People v. Haylock

Opinion

ASHBY, J.

By jury trial appellant was convicted of first degree murder with use of a deadly weapon, a knife.

Appellant killed her ex-boyfriend, William Smith. In October 1978, she was living with him at the home of his mother, Mrs. Sanchez. In December 1978, Mrs. Sanchez told William that appellant had to move out of the house because appellant had gotten into a fight with William, during which appellant drew a big butcher knife out of the kitchen drawer in order to cut him.

Appellant moved out in February of 1979 and William began dating another woman, Judith Frazer. In May of 1979 as William and Judith were leaving the Sanchez residence, appellant jumped out from behind a tree in front of William with a butcher knife in her hand. He went back up the stairs and appellant left. William and Judith subsequently moved to Judith’s house.

In August 1979, appellant telephoned William’s mother and told Mrs. Sanchez that William would have to pay appellant $50 a week for child support or she would burn William’s car. Appellant also stated, “I can’t get your son, no one else will get him.”

At 5:30 a.m. on August 10 William walked out of Judith’s house to go to work. Judith watched William walk to the car which was parked behind the house. Judith heard appellant’s voice saying, “You son of a bitch, this is what you need.” Judith observed appellant near William with her right hand bent at the elbow, her hand closed in a fist, making a forward-downward motion from the shoulder, repeating, “You son of a bitch, this is what you need.” Judith ran outside and found William lying in a pool of blood. En route to the hospital, shortly before his death, William told a police officer appellant had stabbed him.

Back at Judith’s house, brown sugar was discovered in and around the gasoline tank of William’s car. Sugar in a gas tank ruins an engine. The police arrested appellant at her apartment and recovered from the

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kitchen a kitchen knife which had just been washed and a brown sugar container.

Appellant testified in her own defense. She admitted stabbing William with a knife. She claimed it was in self-defense as he was beating her, having discovered her putting brown sugar in his gas tank.