State v. Gomez10/13/2005
lying on the sidewalk, the front door locked, all the lights off, and the shades pulled down. After ringing the doorbell and getting no answer, they left.
When Lisa was unable to reach the Hillmans on Sunday, March 18, she called her father and asked him to check on them. When he arrived at his parents' home, Larry Hillman found that a light in the bedroom window was on and the front door was unlocked. Upon entering, he discovered his parents' bodies. Autopsies revealed that Abel Hillman died of blunt force injuries to his head and that Esther Hillman had been stabbed more than 70 times, four of which could have been fatal in and of themselves.
After further investigation linked Gomez to the crime, he was arrested, charged, indicted for, and ultimately convicted of the Hillmans' murders.
I.
First, we consider whether the trial court improperly admitted evidence of previous crimes committed by Gomez. We review a trial court's decision to admit evidence of other crimes for an abuse of discretion. State v. Blom, 682 N.W.2d 578, 611 (Minn. 2004) (citing State v. Kennedy, 585 N.W.2d 385, 389 (Minn. 1998)). Evidence of past crimes, frequently referred to as Spreigl evidence, is generally not admissible to prove the defendant's character for committing crimes, but can be admitted to show motive, intent, absence of mistake, identity, or a common scheme or plan. Minn. R. Evid. 404(b); State v. Spreigl, 272 Minn. 488, 139 N.W.2d 167 (1965). Spreigl evidence can be admitted only if:
(1) notice is given that the state intends to use the evidence; (2) the state clearly indicates what the evidence is being offered to prove; (3) the evidence is clear and convincing that the defendant participated in the other offense; (4) the Spreigl evidence is relevant and material to the state's case; and (5) the probative value of the Spreigl evidence is not outweighed by its potential for unfair prejudice.
Kennedy, 585 N.W.2d at 389. If it is unclear whether Spreigl evidence is admissible, the benefit of the doubt should be given to the defendant and the evidence should be excluded. Id.
To prove identity, the state successfully sought to admit evidence related to the following four crimes committed by Gomez:
(1) On August 12, 1989, at 4:55 p.m., Gomez forcibly entered into an elderly couple's home. He struck both, knocked one to the ground, demanded money, and fled with their purse and wallet.
(2) On August 12, 1989, at 9:30 p.m., Gomez forcibly entered into another elderly couple's home. He took the man's wallet and struck him in the face, causing him a minor cut.
(3) On August 13, 1989, at 1:05 a.m., Gomez broke into the home of a 74-year-old woman, shoved her off the bed, demanded money, and rummaged through her closet and cabinet.
(4) On August 13, 1989, at 2:30 a.m., Gomez broke into an elderly couple's home. When the elderly woman attempted to reach for the phone, he grabbed her and pushed her onto a bed. He fled with a wallet.
Gomez concedes that the first three factors to be considered when determining the admissibility of Spreigl evidence were met, but argues nonetheless that the evidence should not have been admitted. He argues that the Spreigl evidence is inadmissible because the state's case was not "weak." We have previously held that " vidence of other crimes is admissible only if the trial court finds that the direct or circumstantial evidence of the defendant's identity is otherwise weak or inadequate, and that the evidence is necessary to support the state's burden of proof." State v. Billstrom, 276 Minn. 174, 178-79, 149 N.W.2d 281, 284 (1967) (emphasis added).
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