Opinion by
Defendant, Michael P. O'Shaughnessy, appeals the judgment of conviction and consecutive 'sentences entered on jury verdicts finding him guilty of attempted first degree murder with a deadly weapon, attempted aggravated robbery, second degree assault, false imprisonment, reckless endangerment, and a violent crime sentence enhancer. We affirm the judgment, vacate the sentence in part, and remand the case for resentencing.
I. Background
The victim testified that defendant approached her with a hunting knife as she finished loading groceries into her van and told her to get inside. She sat down in the driver's seat, but turned so that she could kick him as he began stabbing her with the knife. Defendant told the victim she was going to die, and stabbed her four times in the throat, once in the leg, and once on her hand. He then demanded money. She said she did not have any money and turned to look for her purse; when she turned back, defendant was gone. The entire incident took place in under one minute.
Defendant contends that the trial court erred in denying his Batson objection when the prosecution struck three Hispanic members of the venire; that the trial court should have instructed the jury on the affirmative defense of abandonment with regard to the crimes of attempted murder and attempted aggravated robbery; that his convictions of attempted first degree murder and second degree assault must merge under principles of double jeopardy; and that the trial court erred in imposing consecutive sentences. We agree only with regard to sentencing.
IL Analysis
A. Batson Objection
We reject defendant's contention that the trial court erred in denying his Batson objection to the prosecution's use of peremptory strikes against three Hispanic members of the venire.
Under Batson v. Kentucky,
Defendant challenges the trial court's application of step three only. Typically, the decisive question at this step is "whether counsel's race-neutral explanation for a peremptory challenge should be believed." Hernandez v. New York,
the best evidence often will be the demean- or of the attorney who exercises the challenge. As with the state of mind of a juror, evaluation of the prosecutor's state of mind based on demeanor and credibility lies "peculiarly within a trial judge's province."
Id. at 365,
1. Lack of Specific Findings Under Step Three
As an initial matter, we reject defendant's argument that the trial court failed to make any findings beyond step two of the Batson inquiry. After the prosecutor offered his reasons for the strikes, the trial court asked defense counsel whether he cared to offer rebuttal. Following defense counsel's remarks, the court stated:
[The Court at this point in time is satisfied that the prosecution has articulated with respect to [Prospective Juror S] there was a race-neutral reason for her execu-sal.... Whether it's right or wrong, I think it's a race-neutral reason. And so the Court is going to find it to be a valid reason for her excusal.
Likewise, the Court's satisfied that the prosecution articulated reasons for [Prospective Juror MJ and [Prospective Juror TI"s] exceusal.... Here again, impressions are subjective but it's a race-neutral reason. So I note the objection. I overrule it.
Defendant contends that the trial court's findings merely acknowledge that the prosecution met its burden at step two and that the trial court was required to rule explicitly on whether the race-neutral reasons given for the strikes were believable. We disagree. In Robinson, the trial court ruled on a Batson objection using similar language: "The Court finds that ... the D.A. has stated an articulable non-racial [basis] for his peremptory, which is the standard. So the motion for, I guess, reinstating Ms. [V.] into the jury is denied."
2. Specific Objections
a. Prospective Juror T
The prosecutor explained his peremptory strike of Prospective Juror T as follows:
My ... race-neutral basis for excusing [Prospective Juror TJ is throughout my voir dire she was rolling her eyes, indicating that she wasn't too happy to be here which was confirmed when I did excuse her, her actions.
In considering this statement, the trial judge noted that although he could not see Prospective Juror T during voir dire, impressions from body language are subjective.
As the Supreme Court recently held, Batson does not require the rejection of a demeanor-based explanation for a peremptory challenge merely because the trial judge did not personally observe the relevant aspect of the prospective juror's demeanor. Thaler v. Haynes, — U.S. —, —,
In Snyder, the prosecutor gave two ostensibly race-neutral reasons for a peremptory strike, one based on demeanor and the other not.
Here, in contrast, the only reason the prosecutor gave for striking Prospective Juror T was based on her demeanor. Thus, there is no question that the trial court's acceptance of the prosecutor's explanation is entitled to deference on review. It is immaterial, then, that the trial judge did not see Prospective Juror T roll her eyes, and nothing in the record contradicts the prosecutor's statements about her demeanor. We therefore conclude that it was not clear error for the trial court to accept the prosecutor's race-neutral explanation for the peremptory strike of Prospective Juror T.
b. Prospective Juror S
The prosecutor stated that he struck Prospective Juror S because
she works for Arapahoe House. She does a lot of counseling. She's sympathetic to people. I'm assuming she may be sympathetic to people that are on drugs and there may be testimony elicited in this case that the defendant may have been under the influence of drugs which might mean she might not hold him responsible for his behavior.
Defense counsel argued that several white jurors not challenged by the prosecution were "of the same background," and pointed to one juror who was a therapist with a master's degree in social work, one who headed an early childhood education program, one who was a speech language pathologist, and another who was a speech therapist. Defense counsel asserted that these jurors were like Prospective Juror S because they "may have empathetic situations."
On appeal, defendant contends that the prosecution's failure to strike jurors who were similarly situated to Prospective Juror S and its failure to question her specifically about whether her background would make her unduly sympathetic to a defendant who was on drugs requires us to conclude that the reason given for her excusal was pretextual. We disagree.
The Supreme Court has said:
If a prosecutor's proffered reason for striking a [minority] panelist applies just as well to an otherwise-similar [nonminority] who is permitted to serve, that is evidence tending to prove purposeful discrimination to be considered at Batson's third step.
Miller-El v. Dretke,
Here, the similarities between Prospective Juror S and the unchallenged nonminority jurors are more tenuous. Defense counsel stated that the nonminority jurors "may have empathetic situations," but did not allege that any of them might be "sympathetic to people who are on drugs." The record does not indicate that any of the nonminority jurors worked with people who use drugs, and at least one of them worked with young children. We therefore conclude that the comparison of Prospective Juror S to unchallenged white jurors does not indicate pretext or a discriminatory intent by the prosecutor.
Nor are we persuaded that the prosecution's failure to question Prospective Juror S about whether she would be inclined to
The failure by a prosecutor to inquire into an area of claimed concern before exercising a peremptory strike on that basis can be evidence of pretext. See Miller-El,
In Collins, the prosecutor gave several reasons for striking a black juror from the venire, including that (1) she "didn't respond to anything"; (2) despite having reported being a victim of domestic violence on her jury questionnaire, she failed to respond when he "asked if anybody had any relatives or friends that had been accused of a crime"; and (8) she was a nurse and would therefore be sympathetic to defendants.
Here, each member of the venire was asked to give a brief self-introduction, including a description of his or her employment and educational background. Prospective Juror S stated that she was employed at Arapahoe House (an aleohol and drug rehabilitation center) and that she was taking classes for certification in addiction counseling. The prosecutor later asked if she did therapy work as part of her certification process, and she answered that she worked as a phone counselor. The prosecutor continued:
[PROSECUTOR]: A phone counselor. Someone might call you-Arapahoe House is basically-it's an alcohol rehabilitation, drug rehabilitation?
[PROSPECTIVE JUROR S]: (Nods.)
[PROSECUTOR]: So you do counseling over the phone; is that correct?
[PROSPECTIVE JUROR S]; That's correct.
Although he did not specifically ask Prospective Juror S whether her experience as a phone counselor at a drug rehabilitation center would influence her ability to be impartial toward a defendant who was on drugs, the prosecutor's questions suggest that he was considering that as a possible source of bias. Thus, unlike in Miller-El and Collins, there was at least some questioning by the prosecutor regarding the claimed concern. In each of those cases, moreover, the prosecutor's failure to inquire was one of many factors evidencing pretext. Here, considering the record of voir dire as a whole, we do not discern clear error in the trial court's denial of defendant's Batson objection as to Prospective Juror S.
c. Prospective Juror M
As an initial matter, we reject the People's contention that defendant waived the right to appeal the trial court's ruling on his Batson objection regarding Prospective Juror M by failing to offer a rebuttal argument after the prosecution proffered its race-neutral reason for the strike.
In Robinson, a division of this court held that the district court should have provided the defendant's counsel with an opportunity to rebut the prosecutor's reasons before ruling, but found that the defendant was not prejudiced because his counsel did not object to the ruling or request an opportunity for rebuttal.
Under Batson, after the prosecution presents facially race-neutral reasons for exercising a peremptory strike, "(tlhe trial court then will have the duty to determine if the defendant has established purposeful discrimination."
Fundamentally, a party must present the trial court "with an adequate opportunity to make findings of fact and conclusions of law on any issue before we will review it." People v. Melendez,
Nevertheless, defendant's contention that the trial court committed clear error in denying his Batson challenge with respect to Prospective Juror M fails. During voir dire, Prospective Juror M stated that he had "a real problem judging anyone" and that he was not sure if he could find someone guilty or not guilty. He subsequently reiterated that he found it difficult to judge anyone. Prospective Juror M also displayed confusion when the prosecutor asked whether he could find defendant not guilty if the prosecutor failed to present any evidence at all, first responding that he did not think so, then that he could. The prosecutor cited these responses as the basis for his peremptory strike.
Defendant argues on appeal that, while Prospective Juror M said he had a hard time judging people, he did not say affirmatively that he could not do so. He further contends that Prospective Juror M's initial response that he could find defendant guilty if presented with no evidence, if it was not merely a misunderstanding, inured to the benefit of the prosecution. Therefore, defendant argues, Prospective Juror M's responses indicated no bias against the prosecution and were not sufficient to support the trial court's ruling.
However, Batson does not require a showing by the prosecutor of actual bias on the part of a prospective juror. See People v. Cerrone,
While we conclude the trial court did not err in denying defendant's Batson objections, we emphasize the importance of the court expressly allowing a defendant's counsel an opportunity to rebut a prosecutor's stated reason for a peremptory challenge and of the court making express findings at step three of the analysis that are clearly distinct from its findings at step two. See People v. Montez, — P.3d —, —,
B. Abandonment Instruction
We also reject defendant's contention that he was entitled to have the jury instructed on the affirmative defense of abandonment as to the charges of attempted murder and attempted robbery.
A defendant may assert an affirmative defense to a charge under the criminal attempt statute based on abandonment of his or her effort to commit the crime under circumstances manifesting the complete and voluntary renunciation of criminal intent. § 18-2-101(8), C.R.S.2009. This defense is derived from the Model Penal Code, section 5.01(4). People v. Gandiaga,
[Elven though, in a strict analytical sense, the crime of attempt is complete onee the actor intentionally takes a substantial step towards the commission of the crime, nevertheless, the defense of abandonment is present if he thereafter voluntarily renun-clates his criminal intent.
People v. Johnson,
The abandonment defense may therefore apply at various stages, both early and late, in the commission of an attempted crime. Gandiaga,
Clearly it is too late to claim abandonment of attempted murder when the defendant has injured the victim. See W. LaFave & A. Seott, Substantive Criminal Law § 11.5(b), at 249 (2d ed.2003) ("it would hardly do to excuse the defendant from attempted murder after he had wounded the intended victim"); R. Perkins & R. Boyce, Criminal Law 656 (8d ed. 1982) ("Attempted murder cannot be purged after the victim has been wounded, no matter what may cause the plan to be abandoned."); see also Ramirez v. State,
Here, the undisputed evidence showed that defendant ended his attack on the victim only after stabbing her in the throat, leg, and hand. Defendant therefore was not entitled to have the jury instructed on the defense of abandonment with respect to the attempted murder charge.
Neither do the facts admit of an abandonment defense to the charge of attempted aggravated robbery. Under sections 18-4-301 and 18-4-302(1)(b), C.R.$.2009, a person is guilty of aggravated robbery if during the act of taking anything of value from the person or presence of another he or she knowingly wounds the victim with a deadly weapon or puts the victim in reasonable fear
C. Merger
Defendant argues that his convie-tions for attempted first degree murder and second degree assault should merge because they were both based on his use of a deadly weapon. We disagree.
The Double Jeopardy Clauses of both the United States and Colorado Constitutions generally prohibit multiple punishments for greater and lesser included offenses. U.S. Const. amend. V; Colo. Const., art. II, § 18; People v. Leske,
"We review de novo whether merger applies to criminal offenses because it is an issue of statutory interpretation." Torres, 224 P.Bd at 275. One offense is included in another if the statutory elements of the greater offense necessarily establish all of the elements of the lesser offense. Leske,
Defendant argues that the following two offenses should merge:
e Attempted first degree murder after deliberation, the elements of which are that the defendant:
® after deliberation and with the intent to cause the death of a person other than himself, § 18-3-102(1)(a),
e engaged in conduct constituting a substantial step toward causing the death of that person, § 18-2-101.
eSecond degree assault with a deadly weapon under section 18-3-2083(1)(b), the elements of which are that the defendant:
e with intent to cause bodily injury to another person
e caused such injury
e by means of a deadly weapon.
We analyze questions of merger by comparing the statutory elements of the offenses, not whether they were proved by the same evidence at trial. Leske,
Here, the crime of attempted first degree murder requires proof that the accused engaged in conduct constituting a substantial step toward causing the death of another person. This is not an element of second degree assault under section 18-8-203(1)(b). Conversely, the crime of second degree assault with a deadly weapon requires, among other things, proof that the accused caused bodily injury to another person. This is not an element of attempted first degree murder under sections 18-2-101 and 18-3-102(1)(a). Because each of these offenses requires proof of at least one element not contained in the other, the offenses do not merge.
Defendant argues that his conviction of a violent crime sentence enhancer under seetion 18-1.3-406(2)(a)(I)(A), which increases the minimum sentence for certain crimes when the defendant uses a deadly weapon, requires a different result because the use of a deadly weapon becomes an element of the underlying offense, in this case the attempted murder charge. Even if that were so, the two offenses would not merge because of the bodily injury element of the second degree assault offense, as just discussed. Moreover, divisions of this court have repeatedly rejected defendant's argument, and we agree with those decisions. See People v. Baker,
We agree with defendant and the People that the trial court erred in imposing consecutive sentences on his convictions for attempted first degree murder, second degree assault, and attempted aggravated robbery.
A trial court's decision to impose consecutive sentences is reviewed for abuse of discretion. People v. Bass,
Here, the trial court imposed consecutive sentences for the offenses of attempted murder, attempted aggravated robbery, and see-ond degree assault. However, all three offenses were based on identical evidence and occurred in a single criminal episode lasting less than sixty seconds. We therefore conclude that the trial court erred in imposing consecutive sentences.
Accordingly, we remand the case to the trial court for resentencing of defendant to concurrent sentences on the convictions of attempted murder, attempted aggravated robbery, and second degree assault.
IIL Conclusion
The judgment is affirmed, the sentence is vacated insofar as the terms are consecutive, and the case is remanded for resentencing in accordance with the views expressed in this opinion.
