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State v. Kelsey6/8/1998
ng the bombs from his travel bag. Kelsey testified that he was unaware, at the time, of what Payne actually intended to do with the wrench and bombs.
Defendants and Richey then got into Lee's car, ostensibly to take Richey home. Lee was driving, Kelsey was in the passenger seat, and Payne and Richey were in the backseat. Although Richey had given them directions to her house, Lee detoured in the opposite direction. Richey asked where they were going; Payne replied that they were going to drive around for a while. Lee eventually drove across the Georgia border and into South Carolina. Lee testified that the music was "obscenely" loud in the car, and he was going about 90 m.p.h.
Soon after entering South Carolina, Lee noticed his tachometer go from 4200 to 6000 r.p.m. Lee looked down at the gear shift and discovered Richey's foot had knocked the gear into neutral. Lee turned around and saw that Payne had Richey in a "strangle hold type position." Lee continued to drive. A few minutes later, Lee "heard two quick, empty thud type sounds." He again turned around and saw that Payne still had Richey in a strangle hold. Lee further testified that Payne had the wrench in his hand. Kelsey testified that he had also turned around and saw that Richey's body was limp, her face was pale, and her lips were blue.
A few moments later, Payne leaned forward to tell Lee to turn the music down. According to Lee's testimony, Payne stated, "I'm pretty sure she's knocked out, guys." Payne then instructed Lee to go to "Scary Bridge" which crossed over Stevens Creek, the boundary line between Edgefield and McCormick counties. Lee drove to the bridge where he parked the car.
Defendants got out of the car, leaving Richey in the backseat. Payne informed Lee and Kelsey that he was going to have sex with Richey. Payne took off his clothes and Richey's shorts. A few moments later, Lee warned Payne that a car was coming. Defendants quickly got back into Lee's car and began driving. After the approaching vehicle passed, Lee turned the car around and went back to the bridge. Lee testified that Richey was unconscious the entire time, and "she was definitely alive." Kelsey, on the other hand, testified that he had checked Richey's pulse, and he believed she was dead.
Lee once again drove away from the bridge. He got approximately 100 feet down the road when Payne told him to stop the car. Defendants pulled Richey out of the car and carried her into the woods and up an embankment where they placed her on the ground. Lee returned to the car. Payne and Kelsey remained by Richey's body.
Kelsey testified that while he was standing over Richey's body, Payne instructed him to place a pipe bomb into Richey's mouth. Kelsey complied. Payne then lit the fuse, and the two ran. A few seconds later, the bomb exploded. Defendants returned to Kirchner's house where they fell asleep.
Defendants were eventually arrested and charged with Richey's murder. Kelsey was arrested in Maryland and brought back to South Carolina to stand trial. Kelsey's case was transferred from family court to the Court of General Sessions where Kelsey and Payne were tried together as adults. Payne was found guilty of murder and criminal conspiracy. Kelsey was found guilty of murder, possession of a pipe bomb, and criminal conspiracy. Kelsey was sentenced to life imprisonment for murder and consecutive sentences of five years for possession of a pipe bomb and criminal conspiracy.
Kelsey appeals his conviction, raising the following issues:
(1) Did the trial court err in denying Kelsey's directed verdict motions because there was insufficient proof that Kelsey was guilty of murd
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