State v. Pabon
2011 ME 100
| Me. | 2011Background
- Pabon stabbed Fusco in her apartment during the early hours of January 8, 2007 after a dispute, causing multiple stab wounds.
- Pabon was charged with elevated aggravated assault and attempted murder in Cumberland County.
- The trial court instructed self-defense without the dwelling-place exception to retreat in §108(2)(C)(3)(a).
- Pabon claimed intoxication and self-defense; expert testimony described affective violence as his defense theory.
- Fusco testified to being attacked; the defense argued timing and sequence mattered; Pabon admitted stabbing but claimed self-defense.
- The jury convicted Pabon on both counts; he was sentenced to concurrent 26-year terms with 20 years suspended.
Issues
| Issue | Plaintiff's Argument | Defendant's Argument | Held |
|---|---|---|---|
| Was the dwelling-place retreat exception error obvious? | Pabon: omission was obvious error denying self-defense. | State: error but not manifest prejudice; harmless. | Not obvious error; instruction omission did not prejudice the outcome. |
| What standard governs obvious-error review in unpreserved claims? | Pabon: adopt McKeough reasonable-possibility standard. | State: apply Burdick four-part test with reasonable-probability standard for impact on outcome. | Adopt Burdick four-part test; apply reasonable probability standard for impact on trial outcome. |
Key Cases Cited
- State v. Daley, 440 A.2d 1053 (Me. 1982) (establishes obvious-error framework considerations)
- State v. McKeough, 300 A.2d 755 (Me. 1973) (historical approach to obvious error and prejudice)
- United States v. Olano, 507 U.S. 725 (U.S. Supreme Court, 1993) (plain-error review framework for unpreserved errors)
- State v. Laverty, 495 A.2d 831 (Me. 1985) (dwelling-place exception applies to co-dwellers and retreat context)
- State v. Bard, 2002 ME 49 (Me.) (self-defense instructions and fair-trial requirements when defenses are raised)
- State v. Sprague, 617 A.2d 564 (Me. 1992) (reaffirmed that incorrect self-defense instructions can require remand)
- State v. Bahre, 456 A.2d 860 (Me. 1983) (constitutional dimension of accurate self-defense instructions)
- Neder v. United States, 527 U.S. 1 (U.S. Supreme Court, 1999) (standard for evidentiary impact in withheld elements)
- Caraballo-Rodriguez, 480 F.3d 62 (1st Cir. 2007) (federal standard for evaluating effects of unpreserved errors)
- Hebshie, 549 F.3d 30 (1st Cir. 2008) (adopts reasonable-probability approach to error impact)
- Brandao, 539 F.3d 44 (1st Cir. 2008) (adopts reasonable-probability standard in plain-error-like review)