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Waldrip v. Head10/11/2005
Tommy Lee Waldrip was convicted in 1994 of murdering Keith Lloyd Evans and related crimes. Waldrip was sentenced to death for the murder, and this Court unanimously affirmed. Waldrip v. State, 267 Ga. 739 (482 SE2d 299) (1997). Waldrip filed a petition for writ of habeas corpus on March 17, 1998; an evidentiary hearing was held on April 29, 2002; and his petition was denied in an order filed on June 10, 2004. This Court granted Waldrip's application for certificate of probable cause to appeal on May 9, 2005, and directed the parties to address whether the habeas court erred in denying Waldrip's evidence suppression claims and in denying Waldrip's claim regarding the State's use, during his competency trial, of his silence and request for counsel. For the reasons set forth below, we find no reversible error and therefore affirm.
I. Factual Background
The evidence at Tommy Lee Waldrip's trial showed that his son, John Mark Waldrip, had been convicted of armed robbery, had successfully moved for a new trial, and was awaiting re-trial. Keith Evans was to be a witness in the armed robbery re-trial. Late on the night of April 13, 1991, Tommy Lee Waldrip, John Mark Waldrip, and Tommy Lee Waldrip's brother-in-law, Howard Livingston, drove to a secluded highway where they stopped Keith Evans as he was driving home from work. Keith Evans was shot twice with a shotgun as he sat in his truck, was driven in his truck to another location, was beaten to death, and was buried in a shallow grave at a third location.
II. Allegedly-Suppressed Evidence
Waldrip claims that the State suppressed a number of items of allegedly- exculpatory evidence in violation of Brady v. Maryland, 373 U. S. 83 (83 SC 1194, 10 LE2d 215) (1963). To prevail on an evidence suppression claim, one must show the State possessed evidence favorable to the defendant; the defendant did not possess the evidence nor could he obtain it himself with any reasonable diligence; the prosecution suppressed the favorable evidence; and had the evidence been disclosed to the defense, a reasonable probability exists that the outcome of the proceeding would have been different.
Burgeson v. State, 267 Ga. 102 (2) (475 SE2d 580) (1996). Below, we discuss each item of allegedly-suppressed evidence, and we then analyze any collective prejudice suffered by Waldrip and the impact of procedural default on Waldrip's overall evidence suppression claim.
A. "Summary Report"
Waldrip had numerous contacts with law enforcement officers before and after his arrest. During his habeas proceedings, Waldrip obtained a "Summary Report," a 22-page document apparently summarizing various aspects of the murder investigation. At the conclusion of a section describing Waldrip's arrest, the report states as follows: "Tommy was initially interviewed by Sheriff Chester, However, he asked for an attorney and the interview was terminated." Waldrip argues this statement in the "Summary Report" adequately proves he requested counsel after his arrest. He then argues his uncounseled, highly-inculpatory statements to Georgia Bureau of Investigation Agent Tim Attaway the day after his arrest are inadmissible because they were made as a result of Agent Attaway's initiating contact with him in violation of Edwards v. Arizona, 451 U. S 477 (101 SC 1880, 68 LE2d 378) (1981).
In its analysis, the habeas court stated that the "Summary Report" "was not Brady material but, instead, constituted the work product of the State and, as such, was not discoverable by the defense." In support of its ruling, the habeas court cited Foster v. State, 258 Ga. 736 (4) (374 SE2d 188) (1988), which concerned a motion by the defe
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