Opinion
24A-CR-64
07-10-2024
Demarice Jason Williams, Appellant-Defendant v. State of Indiana, Appellee-Plaintiff
ATTORNEY FOR APPELLANT MARIELENA DUERRING SOUTH BEND, INDIANA ATTORNEYS FOR APPELLEE THEODORE E. ROKITA ATTORNEY GENERAL OF INDIAN ROBERT M. YOKE DEPUTY ATTORNEY GENERAL INDIANAPOLIS, INDIANA
Pursuant to Ind. Appellate Rule 65(D), this Memorandum Decision is not binding precedent for any court and may be cited only for persuasive value or to establish res judicata, collateral estoppel, or law of the case.
Appeal from the St. Joseph Superior Court The Honorable Jeffrey L. Sanford, Judge Trial Court Cause No. 71D03-2107-MR-9
ATTORNEY FOR APPELLANT MARIELENA DUERRING SOUTH BEND, INDIANA
ATTORNEYS FOR APPELLEE THEODORE E. ROKITA ATTORNEY GENERAL OF INDIAN ROBERT M. YOKE DEPUTY ATTORNEY GENERAL INDIANAPOLIS, INDIANA
MEMORANDUM DECISION
Brown, Judge
[¶1] Demarice Jason Williams appeals his sentence for murder and argues the sentence is inappropriate. We affirm.
Facts and Procedural History
[¶2] On July 23, 2021, Ma'Cirra Williams ("Ma'Cirra") was at work and learned that the father of her children, Williams, had withdrawn money from her bank account. At around 5:30 or 5:45, one of Ma'Cirra's co-workers gave Ma'Cirra a ride to her apartment where she lived with Williams and their three children who were two, four, and five years old. On the way home, Ma'Cirra "seemed really nervous, not really like herself" and called and spoke with her sister Sa-Tefi on the phone. Transcript Volume II at 120.
[¶3] A neighbor who lived in an apartment directly below Williams and Ma'Cirra's apartment "heard fighting back and forth" coming from their apartment. Id. at 137. The neighbor first noticed the fighting in the living room and then noticed the fighting moved to a bedroom. The neighbor "heard like boom, boom, boom" and "could tell it was a fight." Id. at 142. After the fighting moved to the bedroom, the neighbor "heard like a bang." Id. at 139. The neighbor "then [] started hearing [Williams] scream," "[h]e yelled," "[h]e said 'Babe, babe, babe,'" and "[t]hen he said he fucked up, and then he said he was going to jail." Id.
[¶4] Sa-Tefi decided to check on Ma'Cirra and arrived at Ma'Cirra's apartment thirteen minutes after she spoke with her on the phone. As Sa-Tefi approached Ma'Cirra's apartment door, she heard Williams yelling inside. Sa-Tefi banged on the door, and one of the children opened it. Sa-Tefi went directly to the bedroom where she saw her sister "basically lifeless on the bed with a bullet wound to her neck." Id. at 161. Williams was crying, yelling, and placing pressure on Ma'Cirra's neck. The children "were right there staring" until Sa-Tefi had them taken outside. Id. Sa-Tefi saw the gun on the floor in front of a dresser. Williams "was saying that he was sorry." Id. at 163. Sa-Tefi saw that "911 was already on the phone." Id. at 165. Sa-Tefi and Williams tried to stop the bleeding. Ma'Cirra died as a result of the gunshot wound. The police found four cartridges and $690 on the bedside table, a handgun magazine on the bed, and two cartridge casings. Williams told police that he and Ma'Cirra had an argument on Facebook, they put the argument aside, were having fun, laughing, giggling, and playing, Ma'Cirra asked him to move the gun off the bed, he took the gun, tripped, and tried to grab the gun, and the gun discharged.
[¶5] In July 2021, the State charged Williams with murder and filed a firearm enhancement information alleging that he used a firearm in the commission of the crime. In July 2022, the court issued an order stating that, after review of the reports of the doctors it appointed to examine Williams, he would be committed to the Indiana Division of Mental Health in an appropriate psychiatric institution until he attained the ability to understand the proceedings and assist in the preparation of his defense. On December 21, 2022, the court issued an order stating that it had been notified by the Logansport State Psychiatric Hospital that Williams had attained the ability to understand the proceedings and assist in the preparation of his defense and ordered that he be returned to the St. Joseph County Jail.
[¶6] In October 2023, the court held a jury trial. The State presented Ma'Cirra's bank records showing that $740 was withdrawn the morning of the shooting and Facebook records showing messages between Williams and Ma'Cirra on the day of the shooting arguing about finances. When asked "[d]o you remember if [Williams] told you that day that he had tripped and the gun went off," Sa-Tefi testified "[n]o, he did not say that." Id. at 165. The State presented testimony regarding the gun's safety mechanisms and that "you would have to have full force on the center of the trigger depressing that trigger safety in order for the trigger to go fully back and discharge the firearm." Transcript Volume III at 29. Williams's counsel argued the shooting was an accident. The jury found Williams guilty of murder as charged and that he used a firearm in the commission of the crime.
[¶7] On December 12, 2023, the court held a sentencing hearing. Williams's counsel argued "there's one juvenile adjudication from 2012," "[t]here's no adult cases," "[t]he Court was able to hear the testimony, was able to hear Mr. Williams' statement, was able to see Mr. Williams' reaction to this tragedy," and "I believe the Court doesn't have to impose an aggravation or an enhancement on the firearms finding." Id. at 195. Williams stated, "I took my time being locked up to utilize and learn from my mistakes," "I do want to tell the family that I am deeply sorry for y'all loss," "I do believe in my heart that what happened was an accident," and "I often questioned how true the story is that's being told because I never got to tell my side of the story." Id. at 197-198. The probation officer submitting the presentence investigation report ("PSI") recommended that Williams be sentenced to sixty years for murder and the sentence be enhanced by twenty years based upon his use of a firearm. The court stated "[y]ou have no significant criminal history at all to speak of," "I do note that the juvenile authorities gave you a lot of help or at least attempted to give you a lot of help but then we're dealing with somebody who is a juvenile, and they don't always make the best decisions," "I do think that the experience of your kids seeing that I hope that they at some point can come to grips with that," and "[s]o I think the aggravators and mitigators balance out." Id. at 199. The court sentenced Williams to fifty-five years for murder and enhanced the sentence by ten years based on his use of a firearm to commit the crime.
Discussion
[¶8] Williams asserts "[t]he imposition of what amounts to the maximum sentence of 65 years was inappropriate" based on the nature of the offense and his character. Appellant's Brief at 8. He argues that "this crime, while tragic as all homicides are, is far from the 'worst of the worst.'" Id. at 10. He argues that he claimed the shooting was an accident, he called 911 immediately after realizing Ma'Cirra had been shot, and he rendered first aid by putting pressure on the wound. He argues that his criminal history consisted of one misdemeanor conviction, he was mentally and physically abused as a child, he was placed in foster care from age seven to seventeen, and his father was sentenced to life in prison for murder when he was six months old. Williams also asserts that he "suffers from poor mental health, which is reflected in the history of this case wherein he was initially found to be incompetent to stand trial," and "[d]uring his interview for the presentence investigation report, he was asking the probation officer if, 'a charge in the legal system is the same as being accused' and if 'an accident' and murder are the same thing." Appellant's Brief at 11-12. He requests that this Court reduce his sentence to no more than fifty-five years.
[¶9] Ind. Appellate Rule 7(B) provides that we "may revise a sentence authorized by statute if, after due consideration of the trial court's decision, [we find] that the sentence is inappropriate in light of the nature of the offense and the character of the offender." Under this rule, the burden is on the defendant to persuade the appellate court that his sentence is inappropriate. Childress v. State, 848 N.E.2d 1073, 1080 (Ind. 2006). Whether a sentence is inappropriate "turns on our sense of the culpability of the defendant, the severity of the crime, the damage done to others, and myriad other factors that come to light in a given case." Cardwellv. State, 895 N.E.2d 1219, 1224 (Ind. 2008). The Indiana Supreme Court has noted that "the maximum possible sentences are generally most appropriate for the worst offenders." Buchanan v. State, 767 N.E.2d 967, 973 (Ind. 2002).
[¶10] Ind. Code § 35-50-2-3 provides that a person who commits murder shall be imprisoned for a fixed term of between forty-five and sixty-five years with the advisory sentence being fifty-five years. Ind. Code § 35-50-2-11 provided at the time of the offense that, if the jury finds that the State has proved beyond a reasonable doubt that the person knowingly or intentionally used a firearm in the commission of murder, the court may sentence the person to an additional fixed term of imprisonment of between five and twenty years. The trial court sentenced Williams to the advisory sentence of fifty-five years for murder and enhanced the sentence by ten years for his use of a firearm in the commission of the crime, and thus he did not receive the maximum total sentence.
Subsequently amended by Pub. Law No. 4-2022, § 1 (eff. July 1, 2022); and Pub. Law No. 122-2023, § 19 (eff. July 1, 2023).
[¶11] Our review of the nature of the offense reveals that, on July 23, 2021, Williams withdrew money from Ma'Cirra's bank account and the couple argued extensively about finances. Among other statements, Williams wrote: "I can't stand yo ass," "all you do is run your mouth your the reason I broke my last tv always trynna ruin someone's day or sneak dis or get under my skin f--- u," "B--- don't try to play victim you been taking my money whenever you want," "you make it sound good to everyone else but if they reall new wtf was going on mfs would be laughing at u," and "Shit starting ass b----." Exhibits Volume 4A at 150-153. After Ma'Cirra arrived home, she and Williams argued in their apartment. Williams shot Ma'Cirra in the neck with a firearm. Williams and Ma'Cirra's three children, ages two, four, and five, were in the apartment.
[¶12] Our review of Williams's character reveals that he was born in September 1996 and, according to the PSI, as a juvenile he was placed on Strict and Indefinite Probation in June 2012 and was released from secure detention to his aunt in May 2014. As an adult, Williams was convicted of operating a motor vehicle without ever receiving a license as a class C misdemeanor in 2018. Under the heading of "Defendant Version," the PSI states: "The defendant wants to know if a charge in the legal system is the same as being accused, and what would the charge be for 'an accident'. The defendant also wanted to know if 'an accident' and murder are the same thing." Appellant's Appendix Volume II at 167. Williams reported that his father went to prison when he was six months old, that he was in foster care from the age of seven until the age of seventeen, and that he was mentally and physically abused as a child, and the PSI states that Michigan Department of Correction records indicate that Williams's father was sentenced in September 1999 to life in prison for murder.
The PSI does not indicate the allegation for which he was placed on probation. It indicates "[p]lacement in a private child caring facility, i.e. The Children's Campus in Mishawaka" and states Williams failed to complete formal probation. Appellant's Appendix Volume II at 165.
[¶13] Williams further reported that he received mental health treatment "while in residential as [a] juvenile," that while in treatment in Logansport for six months he was diagnosed with schizophrenia and disorganized thinking, that "they tried to prescribe mental health medications" but "he refused," and that he has attempted to commit suicide and was on suicide watch for three months. Id. at 169. He also reported first using marijuana at age thirteen, that by age fourteen or fifteen he used marijuana on a daily basis, that his use slowed to weekly and then bi-weekly in 2020 and 2021 due to the Department of Child Services becoming involved after his daughter was burned, and that his last use of marijuana was on July 22, 2021. We observe that Williams did not present evidence at sentencing regarding mental illness. After due consideration and in light of the advisory sentence he received for murder and the ten-year enhancement, we conclude that Williams has not sustained his burden of establishing that his sentence is inappropriate.
See generally Weeks v. State, 697 N.E.2d 28, 30 (Ind. 1998) (discussing factors that bear on the weight, if any, that should be given to mental illness in sentencing including the extent of the defendant's inability to control his or her behavior due to the impairment; overall limitations on functioning; the duration of the mental illness; and the extent of any nexus between the disorder or impairment and the commission of the crime).
[¶14] For the foregoing reasons, we affirm Williams's sentence.
[¶15] Affirmed.
May, J., and Pyle, J., concur.