State v. Centeno

537 P.3d 232

STATE of Utah, Appellee,

v.Christopher Douglas CENTENO, Appellant.

No. 20200875

Supreme Court of Utah.

Heard February 8, 2023

Filed October 5, 2023

Sean D. Reyes, Att'y Gen., Jeffrey S. Gray, Asst. Solic. Gen., Salt Lake City, for appellee

Herschel Bullen, Salt Lake City, for appellant

Justice Pohlman authored the opinion of the Court, in which Chief Justice Durrant, Associate Chief Justice Pearce, Justice Petersen, and Justice Hagen joined.

Justice Pohlman, opinion of the Court:

INTRODUCTION

¶ 1 While angry and drunk, Christopher Douglas Centeno choked his girlfriend, A.C., to unconsciousness in front of their two-year-old daughter and then raped A.C. twice. A jury convicted Centeno on two counts of rape, one count of aggravated assault, and two counts of domestic violence in the presence of a child. We reject Centeno's multiple claims of error and affirm his convictions.

¶ 2 First, Centeno contends the district court abused its discretion in not withholding from jury deliberations a video exhibit of his police interview. He claims the exhibit should have been withheld from the jury room because it placed undue emphasis on his police interview, violated his constitutional rights, and prejudicially depicted him in handcuffs. We conclude that the district court did not abuse its discretion in rejecting Centeno's undue emphasis objection, and we do not reach his other theories because they are unpreserved.

¶ 3 Second, Centeno asserts he received constitutionally ineffective assistance of counsel. Specifically, he contends defense counsel provided ineffective assistance by not objecting to the admission of the audio and video footage of A.C.’s interactions with law enforcement. And he contends counsel was further ineffective in not keeping a portion of that footage—which was not played in open court—out of the jury room. We reject Centeno's challenge because he has not shown that he was prejudiced by the alleged deficient performance.

¶ 4 Third, Centeno contends the district court erred in denying his motions for a mistrial and a new trial. The State dismissed A.C.’s eight-year-old daughter early in her testimony after she broke down on the witness stand. Centeno argues he did not receive a fair trial because the situation violated his constitutional right to confrontation and left the jury to speculate about the reason for her breakdown. Because Centeno could have called the child to testify after being dismissed by the State, we conclude that the district court did not err in denying his motions.

BACKGROUND¹

¶ 5 Christopher Centeno and A.C. began dating in 2015. At the time, A.C. had one daughter (Child). In 2016, A.C. and Centeno had a daughter together (Toddler). Over the course of Centeno and A.C.’s relationship, Centeno lived in A.C.’s apartment on and off.

¶ 6 In the summer of 2018, Centeno and A.C.’s relationship became volatile. Centeno's physical and verbal abuse led to police being called to A.C.’s apartment several times. In October 2018, a series of events resulted in the criminal convictions Centeno challenges on appeal.

The Rape and Assault

¶ 7 One afternoon, A.C., Centeno, and Centeno's cousin (Cousin) gathered at A.C.’s apartment for a meal, planning to watch a boxing match that evening. But things dissolved when Centeno and Cousin began to argue. Cousin thanked A.C. for the meal—to which A.C. thanked him for eating—and left.

¶ 8 Centeno turned his anger toward A.C. for what he perceived as "inappropriate behavior" with Cousin. Centeno viewed A.C.’s "thank you" to Cousin as flirtatious and accused her of wanting to have sex with him. A.C. denied the accusation. She told Centeno that, if anything, she was on the receiving end of things, recounting an incident when Cousin playfully bumped hips with A.C. while maneuvering around the tight quarters of A.C.’s apartment. But A.C.’s denial and explanation were to no avail. Centeno left the apartment to watch the match, and A.C. stayed home, crying and upset.

¶ 9 Later that evening, Centeno returned intoxicated and carrying a bottle of vodka. After a series of arguments, A.C. eventually lay down with Toddler in the bedroom. Centeno followed. He sat on the foot of the bed, "rocking back and forth," "laughing and crying," and telling A.C. he was "so sorry for what's about to happen" and that "you made me do this." Centeno was "acting like he never ha[d] before." He told A.C. that his friends would not respect him if he did not "follow through with getting rid of [her]" and that she was "going to die tonight."

¶ 10 A.C. tried to comfort Toddler, who appeared to be concerned about her dad and wanted to hug him. A.C. explained to Toddler that Centeno was upset over losing his father and grandmother, but A.C.’s words infuriated Centeno. He grabbed A.C. and began hitting her in the head and face. A.C.’s glasses flew off and broke. Centeno then got on top of A.C., pinned her arms under his knees, and choked her. Toddler began yelling and crying for A.C., as did Child, who was in a nearby room. With one hand over A.C.’s nose and mouth and the other on her neck, Centeno choked her until she lost consciousness.

¶ 11 When A.C. came to, Centeno immediately covered her nose and mouth and choked her a second time until she passed out again. This time when A.C. came to, Centeno was no longer on top of her but was sitting against the bed's backboard. A.C. sat up in the bed and noticed she was "soaking wet," having urinated on herself while being choked. She also had "a really hard time breathing," her "chest hurt," her "ear hurt really bad," her "front bottom teeth felt really loose," and her "lip was really swollen." "[E]verything was stinging."

¶ 12 Centeno then accused A.C. of infidelity. He demanded A.C. give him the phone number of a man he accused her of seeing. She denied the accusation and said she had no phone number to give him. Unsatisfied with her answers, Centeno got on top of A.C. again, hitting her in the head and choking her for a third time. During this attack, Toddler sat beside A.C.’s head, trying to put A.C.’s glasses back on her face. A.C. did not pass out during this third beating, and Centeno eventually stopped.

¶ 13 After the assault ended, A.C. asked Centeno if she could pick Toddler up. Centeno responded by slapping A.C. and then saying, "You can now." Still wet with urine, A.C. lay with Toddler in the bed for about an hour until Toddler fell asleep. At this point, A.C. asked Centeno if she could use the bathroom. Centeno said "yes" and followed her there. While A.C. sat on the toilet, Centeno demanded she perform oral sex on him. A.C. complied while "flinching" through pain.

¶ 14 Midway through the oral sex, Centeno told A.C. to let him have sex with her. Again placating Centeno, A.C. complied but asked him if she could first remove her shirt because it was covered in urine. Centeno said he did not mind the smell and did not let A.C. take off her shirt. A.C. walked over to the mattress on the floor in the living room, and Centeno proceeded to have sex with her. A.C. later described the intercourse as painful, and she "remember[ed] saying [to Centeno] that it was hurting." She testified Centeno "knew that [she] didn't want it to continue because of ... [her] body language." When the intercourse ended, Centeno told A.C., "I know that you hate it when I fuck you like that."

¶ 15 A.C. got up and went to shower. The water felt painful against her skin. She vomited. After some time, A.C. got out, put some clothes on, spread a blanket over the urine spot on her mattress, and lay next to Toddler. A.C. tried to fall asleep but "felt like [she] was going to die in [her] sleep because [her] head hurt so bad." Centeno slept in bed next to her, holding her phone, which he had taken earlier in the night.

¶ 16 In the morning, A.C. was "in way more pain than [she] was the night before." The sides of her neck hurt, she was swollen beneath her chin, and contact with her skin was painful. She tried to figure out how to leave the apartment. But before she could decide her next move, Centeno told A.C. to let him have sex with her again. A.C. did not want to, but she did not feel like she could say no. When Centeno compelled A.C. to have intercourse with him, Toddler was lying beside A.C., staring up at her. Crying, A.C. reached down to cover Toddler's eyes. Centeno moved A.C.’s hand and told A.C. that Toddler could watch because she "doesn't know what's happening."

¶ 17 After Centeno was finished, A.C. got up and dressed herself. Centeno placed A.C.’s phone on the bookshelf in the bedroom and told A.C. that she was "not going to call anyone." Centeno then followed A.C. into the kitchen. While Toddler was eating breakfast, Centeno said to Toddler, "Hey, [Toddler], do you want me to kill your mommy? Yes? Or no? Yes? Or no?" Toddler, who was learning to say yes, said yes. Child overheard this and began crying.

¶ 18 After breakfast, Centeno lay on the mattress in the living room and watched television with the children. Noticing Centeno was falling asleep, A.C. retrieved her phone and called her mother (Mother). A.C. told Mother to come quickly and pick her up from her apartment because Centeno "tried to kill [her] last night." Minutes later, Mother arrived. She gave Centeno an excuse as to why she needed to take A.C. and the children for the day, and A.C., the children, and Mother left the apartment and got into Mother's van. Mother drove the van around the corner of the apartment complex, sat in a parking lot, and called the police.

The Police Interviews

¶ 19 When law enforcement arrived, an officer (Officer) spoke with A.C. through the open window of Mother's van. Officer noticed bruises on A.C.’s neck. He asked her how long she had been out of the apartment and if she had a way to reach Centeno. A.C. told Officer that Centeno did not have a phone number but that he used a messenger app. Officer asked A.C. if she could try to contact Centeno. A.C. did so and noticed that his...