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State v. Joseph12/10/2003
Stated briefly, the relevant facts are as follows. On the night of Wednesday, March 28, 2001, the defendant, Robert Bradley Joseph (hereinafter "Mr. Joseph"), was socializing in his home with Jessica Martin (hereinafter "Ms. Martin"), an eighteen year-old female, and Duane Lucas (hereinafter "Mr. Lucas"). The three spent the evening drinking beer and listening to music until the early hours of the morning. *fn1 During the course of the evening, Ms. Martin rejected advances made by Mr. Joseph and she began flirting with Mr. Lucas. At approximately 4:00 a.m., Mr. Joseph became angry at the rejection and ordered Ms. Martin to leave the house. She left accompanied by Mr. Lucas. As the two departed, Mr. Joseph went out onto the porch of his home and fired two shots. *fn2 No one was injured by the shots.
Mr. Joseph testified that he became concerned about Ms. Martin and decided to look for her. He first drove to her grandmother's house where he encountered Ms. Martin's boyfriend, Richard Hackney (hereinafter "Mr. Hackney"). The two men then drove to the home of the victim, Mr. Scott Light (hereinafter "Mr. Light"). Mr. Light was not home, but his girlfriend explained that he had driven Ms. Martin and Mr. Lucas "down the road." Mr. Joseph then drove away from the house, but saw Mr. Light's vehicle approaching and turned around and followed Mr. Light into his driveway. Messrs. Joseph and Hackney got out of their vehicle and Mr. Joseph questioned Mr. Light about Ms. Martin's whereabouts. Mr. Light first denied that he knew where Ms. Martin was, but then admitted that he had driven Ms. Martin and Mr. Lucas to the mouth of the hollow. Upon hearing this, Mr. Joseph returned to his truck and spun his tires in Mr. Light's driveway. Mr. Light yelled at him to stop the truck. Mr. Light then walked over to Mr. Joseph's truck, pulled the driver's door open, and the two men argued. During the argument, Mr. Light pointed his finger at Mr. Joseph and Mr. Joseph slapped his hand away. According to Mr. Joseph, Mr. Light then struck or slapped him on the left side of the head. Mr. Joseph testified that, upon being slapped, he saw a "blue flash," and his hand landed on a .22 caliber pistol that was lying on the seat of his truck. Mr. Joseph grabbed the pistol and fired five shots into Mr. Light, mortally wounding him. Mr. Light fell to the ground. Then Mr. Joseph backed his vehicle over Mr. Light in his hasty attempt to leave the premises. Mr. Joseph then drove to his parents home where he called 911 and advised the operator that he had shot Mr. Light and requested assistance. He unloaded his pistol and waited at the kitchen table for the police to arrive.
Several years before the above described incident, in July 1989, Mr. Joseph was involved in a motorcycle accident. *fn3 Among the serious injuries Mr. Joseph sustained in the accident was a crush injury to his left frontal skull. *fn4
Mr. Joseph was charged with first-degree murder in connection with Mr. Light's death, and was tried by jury. Mr. Joseph sought to assert the defense of diminished capacity resulting from the brain injury sustained in his motorcycle accident of 1989. He offered the testimony of three doctors in support of this defense. One doctor, Dr. John Beard, is a doctor of osteopathy who had treated Mr. Joseph at Sharpe Hospital in August 2000, after Mr. Joseph had been hospitalized for treatment of his threatening behavior and substance abuse following a DUI arrest. The second doctor, Dr. Mark A. Hughes, is a board certified psychiatrist who practices at Shawnee Hills and Highland Hospital. Dr. Hughes saw Mr. Joseph professionally on August 29, 2000, and a number of times thereafter. Finally, Mr. Joseph offered the expert testimony of Dr. Robert W.
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