State v. Taylor

899 S.E.2d 914

STATE of North Carolina

v.Jill Hardie TAYLOR

No. COA23-423

Court of Appeals of North Carolina.

Filed April 2, 2024

Appeal by Defendant from judgment entered 31 October 2022 by Judge James G. Bell in Columbus County Superior Court.

Heard in the Court of Appeals 28 November 2023. Columbus County, No. 18 CRS 50397

Attorney General Joshua H. Stein, by Assistant Attorney General John W. Congleton, for the State.

Tharrington Smith, L.L.P., by Douglas E. Kingsbery, Raleigh, and Lacy A. Hanson, for Defendant.

WOOD, Judge.

Jill Taylor ("Defendant") was driving very slowly or was stopped in the right lane of Highway 74 when the driver of a tractor trailer swerved to avoid her vehicle, causing the tractor trailer to crash into a tree and explode, killing the driver in the ensuing fire. A jury found Defendant guilty of second-degree murder based upon driving while impaired and reckless driving. On appeal, Defendant argues that her Fourth and Sixth Amendment rights were violated and that the State introduced evidence of malice in violation of Rule of Evidence 403. After careful review of the Record and applicable law, we hold Defendant received a fair trial free from prejudicial error.

I. Factual and Procedural History

On 18 February 2018 at approximately 8:30 p.m., Defendant was driving a red sedan east along U.S. Highway 74 just outside of Whiteville. Ricky Crocker ("Crocker") was also driving east along the same portion of highway just moments behind Defendant in a tractor-trailer truck loaded with cement curbing blocks. Crocker came upon Defendant’s vehicle, collided with her stopped vehicle, and died as a result of the crash and ensuing fire.

Just prior to the collision, witnesses observed Defendant’s car on Highway 74. Channing Glover ("Glover") came upon Defendant and saw her vehicle in the right lane driving very slowly, approximately five to ten miles per hour, despite a posted speed limit of seventy miles per hour along that section of the highway. Glover narrowly avoided a collision with Defendant by swerving around the left-hand side of her vehicle. Jonathan Highfill ("Highfill") was also driving east along Highway 74 when he saw Defendant’s vehicle suddenly and completely stopped in the road in front of him without any turn signal or emergency flashers operating. Highfill was forced to swerve around the left-hand side of Defendant’s vehicle to avoid colliding into it. He too narrowly avoided a collision.

Craig Clarke ("Clarke") was traveling westbound on Highway 74 with Tony Oxford ("Oxford") when he witnessed the tractor trailer being driven by Crocker colliding into Defendant’s vehicle. He saw the tractor trailer, which was traveling approximately the speed limit, swerve towards the median and saw its trailer swing towards the shoulder. The "tail end" of the trailer swung around as the driver attempted to swerve to avoid a collision, and it "clipped" the rear left quarter panel of Defendant’s vehicle, breaking the rear bumper, crumpling the trunk, and tearing off the left rear tire. According to the witnesses, Crocker did not reduce his speed before the collision. The cab of his tractor trailer hit a tree and exploded upon impact, and Crocker ultimately died in the ensuing fire.

Oxford was traveling in the car with Clarke at the time of the collision. Oxford is a retired law enforcement officer with twenty years of experience as a patrol officer, narcotics officer, and investigator. He was asleep at the time of the collision, but Clarke woke him up and told him he had just witnessed the accident and that the truck exploded. Clarke turned around in the median so that they could check on what had happened. They pulled up to the cab of the tractor trailer, which was fully engulfed in flames, and ran toward it to see if they could do anything to help. Oxford could see Crocker slumped over in the cab of the tractor trailer, and other people had already gathered at the truck to try to render aid to him.

Oxford noticed Defendant’s vehicle in the ditch next to the woods and ran over to it. He saw Defendant in the driver’s seat and tried to open the door. He could not open the driver’s door, so he helped her crawl out of the passenger side. Immediately, Oxford smelled a distinct odor emitting from Defendant’s car while helping her. Defendant told Oxford she had to have her purse, and after retrieving it, she carried it with her and "cuddled it like a baby." Oxford asked Defendant if she was fine. She responded yes and then repeated at least a dozen times that she needed to call somebody to come get her. Oxford noticed that Defendant’s speech was slow and slurred. He told her there was a man in the tractor trailer burning to death, and she once again stated she needed to go home. Defendant was stumbling as Oxford helped her over to his truck. He allowed her to sit in the front passenger seat of his truck, and he noted she had very distinct signs of dilated pupils, was lethargic, and occasionally nodded off and woke up again. He asked her a few times if she was hurt. She never mentioned any type of injury but continually asked to be taken home. Oxford left the truck for approximately fifteen minutes to check on the progress of those attempting to render aid to Crocker in the tractor trailer. When he returned to his truck, he noticed the same odor in his truck that was in Defendant’s vehicle.

When a trooper checked on Defendant, Oxford told him that something was not right with her actions. He reported she was lethargic and had a lack of concern for everything going on. Oxford believed Defendant was impaired on a drug, although he smelled no alcohol or marijuana. Emergency medical technicians ("EMTs") arrived about an hour later, and Oxford told them she had no observable injuries but that he believed she was impaired due to drugs.

Three different EMTs evaluated Defendant. Caitlyn Soles ("Soles") was the first medical personnel to examine Defendant, who was still in the passenger seat of the truck. Soles noted Defendant had "dazed off" and was securing her purse to her chest like she did not want it to go anywhere. Defendant told Soles she could not remember what happened except that a truck hit her. Soles asked Defendant if she wanted to go to the hospital, and she said no. Soles walked Defendant to the ambulance, where Defendant stated she did not want her vital signs checked. Soles observed Defendant place her head into her purse two or three times and lift her head back up. While discussing what she should do with her medic, Reggie Morrison ("Morrison"), they made eye contact and indicated a mutual understanding that Defendant was doing drugs. Morrison noted Defendant’s eyes were dilated and that she acted drowsy and confused whenever she lifted up her head from her purse. He believed Defendant was possibly impaired based on her behavior, drowsiness, and confusion as to her surroundings. Defendant was adamant with Morrison that she was not going to be transported to the hospital, despite his advice.

Cherie Register ("Register"), another EMT, approached Defendant while she was still in the passenger seat of the truck and observed Defendant holding a purse and what looked like a hairspray can or some other type of aerosol can that she would hold up to her face. Register asked Defendant if she was the one driving the vehicle that got hit and if she was okay. Register noted that Defendant was sluggish-acting, slow to respond, and had "constricted" pupils, and she believed Defendant was under the influence of drugs or alcohol. She did not observe Defendant having any injuries. Register was startled by Defendant’s complete lack of emotion considering everything going on around them. When Register told Defendant that Crocker did not make it out of the tractor trailer, she just said, "okay." Later, after Register helped remove Crocker’s body from the cab of the tractor trailer, she went to the ambulance where Defendant was. Register observed that she would stick her nose into her purse and saw the same aerosol can in it that she was holding earlier.

N.C. Highway Patrol Officer G.S. Hooks ("Trooper Hooks") was the first State Trooper to arrive at the scene. As lead investigator in the case, he was responsible for collecting information from other State Troopers conducting the collision investigation. He interacted with Defendant for approximately fifteen minutes in total that night and did not form an opinion as to whether Defendant was impaired. Before Trooper Hooks approached Defendant, Register told him Defendant seemed to be impaired. As Trooper Hooks introduced himself to Defendant and asked her what happened in the collision, he observed that she was slow to speak and slow in her movements, such as when she slowly retrieved her license from her wallet.

When N.C. Highway Patrol Officer Victor Lee ("Trooper Lee") arrived at the scene, he observed Defendant in the ambulance placing her head into her purse like she was speaking into it. Trooper Lee asked Defendant how she was doing and what happened, and as she responded, he observed that she was lethargic and slow as though she did not have her wits about her. Trooper Lee looked through Defendant’s purse and saw two aerosol cans of Dust-Off. He formed an opinion that Defendant’s mental and/or physical faculties were appreciably impaired, probably due to inhaling the Dust-Off, causing him to decide to take her to the hospital to have her blood tested. He did not place Defendant under arrest but did handcuff her before driving her to the hospital in the passenger seat of his patrol vehicle. When they arrived, they remained seated in the vehicle, and Trooper Lee read to Defendant her implied consent rights and provided her with a written copy. Defendant consented to a blood draw. A hospital phlebotomist drew her blood and gave a sample of Defendant’s blood to Trooper Lee, which he preserved in a safe until it could be transported to a lab for analysis. He...