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Lugo v. State2/20/2003
ham :
While it is true that Manuel [Rodriguez, the defendant] shot the Josephs while . . . arguing [with them], the totality of the circumstances . . . establishes that Manuel planned to kill the victims prior to the argument, especially given that Manuel took guns and gloves with him to the apartment, knew the Josephs could identify him, ordered [his accomplice] to shoot Abraham after he shot the Josephs, and then fired additional shots from close range to ensure that the victims were dead. Id. at 46.
The circumstances in the instant case are similar. Lugo and Doorbal had handcuffs, duct tape, and animal tranquilizer available to subdue their victims. They clearly knew that their intended victims could identify them, yet made no attempt to conceal their identities. Moreover, Lugo at least once ordered Doorbal to inject Furton with animal tranquilizer, and was aware of most or all of the other injections given to both Furton and Griga. Therefore, we determine that the evidence established not only that the murders of Griga and Furton were the product of Lugo's cool and calm reflection, but also that they were the product of a careful plan or prearranged design in which Lugo fully participated.
Heightened premeditation also exists in Lugo's case. In Gamble v. State, 659 So. 2d 242, 244 (Fla. 1995), we determined that all of the elements of the CCP aggravator, including heightened premeditation, were satisfied. There, the defendant told his girlfriend six days prior to the killing that he was going to "take out" the victim, who was his landlord. The defendant also rehearsed the murder by practicing choke holds on his girlfriend with a cord. The defendant and his roommate plotted to visit the landlord at his home, under the guise of paying their rent. While the landlord searched for a receipt, the roommate located a claw hammer. Upon the landlord's return, the defendant struck him repeatedly on the head with the hammer. The defendant's roommate also subsequently choked the victim. In the instant case, Lugo and Doorbal planned for weeks to abduct and obtain the assets of their victims, and executed an elaborate plan to ingratiate themselves with the victims. They also planned in advance to dispose of their bodies. As noted above, Lugo's culpability in both murders is without question and his heightened premeditation is without doubt. We agree with the trial judge that " he fact that Lugo was unsuccessful in the completion of his mission does not detract, in any way, from the fact that he had a cold, calculated, and premeditated plan to kill both victims and dispose of their bodies, completely without legal and moral justification." The trial judge did not err in finding the CCP aggravator.
Mitigating Circumstances
With regard to mitigating circumstances, Lugo primarily argues that the trial judge improperly weighed, or erred in refusing to find, the non-statutory mitigating circumstances that he proffered. We disagree.
"The determination of mitigating circumstances and the weight assigned to each one is within the discretion of the sentencing court." Foster v. State, 778 So. 2d 906, 919 (Fla. 2000). Lugo first contends that the trial judge erred in not finding as a non-statutory mitigating circumstance that Lugo was not the "hands- on" killer. We have described above in some detail the bases for our belief that the trial judge correctly concluded that Lugo was just as culpable in the murders of Griga and Furton as was Doorbal. We have also reviewed the record and the trial judge's sentencing order, and conclude that no abuse of discretion occurred in the decision not to find the "hands-on" killer argument as a mitigating circumstance.
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