|
ATTORNEYS FOR APPELLANT
Susan K. Carpenter
Lorraine L. Rodts |
ATTORNEYS FOR APPELLEE
Jeffrey A. Modisett
Christopher L. Lafuse |
DEBRA J. WILLSEY, )
)
Appellant (Defendant below ), )
)
v. ) Supreme Court
) Cause No. 83S00-9702-CR-113
STATE OF INDIANA, )
)
Appellee (Plaintiff below ). )
In this direct appeal from a conviction for murder Debra J. Willsey contends that:
2) the State made impermissible use of Willsey's invocation of her Miranda rights;
3) bank records should not have been admitted into evidence;
4) her counsel rendered ineffective assistance; and
5) her sentence was manifestly unreasonable.
We affirm the trial court.
asked Biddle why he did not tell the two to leave, he said he was afraid that if he did they
would harm him. Police also learned that during Biddle's short association with Willsey and
York his bank account balance of over $12,000 had been depleted. According to the funeral
home that handled Biddle's burial, two months before his death Biddle had gone to the
funeral home with Willsey and made changes in his funeral arrangements that put Willsey
in charge of his burial. An official at the funeral home told police that the day of Biddle's
death Willsey called the funeral home, told them not to publish an obituary, and assured
them that she would inform Biddle's family of his death. Police had been told by the family
that they had never heard from Willsey and had learned of the death only months later from
the published notice of Willsey's attempt to probate Biddle's will. Police also discovered
that York had signed Biddle's interment papers posing as Biddle's granddaughter.See footnote 1
1
Based on this and other information, police picked York up for questioning. York
told police that after she, Willsey, and Biddle had returned from the hospital, she had gone
to sleep and was wakened by a moaning sound. She looked into Biddle's bedroom and saw
that Willsey had pinned Biddle to the bed and was suffocating him with a pillow. Police
arrested Willsey that same day. Additional information was uncovered after the arrest.
Based on Biddle's voiced concerns at the hospital on the night of his death, Nurse Palmer
had requested that Sheriff Pete Jackson send someone from the Adult Services Department
to visit Biddle at home the next day. Sheriff Jackson had responded to Palmer's call by
telephoning the hospital where he spoke with Willsey and told her that someone from Adult
Services would visit the next day. Police also learned that at the hospital Biddle had accused
Willsey of taking $200 from his wallet.
April York's Version
Medical experts at trial agreed that the medical evidence was consistent with both
suffocation and death from natural causes. As a result, Willsey's conviction depended in
large part on York's credibility. York testified at length to details of her and Willsey's
relationship with Biddle, and to the murder she claimed to have witnessed. Her testimony
tracked the story she gave to police at the outset of the investigation. What follows is a
partial description of that account. York first met Willsey in the spring of 1994 when
Willsey employed York to do roofing work. York moved in with Willsey in June to escape
a painful divorce of her mother and stepfather, and for a brief period the two were lovers.
Willsey was unemployed and had no income. At Willsey's direction, York borrowed small
sums of money and food from her grandparents and turned the money over to Willsey.
Willsey instructed York to call her mom in public to obscure the nature of their
relationship. In early October 1994, the pair met Biddle at a local restaurant. Biddle, a
veteran who had never married and had no children, was living in a housing facility for
senior citizens. Willsey befriended Biddle and over the next eight days, Biddle signed four
checks totaling $5125 made payable to cash and written in Willsey's hand. Soon Biddle and
Willsey opened a joint checking account. On the twelfth day of their acquaintance, Biddle
moved in with Willsey and York and soon signed another check for $1000, again written in
Willsey's hand but this time made out to Willsey. Five days after moving in, Biddle changed
his will to disinherit his older sister and make Willsey the sole beneficiary and executrix.
Checks, bank records, and Biddle's will corroborated these details.
Almost immediately after Biddle moved in, Willsey and York urged him to look for
a larger house. Sometime in December he bought a home and the three relocated to
Universal in Vermillion County. At both locations, Biddle paid most of the bills and living
expenses.See footnote 2
2
In the meantime, Biddle began to complain about their living conditions. Willsey
owned seventeen dogs, two of whom were dead in the garage refrigerator and at least five
of whom lived in the home. The house was littered with dog feces, which became a subject
of Biddle's occasional complaints to York, who was supposed to clean it up. Biddle also
started to complain about the financial arrangements. In November he took Willsey's name
off the joint checking account and in December he paid off and destroyed his credit card
which had been charged over its limit.
York testified that at the hospital the night of Biddle's death Willsey had taken $200
from Biddle's wallet and then reported the wallet as missing. York said that when Biddle
requested to speak to the doctors alone, Willsey had become angry. As soon as the trio
returned home that night, Biddle had gone to his room and closed the door. Willsey was
angry and started rambling, saying that she was tired of being accused of . . . taking
everything. . . . what am I going to do now. This isn't working out as I planned, what I am
going to do now? York then went to sleep, awoke to a moaning sound, ventured to Biddle's
room, and saw Willsey forcing a pillow onto Biddle's face. York left the room at Willsey's
direction. When Willsey emerged from the room she said I can't believe I did this, and
then made York touch the dead body, saying that Biddle won't have to bitch at [Willsey]
about anything, and he won't have any more breathing problems.
After the death, York said she observed Willsey forge three checks on Biddle's
account, all dated the day of his death. Willsey handled the funeral arrangements and
arranged to receive a refund from a funeral trust Biddle had established at a funeral home
even though the terms of the trust called for refunds to go to Biddle's sister. When the error
was discovered by the home Willsey refused to return the money. Willsey also had York call
Biddle's insurance company, apparently believing Biddle had a life policy with a death
benefit of $74,000. When it turned out the policy carried no death benefit, according to
York, Willsey was furious. York admitted to posing as Biddle's granddaughter on the
interment papers.
Willsey's Arrest and Statements to Police
Willsey's arrest took place at her home seven months after the death. At the police
station she received Miranda warnings, executed a waiver of rights, and was questioned for
about ninety minutes in an audio taped statement. In response to police questioning she
made statements inconsistent with York's account or with other evidence. Specifically, she
told police that she and Biddle had planned to be married and that they never fought about
money. She denied taking the $200 from his wallet at the hospital. She said that the day
after she met Biddle he called her on the telephone in a very friendly way. However,
Willsey had no telephone. Willsey said that Biddle loved the dogs and that she moved with
Biddle to the new house in Universal only because he wanted to move. She said both she
and Biddle had paid for the house. She also said that Biddle was very sick on the night of
his death and said several times: I'm going to die tonight. She reiterated that York
discovered the body when she brought Biddle his breakfast, which was the same account she
and York had given to the police on the day of the death.
The transcript of her statement was not offered into evidence and Willsey did not
testify at trial. However, the interrogating officer, Trooper Brent Johnson, gave the
foregoing account of Willsey's statement. Johnson's characterization of Willsey's statement
pointed out that the statement was often internally inconsistent and also conflicted with
York's statement and trial testimony. Johnson said that he seriously questioned [Willsey's]
truthfulness. York also made inconsistent statements and admitted at trial that she had lied
to police on a number of occasions, including at times in her initial statement. York said that
on those occasions she had lied to protect Willsey. The jury convicted Willsey of murder
and the trial court sentenced her to sixty years imprisonment.
she maintains that before she was questioned or read the Miranda warnings she invoked her
Fifth Amendment rights by making repeated requests to speak with her attorney. She
contends police failed to honor her requests and initiated the interrogation, rendering her
statements inadmissible under Minnick v. Mississippi, 498 U.S. 146, 111 S. Ct. 486, 112 L.
Ed. 2d 489 (1990), Edwards v. Arizona, 451 U.S. 477, 101 S. Ct. 1880, 68 L. Ed. 2d 378
(1981), and Miranda v. Arizona, 384 U.S. 436, 86 S. Ct. 1602, 16 L. Ed. 2d 694 (1966).See footnote 3
3
This issue turns on whether Willsey did in fact invoke the right to counsel.
Willsey filed a motion to suppress these statements and objected to their introduction
at trial. At the hearing on her motion to suppress Willsey testified that she asserted her right
to counsel on at least three occasions and that the police ignored her requests. Despite this
testimony, neither Willsey nor the State framed the suppression argument in terms of
Edwards, which requires that any statements made by a suspect in custody after a request for
counsel be suppressed unless the suspect initiates a resumption of the dialog. Instead both
parties at the hearing focused on whether Willsey's waiver of rights and her statement were
voluntary. Willsey's failure to raise Edwards explicitly may explain why the State's
witnesses did not directly confirm or contest Willsey's claim that she requested counsel and
the trial court made no explicit findings on the point. Nevertheless, Willsey's testimony at
the hearing clearly presented a claim under Edwards. See Ind. Evidence Rule 103(a)(1) (for
error to be preserved the specific ground of objection must be stated unless it is apparent
from the context). In ruling on the motion, the trial court registered a single comment
reflecting its low appraisal of Willsey's credibility, and summarily denied the motion without
any findings.
Where a ruling turns on disbelief of the only testimony in the record, it would be very
helpful if the trial court had made an explicit finding. The Indiana Rules of Criminal
Procedure do not require such a finding, however. Cf. Fed. R. Crim. P. 12(e) (Where
factual issues are involved in determining a [pre-trial] motion, the court shall state its
essential findings on the record.). Rather, in reviewing a trial court's ruling on a motion to
suppress, we review the record for substantial evidence of probative value to support the trial
court's ruling. Peterson v. State, 674 N.E.2d 528, 536 (Ind. 1996), cert. denied, ___ U.S.
___, 118 S. Ct. 858, 139 L. Ed. 2d 757 (1998). We do not reweigh the evidence. We resolve
conflicting evidence in favor of the trial court and consider any substantial uncontroverted
evidence. Haviland v. State, 677 N.E.2d 509, 513 (Ind. 1997). If the basis for the ruling on
a motion to suppress is unclear, we will uphold the trial court if a reasonable view of the
evidence supports the trial court's decision. Cf. Benham v. State, 637 N.E.2d 133, 138 (Ind.
1994). Cf. also United States v. Bloomfield, 40 F.3d 910, 915 (8th Cir. 1994) (failure of trial
court to make findings pursuant to Federal Rule of Criminal Procedure 12(e) does not
necessitate remand if decision is supported by any reasonable view of the evidence);
accord United States v. Griffin, 7 F.3d 1512, 1516 (10th Cir. 1993); United States v. Harley,
990 F.2d 1340, 1341 (D.C. Cir. 1993); United States v. Yeagin, 927 F.2d 798, 800 (5th Cir.
1991). The credibility of witnesses is for the trial court to determine.See footnote 4
4
Warner v. State, 579
N.E.2d 1307, 1310 (Ind. 1991). Cf. United States v. Stribling, 94 F.3d 321, 323 (7th Cir.
1996) (Because the resolution of a motion to suppress is necessarily fact-specific, we give
special deference to the district court that heard the testimony and observed the witnesses at
the suppression hearing.). Under this standard of review, although the trial court did not
specifically address whether Willsey requested counsel, there are grounds in the record to
affirm the trial court.
The issue turns on whether Willsey requested counsel as she asserts. The record
supports the conclusion that by denying the motion, the trial court simply disbelieved
Willsey based on its perceptions of her demeanor and veracity. First, although there are no
findings that explain the trial court's ruling, as discussed below it is clear from the record
that the trial court did not find Willsey to be a credible witness on the question of whether
she signed the rights waiver form. Further, there is substantial circumstantial evidence
surrounding Willsey's interrogation that supports a finding that Willsey did not request
counsel as she asserts.
At the hearing on the motion to suppress Willsey testified that after her arrest, but
before being questioned or read the Miranda rights, she made three separate requests to speak
with her attorney. Willsey was arrested at her home in the presence of three officers:
Trooper Johnson, Deputy Larry Keller, and Sheriff Paul Curry. She testified that she made
one request to Curry in the driveway of her home outside of his squad car when only she,
Curry and a neighbor, Beverly Crawford, were present. Crawford testified that she
overheard Willsey tell Curry two times that she wanted to talk to her lawyer and that Curry
did not respond. Willsey said she again requested an attorney when she was alone with
Curry in his squad car but that Curry told her she would have to wait until they got to the jail.
Curry did not testify at the suppression hearing. Willsey's and Crawford's account of these
requests is thus not directly contested.
Willsey also testified that she requested an attorney a third time when she and Trooper
Johnson were at the jail on their way to the interrogation room, shortly before Johnson read
her the Miranda warnings. She said that Johnson responded that it was too late in the day
and that he wanted to question her while everything was fresh. Johnson was called by
Willsey and in response to Willsey's counsel's question whether he heard Willsey request
an attorney at the residence Johnson answered that he had not. Willsey gave her testimony
after Johnson had testified, and Johnson was not recalled to verify or refute whether Willsey
made this request. Accordingly, it too is not directly contested.
Willsey's credibility was tangibly called into doubt during her testimony. Willsey
testified that she had no recollection of (1) being read her rights, (2) being presented with a
rights waiver form, (3) initialing a form, or (4) signing a form. When presented with a rights
waiver form and asked to confirm that her signature and initials were on the form, she
claimed that she could not read without glasses. However, as the trial court commented in
denying the motion to suppress, Willsey was able to read without glasses at the same hearing
from a list of technical names of prescription drugs. The record also clearly reflects
challenges to the veracity of Crawford, but contains no evidence or finding by the trial court
that is helpful.
Aside from the issue of credibility, however, the trial court's decision was supported
by conflicting evidence. Johnson testified that in the presence of two other officers he read
the Miranda warnings to Willsey, and that she waived them in writing. A signed waiver was
produced. Willsey's recorded conduct from the time she waived her rights to the end of the
interrogation does not suggest a person who had made unequivocal, repeated requests for an
attorney. Willsey claimed she did not recall being read her rights, and hinted that it may not
have been she who signed the rights waiver form. However, the transcript offered at the
hearing on the motion to suppress indicates that Willsey acknowledged that she had been
read and had waived her rights:
Johnson: Okay Debbie, I told you the reason we're in here. Just prior to the
interview, I read you your [M]iranda rights, I explained to you what they were, I
asked you to initial next to each one of the sentences correct?
Willsey: Mm
Johnson: And uh . . . saying that you understood what they were. And I told you that
the reason you're here today, is that uh . . . it's . . . leading into the events surrounding
the death of Robert E. Biddle.
Willsey: Mm.
Willsey: Right.
During the entire ninety minute recorded interview, Willsey did not request an attorney, indicate that she had ever requested one, or ever express any hint of frustration that her alleged repeated requests were not honored. We emphasize that the prophylactic nature of Miranda warnings is designed to prevent a person in custody from being coerced into waiving her rights or bullied into giving a statement. However, no such assertion is made here and the record does not support one. Rather, Willsey appears to have been willing to talk and cooperative if not always forthright. At one point, Willsey specifically mentioned her attorney, stating that she would not take a polygraph examination without her attorney present. Johnson responded asking [a]re you telling me you want to talk to your attorney or are you just telling me you don't want to take a polygraph? Willsey answered: I'm not going to take no polygraph, because I don't believe in them. Thus when Willsey was explicitly asked if she was requesting counsel, she did not respond affirmatively. If Willsey had asserted her right, evidence that she failed to assert it again or waived her right at the behest of police would not vitiate the effect of the right's invocation. See Edwards, 451 U.S. at 487. But in this case the written waiver, explicit reference to it at the outset of the recorded interview, and Willsey's conduct in the interrogation are relevant to her credibility on the question of whether she asserted the right at all. In sum, reviewing the conflicting evidence in favor of the trial court's ruling, we conclude that there was substantial evidence
of probative value to support the trial court's conclusion that Willsey's Fifth Amendment
right to counsel was not invoked, and therefore was not violated.See footnote 5
5
Johnson: Yes the defendant did.
State: Okay, did the defendant make any statements regarding Mr. Biddle's death at
that time?
Johnson: Yes, the defendant spoke to several of us there in the room . . . .
. . . .
State: What statement did the defendant make regarding Mr. Biddle's death?
Johnson: Towards the end, just prior to the time that, uh, I quit talking with the
defendant, she makes a comment to the effect that, Oh my God I don't believe I'm
saying this. She says, I'll tell you if you want to know how Mr. Biddle died, she
said, If you'll call my attorney, Woody, if you want to know how Mr. Biddle died,
I'll tell you then, which lead [sic] me to believe that, you know, she, uh, there was
something that she was wanting to tell me she just wouldn't cross that bridge.
State: Well you . . . once the defendant asked for an attorney, you can't continue
taking statements if they're going to talk about a specific event, is that correct?
Johnson: Correct, ma'am, yes.
State: And her indication was that she would talk to you about Mr. Biddle's death
if you would get her attorney present?
Johnson: Yes.
In Doyle two defendants, tried on identical evidence, refused to talk to police after their
arrest but at trial offered an exculpatory version of events. To impeach the defendants'
testimony, on cross-examination the prosecutor repeatedly asked the defendants why they
did not offer this version to police after their arrest but instead chose to remain silent. The
Supreme Court held that it was fundamentally unfair and a deprivation of due process to
advise defendants of their right to remain silent and then to punish them if they chose to
exercise that right. In other words, the prosecution may not use a defendant's decision to
stand mute in order to create an inference of guilt -- a proposition fleshed out in a number
of decisions. See United States v. Tenorio, 69 F.3d 1103 (11th Cir. 1995); United States v.
Kallin, 50 F.3d 689 (9th Cir. 1995); Williams v. Zahradnick, 632 F.2d 353 (4th Cir. 1980);
Henson v. State, 514 N.E.2d 1064 (Ind. 1987); White v. State, 647 N.E.2d 684 (Ind. Ct. App.
1995). The Court expanded this holding in Wainwright to bar use of the defendant's
decision to remain silent and to request an attorney as evidence that the defendant was
rational, and not insane as was claimed at trial. See also Lynch, 632 N.E.2d at 342; Wilson,
514 N.E.2d at 284. In all these cases, the prosecution used the silence or the request for
counsel itself to implicate the defendant in some way.
According to Johnson, the formal interview had ended when Willsey decided to
initiate further conversation. She began without reference to her Fifth Amendment rights,
as if making an admission of some kind: Oh my God, I don't believe I'm saying this. . . .
I'll tell you if you want to know how Mr. Biddle died. Surely catching the attention of the
police officers present, she followed up her offer with a condition: If you'll call my
attorney, Woody, if you want to know how Mr. Biddle died, I'll tell you then. Johnson
made the natural inference that there was something Willsey knew about Biddle's death, but
she just wouldn't cross that bridge and tell the police. The damaging inference, if any, stems from Willsey's admission that she knew something about the circumstances of Biddle's death and not from the fact that she mentioned her attorney. By contrast, in Doyle and Wainwright the prosecution used the act of the defendant's silence or the fact of the request for counsel itself as indicative of guilt or damaging to credibility. As the Seventh Circuit noted in describing Doyle analysis, the central constitutional inquiry is the particular use to which the post-arrest silence is being put. . . . Doyle does not impose a prima facie bar against any mention whatsoever of a defendant's right to request counsel, but instead guards against the exploitation of that constitutional right by the prosecutor. Lindgren v. Lane, 925 F.2d 198, 202 (7th Cir. 1991) (no Doyle error where the inadvertent mention of petitioner's request for counsel was not argued to the jury nor was it ever used to impeach petitioner); see also United States v. Higgins, 75 F.3d 332, 333 (7th Cir. 1996) (A statement such as 'I told the suspect that he could remain silent, and he did' does not ask the jury to infer guilt from silence.). Cf. Greer v. Miller, 483 U.S. 756, 764, 107 S. Ct. 3102, 97 L. Ed. 2d 618 (1987) (no Doyle error where after improper question about defendant's silence prosecutor was not permitted to make specific inquiry or argument respecting the silence). A suspect may not package a confession of guilt with a request for counsel -- e.g., I did it. I want to speak with an attorney -- and then seek to exclude the confession. Here, the State took advantage of Willsey's implication of sinister knowledge, not the request for counsel. Accordingly, Doyle error did not occur and the trial court did not err in admitting Johnson's testimony.
natural causes. The State offered the bank records as evidence of Willsey's relationship with
Biddle, namely that Willsey looked upon Biddle as a source of income, and that Biddle was
balking at continuing this relationship. The records corroborated York's testimony that
Biddle destroyed the credit card in frustration with Willsey, and York's characterization of
Willsey's financial dealings with Biddle. The trial court acted within its discretion in
admitting this evidence.
stole the notary's seal; (3) stole by forgery from Biddle after his death; and (4) kept two dead
dogs in her refrigerator and left dog excrement on the floor of the house.
When a claim of ineffective assistance of counsel is based on counsel's failure to
object, the defendant must show that a proper objection would have been sustained. Lowery
v. State, 640 N.E.2d 1031, 1042 (Ind. 1994). The evidence of misappropriation was offered
not to show propensity, but to show various facts about the crime with which Willsey was
charged. Relevance was the proper issue, and for reasons already discussed the trial court's
rulings on relevance were not reversible error. The bank records combined with York's
testimony are probative of Willsey's attitude toward Biddle before his death and her motive
for killing him. Any unfair prejudice resulting from this evidence is minimal. Accordingly,
Willsey does not establish deficient performance because she does not show that an objection
to this misappropriation evidence on 404(b) grounds would have been sustained. Id.
Nor does Willsey make this showing with respect to evidence that Willsey forged the
signature of a notary public on a contract between her and Biddle and that Willsey stole
the notary public's seal, which sealed the document. The contract, signed by Biddle and
Willsey, witnessed by York, and bearing a notary public's signature, provided that Biddle
would pay Willsey $300 dollars per week, and further provided that upon Biddle's death
Willsey would have complete ownership of Biddle's estate, personal property, and a lockbox
containing $6000. Willsey stipulated to the admission of the contract. The contract was
dated July 1994, before York said that she and Willsey had met Biddle. York testified that
Willsey told her the early date was necessary to prove that Willsey had known Biddle for a
long enough time to obtain control of his estate. Evidence that the notary public's signature
was forged and sealed with a stolen seal corroborated York's testimony as to the false date
of the document. Accordingly, Willsey does not show that had a 404(b) objection been
made, it would have been sustained. Id.
The evidence of forged checks after Biddle's death and the dog evidence is not
evidence of other crimes, wrongs, or acts offered to prove Willsey's character in order to
show action in conformity therewith. Evid. R. 404(b). The evidence that Willsey forged
three checks on Biddle's account after he died reinforces the circumstantial evidence that
Willsey misappropriated money before he died and was additional evidence of her motive.
Although this evidence speaks to Willsey's criminality, it does not suggest violence or
propensity to murder. The evidence that Willsey kept two dead dogs in the refrigerator and
left dog feces on the floor of the house, although of little bearing on her motive for murder,
is at least marginally relevant to establish Biddle's dissatisfaction with his living
arrangements and therefore the risk Willsey ran of losing his support. It speaks more to
eccentricity than criminality and is not propensity evidence. The balance of potential
prejudice against the relevance of these items does not require their exclusion.
Willsey's next contention of ineffective assistance stems from counsel's failure to
object to parts of the State's closing argument. During Willsey's closing argument Willsey
repeatedly attacked York's credibility, asking why York continued to lie for Willsey and to
live with her for months after Biddle's death. Willsey invited the jury to disbelieve York's
explanation that she was afraid of Willsey. Willsey suggested that if York had really been
through a grueling emotional experience, the State would have presented experts to testify
about the impact the volatile relationship had upon her. In response, the State claimed that
under the rules of evidence, they could not bring in experts to testify about the emotional
impact on York. The State went on to bolster York's credibility and stated:
I wanted to understand [York]. I wanted to . . . try to understand how somebody has
that kind of fear. I wanted to try and understand why she said she couldn't leave. I
wanted to understand why she didn't leave and . . . it was hard to understand but you
know what occurred to me? I see this same behavior every single day in this job. I
see behavior where people who are involved in intimate relationships stay in abusive
relationships, they try to protect the abuser and they can't leave. And you know
where I see it? I see it between men and women. April York has every one of the
single characteristics that you find in a battered spouse. And I thought . . . maybe
that's how I have to look at it. Maybe it does not make any difference. If there is an
intimate relationship that is abusive maybe it doesn't make any difference if it's
between a man and woman or if it is between a woman and another woman.
Willsey contends that the State's reference to York as a battered spouse was improper because it drew a conclusion about York that was not supported by the record and was a statement of the prosecutor's personal opinion as to York's credibility. Even if we assume these contentions, counsel's failure to object may well have been grounded in a decision that an objection would call undue attention to the State's remark or would be seen by the jury as aggressive and unsympathetic. As such it does not establish ineffective assistance. See Roche v. State, 690 N.E.2d 1115, 1126 (Ind. 1997) (a matter of trial strategy cannot form the basis for establishing ineffective assistance of trial counsel unless there was no sound basis for not pursuing the strategy).See footnote 6 6
that an enhancement of ten years is more appropriate and requests this Court to revise her
sentence accordingly. It is within the discretion of the trial court to determine whether a
presumptive sentence will be increased because of aggravating circumstances. Isaacs v.
State, 673 N.E.2d 757, 765 (Ind. 1996). Although the Indiana Constitution confers upon this
Court the power to revise sentences, Ind. Const. art. VII, § 4, we may do so only when a
sentence authorized by statute is manifestly unreasonable in light of the nature of the
offense and the character of the offender. Ind. Appellate Rule 17(B). It is within the trial
court's discretion to determine the appropriate sentence and the trial court will be reversed
only upon a showing of a manifest abuse of discretion. Ector v. State, 639 N.E.2d 1014,
1015 (Ind. 1994). The trial court's list of aggravating circumstances, including its emphasis
on Willsey's manipulative and calculating behavior, does not demonstrate an abuse of
discretion.
SHEPARD, C.J., and DICKSON, SULLIVAN and SELBY, JJ., concur.
conviction on the basis of her character and irrelevant evidence. However, bizarre crimes beget bizarre facts, and, as noted above, objections to most, if not all, the contested evidence would not have been sustained. As a result the cumulative effect of counsel's asserted deficient performance is not enough to show prejudice.
Converted by Andrew Scriven