State of West Virginia v. Mandy Lee O'Hara, 16-0052

Background

Mandy Lee O’Hara was tried and convicted of first-degree murder, related conspiracies, concealment of a body, and burglary for stabbing and disposing of her estranged husband in September 2013; jury recommended no mercy and circuit court sentenced life without parole plus consecutive terms for other convictions.
Evidence at trial: petitioner and co-defendant entered the victim’s home, a struggle occurred, petitioner stabbed the victim in the neck, they wrapped the body in a tarp, dragged it behind a car, attempted to clean the scene, and deposited the body in the North River.
A citizen (Terry Swope) encountered O’Hara and the co-defendant near the body early morning, observed them leave and return multiple times, called 911, and later led police to evidence and the body.
Letters and handwritten notes were found at the scene and jail; four handwritten letters purportedly from petitioner (later recovered through witnesses) contained admissions and instructions to the co-defendant.
At trial petitioner challenged: (1) a jury flight instruction, (2) an investigating officer’s testimony alluding to graphic sexual letters, (3) admission of certain photographs, and (4) authentication/admission of handwritten letters attributed to petitioner.

Issues

Issue	Plaintiff's Argument (State)	Defendant's Argument (O'Hara)	Held
Whether flight instruction was proper	Evidence Swope saw O’Hara leave the scene, return, then leave again supports an instruction that flight indicates guilty knowledge	O’Hara: leaving then returning undermines “flight”; insufficient evidence of fleeing to avoid capture	Court: Instruction proper; initial departure showed guilty consciousness and returning to conceal body did not negate flight instruction
Whether mistrial required for officer’s testimony about letters’ sexual content	Testimony did not disclose graphic content; letters only corroborate a romantic relationship and were admissible under court’s prior ruling	O’Hara: officer’s reference to "graphic sexual stuff" violated pretrial exclusion and was unduly prejudicial, warranting mistrial	Court: No mistrial; testimony did not reveal graphic content and other evidence already showed affair, so prejudice was not manifest
Admissibility of photographs (river/body and interior of trailer)	Photos corroborated witness testimony about condition/location of body and the residence’s layout relevant to overheard statements	O’Hara: photos were inflammatory, cumulative, and prejudicial (home photos showed a messy home)	Court: Photographs relevant and probative; probative value outweighed prejudice; admission was within trial court’s discretion
Authentication/admission of jail letters purportedly written by O’Hara	Witness (Mr. Shoemaker) knew O’Hara’s handwriting and identified signature, dates, origin; letters were probative and admissible	O’Hara: witness’s familiarity limited; insufficient authentication under Rule 901	Court: Authentication prima facie sufficient; jury could weigh credibility; letters admissible

Key Cases Cited

State v. Payne, 167 W. Va. 252 (establishes standards for admissibility of flight evidence and need for in camera hearing)
State v. Derr, 192 W. Va. 165 (instructs on reviewing sufficiency for jury instructions in criminal cases)
State v. Hall, 171 W. Va. 212 (jury instruction admissibility standard)
State v. Rowe, 163 W. Va. 593 (photograph admissibility—gruesome photos require essential evidentiary value)
State v. Jenkins, 195 W. Va. 620 (Rule 901 authenticity: prima facie showing for handwriting authentication)
State v. Huffman, 141 W. Va. 55 (letters admissible when contents indicate they could only have passed between the purported writer and recipient)
State v. Lowery, 222 W. Va. 284 (standard for mistrial and manifest necessity to discharge jury)
State v. Berry, 227 W. Va. 221 (photograph admissibility framework and Rule 401/403 balancing)