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Jeffries v. State1/29/1997
roximately 12:40 a.m., Corporal McCarthy noticed the appellant and another individual walking away from the Metro station. Although she briefly lost sight of them, minutes later she observed them on the parking lot walking over to a Ford Explorer. She observed that the individual with the appellant peered into one of the windows of the Explorer. Corporal McCarthy returned to her patrol vehicle in order to retrieve her binoculars. Based on further observations, she believed that the two were preparing to break into the vehicle. She then radioed the police station to inquire as to whether any Special Assignment Team members were working. When she was informed they were not, she continued to observe the pair.
It was at this point that the two ultimate victims, Heather McDonald and Daniel Huston, approached the Explorer. Mr. Huston opened the passenger's side door of the Explorer so that Ms. McDonald could enter the vehicle, after which he proceeded to the driver's side. Just as he was about to enter the vehicle, the appellant and his cohort "stood up and rushed" Mr. Huston. Corporal McCarthy, still observing, radioed the police station that a carjacking was in progress. What transpired next was a series of events that ultimately led to the death of Mr. Huston and to the serious injuries of Ms. McDonald.
Immediately after Ms. McDonald entered the Explorer she heard loud voices. She heard one individual yell at Mr. Huston to get back into the vehicle. Mr. Huston obeyed and was then told to lie down in the back seat, which he did. Ms. McDonald was also ordered into the back seat of the Explorer. She complied. Mr. Huston apparently attempted to exit the vehicle, and it was at that point that gunfire erupted. Not knowing what had occurred, Ms. McDonald climbed out of the rear window of the Explorer, dropped to the ground, and began to crawl away. After exiting the vehicle, she noticed that "something wasn't right," and she then realized that she had been wounded.
Corporal McCarthy in her patrol car was heading toward the Explorer, when she noticed a police cruiser at the corner of a nearby street and she saw Mr. Huston lying face down in the parking lot. Shortly thereafter she saw Ms. McDonald, who was bleeding but alive. Another officer, Daryn Robinson of the District of Columbia Police Department, was patrolling nearby when he heard the gunshots. He approached the crime scene. About twenty minutes later, he observed a K-9 team retrieve three suspects from a nearby wooded area. After the suspects were removed from the scene, a 9 mm Glock pistol, a .38 caliber revolver, and ammunition were recovered from the woods.
Approximately one month later, an indictment was filed charging the appellant with murder, attempted murder, two counts of the use of a handgun in the commission of a crime of violence or felony, armed carjacking and conspiracy to commit armed carjacking. Also indicted were Allen Emmanuel Swanson and Ruben Carl Carson. The cases were consolidated for trial. The trial, which commenced on March 9, 1995 and ended on March 24, resulted in a verdict of guilty on all counts against the appellant. The jury based its murder conviction on the theory of statutory felony-murder. The appellant was specifically found not guilty of first-degree premeditated murder, of second-degree murder, and of attempted second-degree murder. The appellant received two life sentences plus one hundred years for the offenses. After the Motion to Dismiss made by the appellant was denied, the appellant noted this appeal.
The Felony-Murder Conviction
The appellant's first contention stems from his conviction of statutory felony-murder, presumably based on the pred
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