the defense's opening statement put it: Who does [the State] say was with Mr. Thompson in New Castle? 1991) (erroneous admission of extrinsic acts was harmless because there was strong properly admitted evidence of guilt and prosecutor did not "embellish upon the incident"). In the end, an impermissible flood of damaging propensity evidence washed away Thompson's right to a fair trial. Percy Femur is a character who appears only in the episodes "Doug Saves Roger", "Doug's Big Feat", and "Doug's Hoop Nightmare".He is the maternal nephew of Mr. I don't think a signature, in quotes, is a required. On a prearranged signal, Percy gave the gun to Thompson, who knocked Crandall, down and stated that he thought he had broken Crandall's neck. Douglas Percy. Also known as Jerry Gthompson. at 367, 417 N.E.2d at 906. Jerry K. Thompson was convicted of two counts of murder,See footnote 1 two counts of robbery,See footnote 2 and one count of carrying a handgun without a license.See footnote 3 The trial court sentenced Thompson to death for the murders and imposed a term of years for the other convictions. Jerry Thompson is on Facebook. Because the risk that the jury would draw the "forbidden inference" based on what happened in Henry County is undeniable, the probative value of the extra details of the Crandall murder was substantially outweighed by the danger of unfair prejudice. Percy did not assert his knowledge of that fact or whether Crandall died from the shot. See Part I supra. The allegedly corroborative evidence here was irrelevant. The defense asked jurors to "think about what somebody's got to gain when they testify. 2. Not every aggravator needs to be kept from the jury. 285, 102 L.Ed.2d 265 (1988). II. Cf. They have also lived in Phippsburg, ME and Beverly, MA. The pathologist opined that Crandall died from a gunshot wound to the head. The State then suggested that because the jury in the Crandall murder trial had apparently credited Percy's testimony, the same should be done here: [Percy] was scrutinized in New Castle and in Henry County, by that Jury; and they returned a conviction for the killing of the man from whom this gun was taken. The State again argued that Percy's decision to come forward led to Thompson's conviction for Crandall's murder and the release from jail of two men who had initially pleaded guilty to that crime. it is necessary that the information of prior, crimes be withheld from the jury until the instant case is decided." This discussion of the Crandall murder followed: [W]hen [Percy] came forward to the Police he insisted that he needed to tell them about something that happened in New Castle, Indiana In February of 1991, [Thompson and Percy] went to New Castle, Indiana, to meet a man by the name of Wesley Crandall. If Percy's testimony about Thompson's taking the murder weapon from Crandall was the permissible core evidence showing Thompson's access to the gun, the other details-an execution style shooting, Thompson's conviction for the Crandall murder-were a penumbra of dubious relevance and potentially inflammatory impact. Thompson's contention is meritless. Lived In Spokane WA, Brush Prairie WA, Veradale WA, Battle Ground WA. 2d 265 (1988). Champlain v. State, 681 N.E.2d 696, 702 (Ind. . Indeed, our decisions have cautioned that evidence of prior misconduct offered to bolster a key witness's testimony as to the current charge, although often probative on that point, is also quite prejudicial. Conviction there could have been based on forensic or other evidence wholly independent of Percy's testimony. The State responded that his testimony was admissible under Evidence Rule 801(d)(1)(B) as a prior consistent statement to rebut Thompson's recent charge of improper motive. Lannan, 600 N.E.2d at 1338. Police say Jerry Thompson and seven other prisoners were out of their cells for their recreation time Sunday afternoon at the Michigan City facility. 1974), the defendants were charged with concealing a stolen car and moving it in interstate commerce. By - June 16, 2022. Brewer distinguished between aggravating circumstances that are extraneous to the crime currently charged, such as a prior murder conviction, and an aggravating circumstance whose proof turns on the same evidence presented at the guilt phase. Without explanation, the trial court ruled that the conviction was admissible. That's what identifies him with being associated with that gun. As Brewer held, there was no reversible error in informing the jury of that aggravator before the sentencing phase, even if reading any of the charged aggravators is neither necessary nor a desirable practice in capital cases. Sometime after that 2 retarded men were coerced into admitting that they killed Wesley Crandall, were convicted; they went to prison, and but, for Doug Percy coming forward, they would probably still be there. This [is] the gun that came from there. Jerry shot the drug dealer with a shotgun, execution style. Evans, 563 N.E.2d at 1259. View the profiles of people named Jerry Thompson. Rather, the defense elicited from Percy that he had not been charged with any crime related to those events and that his charge for altering a vehicle identification number was dismissed in exchange for his cooperation in this case. The well established rationale behind Evidence Rule 404(b) is that the jury is precluded from making the forbidden inference that the defendant had a criminal propensity and therefore engaged in the charged conduct. . Although this testimony was admitted only to show that the gun had been in Thompson's possession before the crimes in this case, the State was allowed to elicit significant details of the prior murder and to establish that Thompson was convicted for it. Unnecessary and inflammatory detail may require reversal. His testimony was an essential element in the chain of evidence pointing to Thompson as the killer. The exception's rationale is that the crimes, or means used to commit them, were so similar and unique that it is highly probable that the same person committed all of them. The issue is raised sua sponte to emphasize what Brewer and Evans made clear as to how prospective jurors should be instructed on aggravating circumstances in capital cases. Lockhart v. Nelson, 488 U.S. 33, 109 S. Ct. 285, 102 L. Ed. 8. Thompson v. State, 671 N.E.2d 1165 (Ind.1996). The charging information, witness list, and verdict form from Henry County were admitted into evidence at that point. At oral argument in this Court, the State contended that these details, which were partially corroborated by other witnesses as explained below, were admissible to show Percy's credibility. The trial court began the voir dire, before any questioning had occurred, by reading both the charging information and the death penalty information to all prospective jurors. Before the trial in this case, Thompson was tried and convicted in Henry County of murdering Crandall. Rather, he chose to attack Percy's credibility. . The only similarity here between the Crandall murder and the Indianapolis killings was the use of firearms to kill the victims (and different guns were used in each crime). The defense asked jurors to think about what somebody's got to gain when they testify. He offers broad experience in skills like . . The State lauded Percy in its closing argument as the man who helped solve both the Indianapolis killings at issue here and Crandall's murder a month earlier: [I]n the process of telling the Police Department and other Law Enforcement authorities those things that he knew, [Percy] solved 3 murders. The proffered conviction here does not approach the probative value required to outweigh that prejudice under Rule 403. See, e.g., United States v. Currier, 821 F.2d 52 (1st Cir. The defense closed by cautioning the jury that "the State wants to try and 'bootstrap' the events of February 14th, 1991, into scaring you into convicting Jerry Thompson for the events of March 14th." . THOMPSON SUFFERED SEVERAL FATAL STAB WOUNDS. This [is] the gun that came from there. ), APPEAL FROM THE MARION SUPERIOR COURT The Honorable John R. Barney Jr., Judge Cause NO. See also Swanson v. State, 666 N.E.2d 397 (Ind.1996) (although common-law doctrine of res gestae did not survive enactment of Indiana Rules of Evidence, facts that are part of the story of the crime are admissible if relevant within the meaning of Evidence Rule 401). The convictions must be reversed because a "fair trial is required for every defendant, regardless of his apparent guilt or the magnitude of the crimes he may have committed." See, e.g., Taylor v. State, 659 N.E.2d 535, 542-43 (Ind. See, e.g., Watson v. State, 540 N.E.2d 598 (Ind.1989) (testimony concerning prior robbery was admissible in murder trial because the defendant had stolen the same type of pistol used to kill the victim); United States v. Day, 591 F.2d 861 (D.C.Cir.1978) (evidence of prior robbery was properly allowed where the murder weapon was taken during the robbery and was later found in the house where the defendant was arrested).9 The issue, however, is whether that discretion was abused in the quantity and quality of the evidence admitted to corroborate Percy's testimony on this collateral point. . The email address cannot be subscribed. The charging information, witness list, and verdict form from Henry County were admitted into evidence at that point. Cf. Leonard v. United States, 378 U.S. 544, 84 S.Ct. If there is one lesson to take from this case, it is that Thompson's questioning Percy's credibility did not open a door through which all evidence related to the Crandall murder could automatically pass. Bill Percy Bill Percy Partner Thompson Dorfman Sweatman LLP 201 Portage Avenue Suite 2200 Winnipeg, MB R3B 3L3 PH: 204.934.2455 FX: 204.934.. collaborativepracticemanitoba.ca Lawyers - Our People | TDS Law The State emphasized the details of Crandall's killing from the beginning. These criteria mirror Evidence Rules 401, 402, 403, and 404(b). Moreover, the State emphasized the prior misconduct in its opening statement, during the case in chief, and again in its closing argument. United States v. Burke, 948 F.2d 23 (1st Cir. In rebuttal, the State replied that the events surrounding the Crandall murder were relevant: The reason it's relevant is because it proves [Thompson's] identity. Join Facebook to connect with Jerry Thompson and others you may know. . Indeed, the prohibition on use of prior misconduct to prove a criminal charge is a basic tenet of criminal evidence law older than the republic itself. Lannan, 600 N.E.2d at 1338. Rather than telling the jury to disregard the disputed evidence completely because it was not admissible for any purpose, the limiting instruction here instructed the jury to limit its consideration of prior acts to identity. Percy's credibility was critical to the State's case. Cf. It also placed Percy himself at each of these crime scenes. United States v. Smith, 80 F.3d 1188, 1193 (7th Cir.1996) (internal quotation marks omitted). You can explore additional available newsletters here. The fact of a shotgun wound could perhaps have been established by a police officer or otherwise without getting into whether it was fatal. 1983, trial court committed reversible error by informing jury sua sponte during voir dire of inmate's prior convictions for rape and sexual assault). In sum, the parties and the court concluded before trial that Thompson's access to the murder weapon was relevant to proving that he was the killer. In June 1991, defendant Jerry Thompson and Douglas Percy were driving through Illinois and were stopped for a traffic violation. Because we conclude that the extensive evidence of the prior crime was inadmissible under Indiana Evidence Rules 402, 403, and 404(b), and denied Thompson a fair trial, we reverse the convictions and remand for a new trial. Far more importantly what somebody has to lose. Thompson retrieved a pillow from another room, placed it over Crandall's head, and fired. Thus it was error to inform jurors of Thompson's conviction of Crandall's murder prior to the penalty phase.
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