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State v. Garrett12/1/2005
be so strong and cogent as to exclude every other reasonable hypothesis save the guilt of the defendant, and that beyond a reasonable doubt." State v. Crawford, 225 Tenn. 478, 482, 470 S.W.2d 610, 612 (1971). "A web of guilt must be woven around the defendant from which he cannot escape and from which facts and circumstances the jury could draw no other reasonable inference save the guilt of the defendant beyond a reasonable doubt." Id. at 484, 470 S.W.2d at 613.
For purposes of the present case, felony murder is committed by one who kills another in the perpetration of, or attempt to perpetrate, any arson, Tenn. Code Ann. § 39-13-202(a)(2) (2003), and arson is committed by one who knowingly damages any structure by means of a fire or explosion " ithout the consent of all parties who have a possessory, proprietary or security interest therein," id. § 39-14-301. The defendant posits that the state failed to establish that the house and its contents were damaged without the consent of all persons having a possessory or propriety interest therein.
We disagree. The evidence showed that the deceased victim resided with the defendant in the fire-damaged house. The evidence also revealed that the house contained household furnishings and other personalty. A photograph depicted smoke-damaged bedroom furniture where the victim and the defendant slept. All in all, the circumstantial evidence was sufficient to establish that the victim had at least a possessory interest in the house and furnishings.
We hold that the evidence also circumstantially supports a finding that the damage was caused without the victim's consent. One component of the evidence that circumstantially established that the defendant set the fire is that the defendant placed the victim in the utility room and latched the door from the outside before setting the fire. This component also serves to establish an absence of the victim's consent. We are confident there is no reasonable basis for theorizing that the victim consented to setting fire to a house in which she was trapped and doomed to die by inhaling noxious gases.
Accordingly, we conclude that the evidence sufficiently supports the jury's finding that the defendant committed felony murder based upon its finding that the victim's death resulted from the defendant's perpetration of arson.
II. False Testimony
The defendant argues that the state sponsored false testimony from three witnesses, Bobby Alcorn, James Cooper, and David Miller. Specifically, the defendant alleges that each of these witnesses testified at the instant trial differently than they testified at his first trial and that the differences in the witnesses' testimonies were detrimental to him.
The state may not knowingly present false testimony and has an affirmative duty to correct the false testimony of its witnesses. See Giglio v. United States, 405 U.S. 150, 154, 92 S.Ct. 763, 766 (1972); State v. Spurlock, 874 S.W.2d 602, 617 (Tenn. Crim. App. 1993). The state's failure to correct false testimony of a witness violates due process of law as guaranteed by the United States and Tennessee constitutions. Giglio, 405 U.S. at 153-54, 92 S.Ct. at 766; Spurlock, 874 S.W.2d at 618. In order to obtain a new trial, the accused must establish that the prosecution knowingly presented false testimony that was material. State v. Cureton, 38 S.W.3d 64, 74-75 (Tenn. Crim. App. 2000). In determining the materiality of the testimony, the inquiry becomes whether a reasonable likelihood exists that the false testimony could have affected the jury's judgment. See Giglio, 405 U.S. at 154, 92 S.Ct. at 766.
A. Bobby Alcorn
The defendant as
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