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State v. Mann6/6/2000
to determine if there is any evidence, however slight, to support all elements of the defense. Lucero, 1998-NMSC-044, 6. If a defendant presents sufficient evidence so that reasonable minds may differ as to all elements of the defense, the defense instruction must be given. State v. Gallegos, 104 N.M. 247, 249, 719 P.2d 1268, 1270 (Ct. App. 1986) (abrogated in part on other grounds by State v. Alberico, 116 N.M. 156, 168, 861 P.2d 192, 204 (1993)). There need not be a showing by Defendant that his son was in actual danger from the actions of Ms. St. Jeor. Rather, there must be a showing that Defendant was in fear of apparent or immediate danger. Id. at 250, 719 P.2d at 1271. There must be evidence, however, that Defendant's fear was reasonable. Id. There must be some evidence that Defendant "acted as a reasonable person would have acted in the same circumstances." Id. With these principles in mind, we now examine the evidence presented.
The victim of the aggravated battery testified that after hearing a commotion in the bathroom and a scream, she rushed to the bathroom to see what was going on, rushed back to call 911, put some clothes on, and then returned to the bathroom. She approached the child in an attempt to calm him and keep him still when she was struck by Defendant. She testified that "[Defendant] made a terrible animal sound, a terrible animal sound like a wounded animal."
Defendant testified that after his son was impaled by the screwdriver, he knew the child had to be kept still and that he, Defendant, had to keep the screwdriver still so it would not cause additional damage. He also testified that, when Ms. St. Jeor came to help, he thought she was going to move the child, and he pushed her away for that reason. He also testified that he remembered standing up and pushing her out of the way.
Dr. Samuel Roll, a clinical psychologist, testified that the human and parental instinct is such that it would not be unusual for parents to resort to primitive instincts when they perceive their child is in danger. When presented with a hypothetical representing Defendant's claims of what occurred, Dr. Roll testified that "anyone approaching the child, if the person felt they were protecting the child and there was some way that they had in their head was important to protect the child, if there was some risk of anyone doing anything to hurt the child, I think that anyone who walked into that context would be at risk for being repelled by any force by this person who felt that he was trying to protect his child from further harm." Dr. Roll also stated that Defendant's reaction to the perceived threat was likely to occur among people in general. The psychologist then testified that Defendant told him that he thought Ms. St. Jeor was going to move the screwdriver and he "moved her out of the way." Finally, the witness explained that:
One of the situations that makes any of us behave about as primitive as we can behave is when our child is in danger and we think there some way to help [when] someone is endangering the child. At that point we become primitive and probably call on very basic instincts, not just for human beings, but almost any mammal. [If s]omebody is going to hurt the child, the first step is to make sure that you keep that person away from the child. So that's very primitive, very predictable . . . .
The sheriff's deputies and emergency personnel who responded to the scene of the incident testified that when they arrived, Defendant would not allow the emergency personnel access to the child. Deputy Ronnie Weller testified that when he arrived, "[Defendant] was in a crouched position on the floor over the child. D
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