State v. Waller
299 Kan. 707
| Kan. | 2014Background
- Victim Joshua Haines was beaten, strangled, and left in his car after being attacked in an apartment; autopsy showed multiple blunt-impact injuries and strangulation.
- Anthony Waller was charged with felony murder (based on kidnapping or robbery), aggravated kidnapping, and aggravated robbery; jury convicted him of felony murder and aggravated kidnapping, acquitted on aggravated robbery.
- Evidence included testimony from neighbor Vasie “Joe” Coons and others, blood and DNA linking the scene and victim, Waller’s cell-phone records placing calls that used *67, and physical items (blood-stained board, duct tape, meth) found in the apartment.
- At trial a witness (Grissom) loudly outburst on the stand; the court cleared the jury, admonished the jury to disregard the outburst, and denied a mistrial request.
- Waller challenged (on appeal) jury instructions (lesser-included offenses and self-defense), trial court’s denial of mistrial, cumulative error, use of a 1999 juvenile adjudication in sentencing, and alleged double jeopardy for convicting/sentencing on both felony murder and the underlying kidnapping.
Issues
| Issue | Plaintiff's Argument (Waller) | Defendant's Argument (State) | Held |
|---|---|---|---|
| Failure to instruct on lesser-included offenses of felony murder | Waller: trial court should have instructed on various lesser degrees (second-degree, manslaughter, battery) | State: 2013 statutory amendment eliminating lesser degrees for felony murder applies retroactively; no instruction required | Court: No error —lesser-degree instructions for felony murder legally inappropriate after K.S.A. 2013 Supp. 21-5402 (applied retroactively and upheld against Ex Post Facto challenge) |
| Failure to instruct on lesser offenses for aggravated kidnapping (kidnapping, criminal restraint) | Waller: jury should have been instructed on kidnapping/criminal restraint as lesser offenses | State: evidence established aggravated kidnapping (substantial bodily injury while confined) so error, if any, was harmless | Court: Even if error, harmless beyond reasonable possibility given overwhelming evidence of aggravated kidnapping |
| Failure to give self-defense instruction | Waller: his testimony supported self-defense | State: defendant’s testimony did not establish a valid self-defense claim to charged crimes | Court: No error —self-defense not factually appropriate because testimony did not admit to the charged conduct and then justify it as self-defense |
| Denial of mistrial after witness outburst | Waller: Grissom’s loud statements (“man up”) prejudiced jury and warranted mistrial | State: court promptly cleared jury, obtained bailiff report, admonished jurors; curative instruction adequate | Court: No abuse of discretion —curative measures sufficient and record shows jurors complied; no prejudice requiring mistrial |
| Use of prior juvenile adjudication and double jeopardy claim | Waller: prior juvenile adjudication not usable; felony murder + kidnapping punishments multiplicitous | State: prior adjudication final pre-In re L.M.; multiplicity rejected by precedent allowing cumulative punishment | Court: Juvenile adjudication properly used (Fischer); convictions/sentences not multiplicitous under controlling precedent |
Key Cases Cited
- State v. Berry, 292 Kan. 493 (Kan. 2011) (applied lesser-included-offense statute to felony-murder cases)
- State v. Wells, 297 Kan. 741 (Kan. 2013) (interpreting 2012 statutory amendment and prospectivity of eliminating lesser degrees for felony murder)
- State v. Todd, 299 Kan. 263 (Kan. 2014) (held 2013 amendment does not violate Ex Post Facto Clause)
- State v. Williams, 295 Kan. 506 (Kan. 2012) (preservation and stair-step review for unpreserved jury-instruction claims)
- State v. Herbel, 296 Kan. 1101 (Kan. 2013) (standards for lesser-included-offense analysis)
- State v. Ward, 292 Kan. 541 (Kan. 2011) (standards for mistrial and harmless-error analysis)
- State v. Fischer, 288 Kan. 470 (Kan. 2009) (use of final juvenile adjudications in criminal-history scoring upheld)
- State v. Jefferson, 297 Kan. 1151 (Kan. 2013) (convictions for felony murder and underlying felonies are not necessarily multiplicitous)
- State v. Pham, 281 Kan. 1227 (Kan. 2006) (legislative intent allows cumulative punishment for felony murder and underlying inherently dangerous felonies)