State v. Adkins

(Cabell County 17-F-466)

MEMORANDUM DECISION

Petitioner Anthony Scott Adkins, by counsel Kerry A. Nessel and Todd Meadows, appeals the September 13, 2019, order of the Circuit Court of Cabell County sentencing him to a term of life imprisonment without the possibility of parole following his conviction of first-degree murder. The State of West Virginia, by counsel Patrick Morrisey and Benjamin F. Yancey III, filed a response in support of the circuit court's order, to which petitioner replied.

This Court has considered the parties' briefs and the record on appeal. The facts and legal arguments are adequately presented, and the decisional process would not be significantly aided by oral argument. Upon consideration of the standard of review, the briefs, and the record presented, the Court finds no substantial question of law and no prejudicial error. For these reasons, a memorandum decision affirming the circuit court's order is appropriate under Rule 21 of the Rules of Appellate Procedure.

On May 4, 2017, Doug Daniels was found dead on the bank of the Guyandotte River. Petitioner was arrested on suspicion of murder later that evening. In October of 2017, petitioner was indicted on one count of first-degree murder. Petitioner's jury trial began in July of 2018. At the outset of the proceedings, petitioner moved to bifurcate the guilt and penalty phases of the proceedings, and that motion was granted.

At trial, eyewitness Brandi Lovins testified that, on May 4, 2017, she accompanied Zac Lawhon as he fished on the bank of the river. Ms. Lovins witnessed an altercation between three men on the opposite riverbank. The men were later identified as petitioner, Joey Vernatter, and Doug Daniels. Ms. Lovins witnessed petitioner throw a punch at Mr. Daniels, then Mr. Vernatter throw a punch at Mr. Daniels, and Mr. Daniels collapsed to the ground. Ms. Lovins watched as petitioner and Mr. Vernatter continued to strike Mr. Daniels while he was on the ground. She believed that petitioner and Mr. Vernatter punched Mr. Daniels thirty to thirty-five times each. Then, she observed petitioner kick Mr. Daniels, and Mr. Vernatter kicked him as well. She testified that each man landed fifteen kicks on Mr. Daniels, while he was on the ground. Mr. Lawhon also witnessed both men punch and kick Mr. Daniels multiple times after he was on the ground.

After this initial flurry of punches and kicks, petitioner shoved Mr. Vernatter away from Mr. Daniels, and Ms. Lovins heard petitioner say, "That's enough. Let's go." Petitioner grabbed a backpack and went up the hill and started to cross the bridge over the Guyandotte River. Mr. Vernatter stayed on the riverbank. By this point, Mr. Lawhon left Ms. Lovins and was crossing the bridge toward the scene of the crime when he passed petitioner walking across the bridge. As Mr. Lawhon finished crossing the bridge, Mr. Lawhon believed that he could see Mr. Daniels still breathing, "not, like, real hard but just a little bit." Mr. Lawhon testified that he saw Mr. Vernatter pick up a large rock and hit Mr. Daniels three times in the head. While striking him, Mr. Lawhon heard Mr. Vernatter telling Mr. Daniels, "Die. Die. Go to sleep" and heard Mr. Vernatter calling Mr. Daniels "horrible" names. Mr. Lawhon returned to Ms. Lovins and called the police. Neither Ms. Lovins nor Mr. Lawhon saw Mr. Daniels get up after he was knocked to the ground. The police responded and discovered that Mr. Daniels was deceased.^[1]

Following the incident, petitioner had contact with multiple acquaintances who later testified at trial. Christopher McCallister testified that he messaged petitioner on the night of the murder. Mr. McCallister stated that petitioner told him that he and Mr. Vernatter had gotten into a fight with Mr. Daniels, and petitioner stated that he hit Mr. Daniels over the head with a rock and then stomped on him. According to Mr. McCallister, petitioner stated that he and Mr. Vernatter had killed Mr. Daniels and that Mr. Vernatter would not leave when petitioner left. Petitioner also spent time that evening with his girlfriend, Sarah Fitzwater, and her friend, Cheryl Thomas. After leaving the riverbank, petitioner called Ms. Fitzwater and asked her to pick him up at a gas station. Ms. Thomas, a co-worker of Ms. Fitzwater, had agreed to give Ms. Fitzwater a ride to the hospital to receive treatment for an ankle injury, and she waited with Ms. Fitzwater for petitioner to arrive at the gas station.

Ms. Fitzwater testified that when petitioner arrived, he had "blood or mud mixed all over his pants and he had it smeared on his forearm," and she believed it was the type of blood that could occur from a fistfight. Ms. Fitzwater also noted that petitioner was drunk when he arrived. Ms. Fitzwater refused to touch petitioner's hand because of the blood. The trio drove to the hospital so that Ms. Fitzwater could receive treatment for her ankle. She testified that petitioner typically kept a change of clothes in his backpack and that he changed as soon as he arrived at the hospital. Ms. Fitzwater testified that petitioner stated he never hit Mr. Daniels with a rock. She asked petitioner whether he killed Mr. Daniels, and he stated that he did not know. Later in the evening, Ms. Fitzwater called Ms. Thomas and asked her to call the police and inform them of what petitioner had said. Following Ms. Fitzwater's testimony, the State played her recorded interview with police, which was taken the day after the alleged murder. In the recorded statement, Ms. Fitzwater said that petitioner had told her that he hit Mr. Daniels in the back of the head with a rock:

[H]e just pretty much spilled it all out. Him and Joey and this guy were down there drinking. Apparently Joey and this guy got into it and had words. The guy pushed Joey [Petitioner] come from behind, he was standing behind him, he said he picked up this big huge like rock and hit the guy over the back of the head and the guy went down. [Petitioner] said he kicked him in the face and him and Joey jumped on top of [Mr. Daniels] and just kept kicking him and hitting him

Next, Ms. Thomas testified that petitioner had "splatters" of "blood on his hands and his tennis shoes" and some on his face and chest when he arrived at the gas station. She explained that petitioner was drunk and "erratic, talking so fast that you couldn't really make out a whole lot." However, Ms. Thomas testified that petitioner stated to Ms. Fitzwater, "[y]our ex is going to get the same thing. Your ex is going to get the same thing. All it takes is a rock, Sara[h]. All it takes is a rock." Ms. Thomas testified that she mentioned to petitioner that he looked like he had been in a fight, and he responded, "[w]ell yeah. The guy was running his mouth. He won't be doing that again." According to Ms. Thomas, petitioner also mentioned striking the man with a brick. After Ms. Thomas dropped petitioner and Ms. Fitzwater off at the hospital, she went home. She testified that she saw a news report that Mr. Daniels had been found dead on the riverbank and messaged Ms. Fitzwater with concern that petitioner was involved. Ms. Fitzwater responded that she was scared and asked Ms. Thomas to call 911, which she did.

The State called Dr. Allen Mock of the State Medical Examiner's Office, who performed Mr. Daniels's autopsy, to testify. Prior to trial, petitioner was provided Dr. Mock's autopsy report. Dr. Mock concluded in his report that Mr. Daniels died "as the result of blunt force injuries of the head, having been assaulted by another(s) [sic] wielding a blunt object." At trial, Dr. Mock testified that Mr. Daniels suffered numerous lacerations to the face, some abrasions to the face, and "palpable bony fractures" in the face. Dr. Mock observed that Mr. Daniels suffered catastrophic brain injuries, including multiple contusions, "bruises of the actual brain itself," bleeding under the scalp and under the skull, bleeding around the brain, and significantly, a laceration of the brainstem, otherwise described as a "pontomedullary junction tear."

Regarding the cause of death, Dr. Mock opined at trial that Mr. Daniels died as "a result of blunt force injuries to the head, having been assaulted by another or anothers [sic] wielding a blunt instrument." Dr. Mock explained that blunt force injuries occur "when the body is impacted or impacts an object. [They are] called blunt force to distinguish them from sharp force injuries, which could be a cut or a stab." He further explained that blunt force injuries could occur from a punch or a kick and that the phrase "wielding a blunt object," as used in his report and his opinion, meant "using something to inflict a blunt force injury." Dr. Mock clarified that a person could "wield" their hand or foot to cause blunt force injuries. He further testified that Mr. Daniels could have been killed by being punched or kicked in the head. Dr. Mock explained that he could not determine which specific injury was fatal for Mr. Daniels. He testified that many of Mr. Daniels's injuries could have caused his death, but the pontomedullary junction^[2] tear would have ended his life, as such a tear results in "immediate death." Dr. Mock explained that a pontomedullary junction tear could have occurred as a result of being punched or kicked, although he testified that it would be an "atypical" result. Finally, Dr. Mock testified that there was no evidence that Mr. Daniels suffered any injuries to the back of his head.

Finally, the State called Lt. David Castle of the Huntington Police Department, who conducted a blood pattern analysis of the blood found at the crime scene, on Mr. Daniels's clothing, and on petitioner's clothing. Lt. Castle authored...