 |
 |
to fill out a simple form to connect to DUI Lawyers in your area.
|
|
|
|
|
State v. Guthmiller7/16/2003
Argued on February 11, 2003
[ .] A Pennington County jury convicted Dale Guthmiller (Guthmiller) of criminal pedophilia. He was also found to be a habitual offender. The trial court sentenced him to life in prison without parole. Guthmiller appeals his conviction and sentence. We affirm.
Facts
[ .] Guthmiller, also known as Wrench, owned a motorcycle shop called "Wrench's Repair." Guthmiller hired acquaintance M.B. to organize the paperwork for the business. On July 9, 2001, M.B. arrived for her first day of work at approximately 8:30 a.m. She brought her four-year-old daughter R.B. to the shop with her. R.B. liked to play with Guthmiller's cats while her mother worked. Shortly after arriving, Guthmiller and M.B. smoked drugs together.
[ .] Later that afternoon, between 3:00 p.m. and 4:00 p.m., Don Rice (Rice) came to the shop looking for Guthmiller. M.B. directed him to the back of the shop where she thought Guthmiller was working. Returning from the back of the shop, Rice indicated to M.B. that he had not found Guthmiller. M.B. realized that R.B. was also missing. A few minutes later Guthmiller and R.B. appeared. Guthmiller explained that he had taken R.B. to the bathroom. This was the second time that day he had taken her to the bathroom. R.B. ran to her mother asking to go home. M.B. told R.B. to watch a movie while she finished her work. R.B. fell asleep on the couch.
[ .] R.B. spent the next day at her grandparent's house. Grandmother overheard R.B. repeatedly say to a playmate, "He won't let me play with the kittens." When R.B.'s grandmother asked her to whom she referred, R.B. replied, "I can't tell you." After grandmother's further urging, R.B. blurted out, "it was Wrench he licked my butt and said it was a secret and if I told anybody he wouldn't let me play with the kittens."
[ .] Later that same day R.B. repeated her "secret" to her mother expressing, "yes, Wrench licked my butt." M.B. reported R.B.'s story to the police. On July 11, 2001, an investigator contacted M.B. On July 12, 2001, R.B. was taken to Black Hills Pediatrics for an interview and medical exam.
[ .] Guthmiller was arrested and charged with criminal pedophilia. A Pennington County jury convicted Guthmiller of the charge. The trial court also found on a Part II Information that Guthmiller was a habitual offender. Guthmiller was subsequently sentenced to life imprisonment without parole. Guthmiller appeals the following issues: 1. Whether the trial court erred in permitting statements to be admitted under SDCL 19-16-38 as an exception to the hearsay rule. 2. Whether the trial court erred in finding R.B. competent to testify. 3. Whether the trial court erred in denying Guthmiller's motion for mistrial. 4. Whether the trial court erred in denying Guthmiller's motion for a new trial based on new evidence. 5. Whether the trial court erred in not dismissing the Part II Habitual Offender Information. 6. Whether the trial court erred in preventing Guthmiller from offering testimony relating to various matters. 7. Whether the trial court erred in sentencing Guthmiller to life in prison and whether the sentence is cruel and unusual punishment in violation of the United States and South Dakota Constitutions.
DECISION
1. Whether the trial court erred in permitting statements to be admitted under SDCL 19-16-38 as an exception to the hearsay rule.
2. Whether the trial court erred in finding R.B. competent to testify.
[ .] The four-year-old child victim, R.B., testified at trial. The trial court also allowed R.B.'s statements to a friend and to her grandmother to be presented to the jury. Because issue
Page 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 South Dakota DUI Attorneys
DUI Lawyers
|
| |
to fill out a simple form to connect to DUI Lawyers in your area.
|
|