State v. Daughtry7/28/1995
Constitution. We have repeatedly upheld North Carolina's death penalty statute against such a constitutional challenge. See, e.g., Skipper, 337 N.C. at 58, 446 S.E.2d at 284.
Finally, defendant contends the trial court erred by failing to inform the jury about the amount of time defendant would spend in jail if sentenced to life imprisonment. As defendant acknowledges, we have considered and rejected his position. See, e.g., State v. Green, 336 N.C. 142, 157-58, 443 S.E.2d 14, 23, cert. denied, --- U.S. , 130 L. Ed. 2d 547 (1994).
Defendant makes numerous assignments of error that he fails to address in his brief to this Court. These assignments are deemed abandoned, and we therefore decline to address them. N.C. R. App. P. 28(a), (b)(5).
PROPORTIONALITY REVIEW
Having found no error in either the guilt or sentencing phase, we must determine whether: (1) the evidence supports the aggravating circumstances found by the jury; (2) passion, prejudice, or "any other arbitrary factor" influenced the imposition of the death sentence; and (3) the sentence is "excessive or disproportionate to the penalty imposed in similar cases, considering both the crime and the defendant." N.C.G.S. § 15A-2000(d)(2).
The jury found defendant guilty of first-degree murder under the theory of malice, premeditation, and deliberation, as well as under the felony murder rule. It also convicted defendant of first-degree sexual offense. The trial court submitted two aggravating circumstances, both of which the jury found: that the murder was committed while defendant was engaged in a sexual offense, N.C.G.S. § 15A-2000(e)(5); and that the murder was especially heinous, atrocious, or cruel, N.C.G.S. § 15A-2000(e)(9). We conclude that plenary evidence supports both circumstances. We further conclude, based on our thorough review of the record, that the sentence of death was not imposed under the influence of passion, prejudice, or any other arbitrary factor. We therefore turn to proportionality review.
The trial court submitted three statutory mitigating circumstances: that defendant committed the murder while under the influence of a mental or emotional disturbance, N.C.G.S. § 15A-2000(f)(2); that defendant's capacity to appreciate the criminality of his conduct or to conform his conduct to the requirements of law was impaired, N.C.G.S. § 15A-2000(f)(6); and the "catchall," N.C.G.S. § 15A-2000(f)(9). The jury found only the first of these. One or more jurors found fourteen of the nineteen nonstatutory mitigating circumstances submitted. The jury determined that the aggravating circumstances outweighed the mitigating circumstances and recommended a sentence of death.
This murder has several distinguishing characteristics. First, it was a brutal, merciless, and dehumanizing attack, which included severe blunt-trauma injuries and a depraved sexual offense. A defendant who commits a murder "in a particularly egregious manner" is likely to be sentenced to death. State v. Harris, 338 N.C. 129, 162, 449 S.E.2d 371, 387 (1994), cert. denied, U.S. , 131 L. Ed. 2d 752 (1995). Second, the jury convicted defendant on the basis of both the felony murder rule and the theory of malice, premeditation, and deliberation. "The finding of premeditation and deliberation indicates a more cold-blooded and calculated crime." State v. Artis, 325 N.C. 278, 341, 384 S.E.2d 470,
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