Collman v. State8/23/2000
As amended September 20, 2000.
THOMAS COLLMAN,
APPELLANT,
V.
THE STATE OF NEVADA,
RESPONDENT.
David M. Schieck, Las Vegas, for Appellant. Frankie Sue Del Papa, Attorney General, Carson City; Sudabeh Fahami, District Attorney, and Theodore J. Beutel, Chief Deputy District Attorney, and Rusty D. Jardine, Chief Deputy District Attorney, White Pine County, for Respondent. Franny A. Forsman, Federal Public Defender, and Michael L. Pescetta, Assistant Federal Public Defender, Las Vegas, for Amicus Curiae Federal Public Defender. Stewart L. Bell, District Attorney, and Brian S. Rutledge, Chief Deputy District Attorney, Clark County, for Amicus Curiae Clark County District Attorney's Office.
The opinion of the court was delivered by: Agosti, J.
Appeal from a judgment of conviction, pursuant to a jury verdict, of one count of first-degree murder and a sentence of death. Seventh Judicial District Court, White Pine County; Dan L. Papez, Judge.
Affirmed.
ROSE, C.J., dissented.
BEFORE THE COURT EN BANC.
OPINION
Appellant Thomas Collman was convicted of first-degree murder and sentenced to death for killing three-year-old Damian Stach, the son of Lory Stach, Collman's live-in girlfriend.
On appeal, Collman challenges various evidentiary and other rulings of the district court. None of these challenges warrant relief. Although we conclude that the jury was erroneously instructed in the guilt phase that child abuse constituted conclusive evidence of malice aforethought, we conclude that the error was harmless. We therefore affirm Collman's conviction and sentence of death.
FACTS
Damian was born to Stach and her ex-boyfriend, Warren Williams, on January 5, 1993. Stach was apparently a loving, affectionate mother, and Damian a happy, healthy, and energetic baby.
In September 1994, Stach moved to Las Vegas, Nevada. Stach soon met Collman, and they began dating. Shortly thereafter, Stach became pregnant with Collman's child. Stach, Collman, and two-year-old Damian then moved into a house together.
Collman and Stach decided to move to Ely, Nevada, where Collman would train for a position as a prison guard at the Ely State Prison. In order to save money, Stach, Collman, and Damian moved into the home of Collman's parents in Las Vegas. On June 3, 1995, Collman moved to Ely to begin his training, and Stach and Damian remained at the Collman residence.
Damian's brother, Darian, was born in August 1995. In October 1995, Stach, Damian, and Darian joined Collman at the Cross Timbers Trailer Park in Ely. In November 1995, Stach started noticing that Damian was losing his hair and that he bruised easily. She could not afford to take Damian to the doctor; however, she falsely told people that she had sought medical care for him and discovered that Damian had a disease. Stach's brother, Richard Stach, sent her $300.00 to take Damian to the doctor; instead, Stach spent the money on household bills and Christmas presents. Around this time, Damian became shy, withdrawn, and lethargic.
In December 1995, the family rented a house with a basement on Avenue E in Ely. The carpeted stairs to the basement did not have a railing, but had a T-shaped landing in the middle dividing the stairway into two sections of six steps each.
On January 19, 1996, Collman was home sick and slept until noon. At about 7 a.m., Stach and the children were awake, and Stach discovered that Damian had eaten a whole pack of bubble gum and some
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