State v. Nieves4/15/2004
sion without independent proof of the corpus delicti, or the 'body of the crime.' " State v. Morgan, 204 Ariz. 166, 170, 15, 61 P.3d 460, 464 (App.2002). The corpus delicti rule requires that, before a defendant's statements are admissible as evidence of a crime, the State must show both proof of a crime and that someone is responsible for that crime. State v. Jones, 198 Ariz. 18, 21, 11, 6 P.3d 323, 326 (App.2000). The purpose of the rule is "to prevent a conviction based solely on an individual's uncorroborated confession, the concern being that such a confession could be false and the conviction thereby lack fundamental fairness." State v. Flores, 202 Ariz. 221, 222, 5, 42 P.3d 1186, 1187 (App.2002) (citation omitted); State ex rel. McDougall v. Superior Court, 188 Ariz. 147, 149, 933 P.2d 1215, 1217 (App.1996) ("The rationale for the [corpus delicti] doctrine was the realization that a defendant's confession might be untrustworthy due to mental instability or improper police procedures."). "Additionally, ... [w]hile other legal principles and rules of evidence protect the defendant from involuntary confessions, proof may be difficult to obtain, making this protection inadequate in certain cases." Jones, 198 Ariz. at 21, 11, 6 P.3d at 326.
8 To establish the corpus delicti in a homicide case, the State must introduce, in its case-in-chief, evidence independent of the defendant's inculpatory statements that raises a reasonable inference that the death in question was caused by criminal conduct. State v. Hall, 204 Ariz. 442, 453, 43, 65 P.3d 90, 101 (2003) (discussing the corpus delicti rule and holding that the State had established the corpus delicti in a first-degree murder case). If the State introduces such independent evidence, it may then also introduce the defendant's inculpatory statements. Id. The State's independent proof can be circumstantial. Id.; see also Flores, 202 Ariz. at 222, 5, 42 P.3d at 1187 (noting that the "State's proof need establish only a reasonable inference that the crime charged was actually committed").
9 The court addressed Nieves's motion to dismiss for failure to establish the corpus delicti off the record. Later, the trial court briefly referred to the off-the-record discussion and stated the court had "overruled" the motion "based upon oral argument." The court thus found that Nieves's statements were admissible because the State would be able to present evidence, in its case-in-chief, independent of Nieves's confession that Michelle's death was the result of criminal conduct.
**854 *441 10 The State accordingly introduced Nieves's admissions to Pastora Talavera and Detective Cisneros. At the close of the State's case, Nieves moved for a judgment of acquittal under Arizona Rule of Criminal Procedure 20(a). [FN3] The motion was based in part on Nieves's contention that the State failed to satisfy the requirements of the corpus delicti rule during its case-in-chief and thus should not have been permitted to introduce Nieves's confessions. The trial court denied the motion.
FN3. Rule 20(a) requires acquittal "if there is no substantial evidence to warrant a conviction."
11 In Nieves's case, the evidence regarding the cause of Michelle's death, independent of Nieves's statements, is as follows. Blanca Beceira testified that several days before Michelle's death, she saw the baby repeatedly losing consciousness for short periods of time, but the baby then "snapped out of it." A day or two later, Beceira said, she saw Michelle having problems breathing.
12 Pediatrician Kazue Yamada testified that he examined Michelle the day before her death. Nieves reported to him at the examination that Michelle had a temperature of 101 degrees for two days and diarrhea for
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