Lathisha Lawson v. State of Indiana ( 2012 )


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  •                                                             FILED
    May 10 2012, 9:15 am
    FOR PUBLICATION
    CLERK
    of the supreme court,
    court of appeals and
    tax court
    ATTORNEY FOR APPELLANT:                       ATTORNEYS FOR APPELLEE:
    JOHN C. BOHDAN                                GREGORY F. ZOELLER
    Fort Wayne, Indiana                           Attorney General of Indiana
    GEORGE P. SHERMAN
    Deputy Attorney General
    Indianapolis, Indiana
    IN THE
    COURT OF APPEALS OF INDIANA
    LATISHA A. LAWSON,                            )
    )
    Appellant-Defendant,                    )
    )
    vs.                              )     No. 02A03-1107-CR-350
    )
    STATE OF INDIANA,                             )
    )
    Appellee-Plaintiff.                     )
    APPEAL FROM THE ALLEN SUPERIOR COURT
    The Honorable Frances C. Gull, Judge
    Cause No. 02D05-1012-FA-64
    May 10, 2012
    OPINION - FOR PUBLICATION
    BARNES, Judge
    Case Summary1
    Latisha Lawson appeals her convictions for murder, Class C felony neglect of a
    dependent, Class D felony neglect of a dependent, and Class D felony battery. We
    affirm.
    Issue
    The sole issue before us is whether there is sufficient evidence to support the
    jury’s rejection of Lawson’s insanity defense.
    Facts
    Lawson was the mother of two children: K.K., born in 2000, and J.K., born in
    2007. Lawson lived with the father of the children, Lawrence King, until October 2009,
    when the two split up. King had known Lawson for fifteen years and had never noticed
    any signs that she had a “profound mental illness.” Tr. p. 622. Additionally, Lawson had
    never previously received any mental health treatment.
    After splitting up with King, Lawson and her children moved in with Natasha
    Hawkins and her three children. Lawson, who had always been steadily employed, quit
    her job after moving in with Hawkins. She also began homeschooling K.K. Lawson
    later explained that she believed God or “the Lord” had told her to quit her job and move
    in with Hawkins. Id. at 743. While she was living with Hawkins, other persons who
    came into contact with Lawson did not notice any signs of mental illness or unusual
    1
    We held oral argument in this case on April 2, 2012, at the University of Notre Dame Law School. We
    thank the Law School for its hospitality, and counsel for both parties for their able presentations and
    participation in this “traveling” oral argument.
    2
    behavior. One person trusted Lawson enough to allow her to babysit her own children at
    times.
    Behind closed doors, however, Lawson was frequently battering K.K. with a belt
    and extension cords, sometimes with enough force to leave permanent scars. Lawson
    began telling K.K. that J.K. was possessed by a demon, whom Lawson believed was
    named Marzon. Lawson believed that J.K.’s physical appearance and bone structure was
    changing as a result of his possession; Lawson also managed to convince K.K. that these
    changes were occurring. At some point, Lawson claims that God revealed a plan to
    exorcise the demon from J.K. The plan required forcing J.K., along with K.K. and
    Hawkins’s children,2 to ingest a combination of “blessed” oil (i.e., olive oil over which
    Lawson prayed) and vinegar. Id. at 754. Hawkins agreed to this plan, and Lawson
    asserts that God told her the specific day on which to carry it out.
    On that day, which appears to have been in November 2009, all of the children
    were given the oil and vinegar mixture, which caused them to vomit. J.K. fought against
    drinking the mixture, shaking his head no, crying, and attempting to spit it out. Hawkins
    helped hold J.K. down while he was given the mixture. Lawson and Hawkins, who
    apparently showed no signs of anger during the process, prayed out loud over J.K. The
    other children could not understand what the adults were saying for the most part, and
    Lawson claimed that she was speaking in tongues at that time. In order to force J.K. to
    ingest the oil and vinegar mixture, Lawson held her hand over his mouth for as long as
    2
    Apparently, Lawson believed that the other four children were possessed by demons as well, though not
    to the same extent as J.K.
    3
    five to ten minutes. Eventually, Lawson noticed that J.K. stopped breathing, and she told
    K.K. to say “bye” to him. Id. at 318. J.K. died at that time from suffocation.3 Lawson
    later claimed to have been shocked that J.K. had died and that she expected him to come
    back to life at some point.
    After J.K. died, his body was placed on Hawkins’s bed, where it remained for
    approximately one month while Lawson and Hawkins continued sleeping in the bed next
    to it. Lawson told one of Hawkins’s children that she was “doing things for God” that
    would lead to J.K. coming back to life, which the child considered “crazy.” Id. at 543.
    Lawson also purchased some clothes for J.K. after he died. Later, J.K.’s body was
    moved into a closet, and K.K. noticed a bad smell coming from the closet. Lawson and
    Hawkins eventually stuffed J.K.’s body into a plastic bin. Lawson forbade K.K. from
    discussing J.K.’s death, saying that she (Lawson) would go to jail if anyone found out
    about it. Lawson also sometimes forced the children in the house either to look at or
    touch J.K.’s body as a form of punishment.
    Lawson essentially broke off all contact with her mother after moving in with
    Hawkins, even though she previously had had frequent contact with her. Lawson’s
    mother eventually contacted the Department of Child Services (“DCS”) and the Ft.
    3
    There was evidence that J.K. had a broken bone in his neck, and a pathologist believed that the break
    must have occurred during his life, indicating that pressure had been applied to his neck and he had been
    strangled to death. Lawson denies that any strangulation of the neck occurred and the bone break must
    have occurred after death, but she does admit to having suffocated J.K. by placing her hand over his
    mouth for at least five to ten minutes. None of the other testifying eyewitnesses to J.K.’s death—K.K.
    and Hawkins’s three children—described Lawson as putting her hand around his neck, as opposed to over
    his mouth. In any event, Lawson makes no argument, aside from her insanity claim, that there is
    insufficient evidence of knowingly or intentionally killing J.K.
    4
    Wayne Police Department with her concerns over Lawson and the children’s situation.
    In September 2010, a Ft. Wayne police officer went to Lawson and Hawkins’s apartment
    to perform a welfare check. The officer spoke to Lawson and did not notice any signs
    that she was suffering from a mental health issue. Lawson also told the officer that J.K.
    was staying with an aunt at the time. After walking through the apartment and finding
    nothing unusual, the officer left and filed a report with DCS, which evidently did not
    follow up on the report. Lawson also told other persons, after J.K.’s death, that he was
    staying with other family members.
    Lawson moved out of Hawkins’s apartment at the end of November 2010. She
    brought the plastic bin containing J.K.’s body with her when she moved into the home of
    an acquaintance, Yvonne Hill. Lawson told Hill first that J.K. was “somewhere safe,”
    and later said that he had been adopted. Id. at 266. Hill described her conversations with
    Lawson as “normal.” Id. at 268. After a short time living with Hill, Lawson moved into
    a home provided by a local pastor. Again, she brought the plastic bin with her, keeping it
    by her bedside.
    On December 20, 2010, Ft. Wayne police officers performed a welfare check on
    Hawkins and her children at her apartment. Hawkins revealed to the officers that a baby
    had been killed in her apartment approximately one year before and placed into a bin.
    Police then were able to locate Lawson. At first, Lawson told police that her son had
    been adopted, but she declined to say by whom. Eventually, Lawson gave police a
    statement describing her belief that J.K. had been possessed, the exorcism attempt, and
    5
    his death. Lawson consented to a search of the residence where she had been staying,
    and police found the plastic tub with J.K.’s partially mummified body inside.
    On December 28, 2010, the State charged Lawson with Class A felony battery,
    Class A felony neglect of a dependent, Class C felony neglect of a dependent, Class D
    felony neglect of a dependent, and Class D felony battery. The first two charges were
    with respect to J.K.’s death, and the last three charges were with respect to Lawson’s
    treatment of K.K., including physically and mentally abusing her and forcing her to drink
    the oil and vinegar. On January 28, 2011, the State added a charge of murder for J.K.’s
    death.
    Lawson filed notice that she intended to rely upon a defense of insanity. She
    accordingly was examined by two court-appointed experts: Dr. Kevin Wieland, a clinical
    psychologist, and Dr. Herbert Trier, a psychiatrist. Dr. Wieland’s examination consisted
    of interviews and tests totaling seven to eight hours, while Dr. Trier’s examination
    consisted of a forty-five minute interview and review of the background investigation of
    the case. At Lawson’s jury trial held on May 24-27, 2011, Dr. Wieland was asked
    whether he had an opinion on whether Lawson was “sane or insane at the time of the
    offense,” and he responded, “My opinion [sic] that Ms. Lawson was able to determine
    right from wrong regardless of a delusional process she may have.” Id. at 443-44. Dr.
    Wieland further explained that his opinion was “to a medical degree of certainty” for the
    following reasons:
    6
    Based on all of the psychological measures and the clinical
    interview my opinion comes from a belief that she did [sic] in
    order to help her child. And that was her main goal of even
    doing the behavior at all. And so because of that her belief at
    that particular time was that her actions would help her child
    not harm. So she has a belief that helping is better than
    harming. She also has a deep belief in God and spirituality
    and cited on numerous occasions throughout the interview
    that God tries to influence for good rather than evil. And she
    talked a lot about good verses [sic] evil in the interview. And
    from that we can take that she has a strong belief between
    right, wrong, good, evil and that’s where that opinion comes
    from.
    Id. at 446-47.
    Dr. Wieland also testified that based upon Lawson’s description of events to him,
    “she definitely demonstrated the ability to make choices and to make choices in a right or
    wrong manner at that time.” Id. at 451. He also believed there was “no evidence that she
    was unable to appreciate the wrongfulness of her conduct at the time of the offense.” Id.
    at 473. After questioning by the court and the parties, the jury submitted a question
    asking Dr. Wieland whether “an insane person [can] in any way tell the difference
    between right and wrong.” Id. at 478. Dr. Wieland responded, “Yes. Just because
    somebody is considered insane doesn’t mean that they lose the ability [sic] ascertain right
    and wrong although many times they do.” Id.
    Dr. Trier testified that he “felt that she was not sane at the time of the offense.” Id.
    at 483. He also stated that a person with a delusional mental illness “might know right
    from wrong in a number of circumstances but not in the area where the delusions
    concerned.” Id. at 488-89. He also noted that “a person can be acting normal and have a
    7
    delusional disorder . . . that happens all the time.” Id. at 491-92. Dr. Trier believed that
    Lawson may have had either psychotic depression with delusions or schizophrenic
    disorder with delusions. Neither Dr. Wieland nor Dr. Trier gave any indication that they
    suspected Lawson of malingering.4
    The jury was instructed that it had the option of finding Lawson not guilty, not
    responsible by reason of insanity, guilty, or guilty but mentally ill. It returned a verdict
    of guilty for all six counts. The trial court entered judgments of conviction on four of the
    six counts: murder, Class C felony neglect of a dependent, Class D felony neglect of a
    dependent, and Class D felony battery. After being sentenced to an aggregate term of
    sixty-one years, Lawson now appeals.
    Analysis
    Lawson’s sole argument on appeal is that the jury erred in rejecting her insanity
    defense.5 Even when the State proves every element of a charged offense beyond a
    reasonable doubt, a defendant can avoid criminal responsibility for that offense by raising
    and proving an insanity defense. Galloway v. State, 
    938 N.E.2d 699
    , 708 (Ind. 2010).
    Indiana Code Section 35-41-3-6 states:
    (a)     A person is not responsible for having engaged in
    prohibited conduct if, as a result of mental disease or defect,
    he was unable to appreciate the wrongfulness of the conduct
    at the time of the offense.
    4
    Any written reports prepared by Dr. Wieland or Dr. Trier based on their examinations of Lawson were
    not introduced into evidence.
    5
    Lawson’s argument on this point focuses primarily upon J.K.’s death.
    8
    (b)   As used in this section, “mental disease or defect”
    means a severely abnormal mental condition that grossly and
    demonstrably impairs a person’s perception, but the term does
    not include an abnormality manifested only by repeated
    unlawful or antisocial conduct.
    The defendant must prove an insanity defense by a preponderance of the evidence. 
    Ind. Code § 35-41-4-1
    (b).
    Because Lawson bore the burden of establishing her insanity defense, she is now
    appealing from a negative judgment. See Galloway, 938 N.E.2d at 709. When reviewing
    a negative judgment, this court will not reweigh evidence, reassess witness credibility, or
    disturb reasonable inferences made by the trier of fact, even if more reasonable inferences
    arguably could have been made. Id. A defendant appealing a rejection of his or her
    insanity defense must establish to this court that the evidence is without conflict and leads
    only to the conclusion that he or she was insane when the crime was committed. Id.
    “Although this standard of review is deferential, it is not impossible . . . . An impossible
    standard of review under which appellate courts merely ‘rubber stamp’ the fact finder’s
    determinations, no matter how unreasonable, would raise serious constitutional concerns
    because it would make the right to an appeal illusory.” Id.
    When mental health experts who have examined a defendant offer conflicting
    opinions on whether a defendant was insane at the time of the offense, i.e. where one or
    more experts testify that the defendant was insane while others testify that he or she was
    sane, such conflicting testimony generally “is sufficiently probative of sanity.” Id. at
    710. Even when the experts unanimously agree that a defendant was insane when a
    9
    crime was committed, a jury may still reject an insanity defense if there is “other
    evidence of probative value from which a conflicting inference of sanity can be drawn.”
    Id. at 712. Such evidence may include “lay opinion testimony that conflicts with the
    experts or demeanor evidence that, when considered in light of the other evidence,
    permits a reasonable inference of sanity to be drawn.” Id. An expert witness who
    testifies that he or she has no opinion as to a defendant’s sanity does not provide
    probative evidence on that question. Id. at 711. “[A]s a matter of law, a person is either
    sane or insane at the time of the crime; there is no intermediate ground.” Id. Where one
    or more experts offer an opinion that a defendant was insane when a crime was
    committed, while another expert fails to offer any opinion, this is treated as if there is
    unconflicting expert testimony that the defendant was insane for purposes of appellate
    review. See id. at 711-12.
    Lawson first argues that Dr. Wieland did not provide probative evidence on the
    question of Lawson’s sanity, thus leaving only Dr. Trier’s opinion of insanity. Although
    Dr. Wieland offered a blanket statement that Lawson was sane at the time of J.K.’s death,
    Lawson claims that his explanations for that finding and subsequent testimony render that
    opinion lacking in probative value, as if he had failed to offer any opinion on her sanity.
    We disagree with Lawson’s assertion on this point.
    As a court’s witness, the trial court asked Dr. Wieland whether he had an opinion
    on whether Lawson was “sane or insane at the time of the offense,” and he responded,
    “My opinion [sic] that Ms. Lawson was able to determine right from wrong regardless of
    10
    a delusional process she may have.” Tr. pp. 443-44.6 Dr. Wieland also testified that he
    believed there was “no evidence that she was unable to appreciate the wrongfulness of
    her conduct at the time of the offense.” Id. at 473.
    Despite this testimony, Lawson essentially argues that we should disregard it. She
    draws a comparison to Galloway, where an expert who originally testified that he
    believed the defendant was sane later opined after extensive cross-examination that he
    was unable to offer a definite opinion on sanity, and a majority of our supreme court
    concluded that such testimony equated to the expert’s failure to offer an opinion on the
    defendant’s sanity. See Galloway, 938 N.E.2d at 711.7 Dr. Wieland did testify, in
    explaining his finding of sanity, that Lawson had a “belief at that particular time . . . that
    her actions would help her child not harm. So she has a belief that helping is better than
    harming.” Tr. pp. 446-47. Arguably, this explanation of his findings is inconsistent with
    his testimony that Lawson was sane, which necessarily implies that she knew that what
    she was doing was wrong when she killed J.K. Likewise, the jury submitted a question to
    Dr. Wieland asking whether “an insane person [can] in any way tell the difference
    6
    As indicated by Dr. Wieland’s reference to “a delusional process she may have,” he did not give a
    definitive opinion on whether Lawson was in fact suffering from a mental illness and delusions, nor was
    he directly asked that question. On the other hand, Dr. Wieland did not give any testimony that Lawson
    was malingering or faking her claims of delusions, which were corroborated by the testimony of K.K. and
    Hawkins’s children regarding her belief that J.K. was possessed by a demon. As noted, the jury found
    Lawson guilty of these offenses, not guilty but mentally ill, meaning it concluded Lawson suffered from
    no mental illness at all when she committed them.
    7
    Justices Shepard and Dickson strongly disagreed with the majority’s assessment of the expert’s
    testimony, believing it was within the province of the jury to believe the expert’s written report and direct
    testimony finding the defendant to be sane and to find his answers on cross-examination to be “less
    compelling.” Galloway, 938 N.E.2d at 718 (Shepard, C.J., dissenting).
    11
    between right and wrong.” Id. at 478. Dr. Wieland responded, “Yes. Just because
    somebody is considered insane doesn’t mean that they lose the ability [sic] ascertain right
    and wrong although many times they do.” Id. Lawson contends it is incompatible with
    the legal definition of insanity to state that an insane person can tell right from wrong. 8
    Regardless of any perceived weaknesses in Dr. Wieland’s testimony, we conclude
    it was within the province of the jury to assess the weight to be given to that testimony.
    We observe that the majority in Galloway did not reweigh the testimony of the expert or
    reassess his credibility. Rather, it relied upon the expert’s ultimate conclusion, after
    being presented on cross-examination with facts of which he had previously been
    unaware, that he could not offer an opinion on the defendant’s sanity. Galloway, 938
    N.E.2d at 711. Here, by contrast, Dr. Wieland never wavered from his original opinion
    that Lawson was able to appreciate the wrongfulness of her conduct and, therefore, was
    legally sane at the time of these crimes. We decline to expand Galloway to cover the
    present situation.
    Rather, we believe this case is covered by the well-established rule that an
    appellate court will not reassess the credibility of a witness unless such testimony was
    “incredibly dubious.” “[A] court will impinge upon the jury’s responsibility to judge the
    credibility of witnesses only when confronted with inherently improbable testimony or
    8
    The State notes that Dr. Wieland was not specifically asked in this jury question about the legal
    definition of insanity, as opposed to insanity in a colloquial sense. In that regard, Dr. Wieland’s comment
    about an “insane” person being able to tell right from wrong might only have meant that a person with
    even a severe mental illness may still possess the ability to appreciate the wrongfulness of his or her
    conduct, which is insufficient to meet the legal definition of insanity. See Galloway, 938 N.E.2d at 708.
    12
    coerced, equivocal, wholly uncorroborated testimony of incredible dubiosity.” Murray v.
    State, 
    761 N.E.2d 406
    , 408 (Ind. 2002) (emphasis added). Lawson does not make an
    “incredible dubiosity” argument. Moreover, as a general rule any discrepancies in expert
    witness testimony, or lack of facts and reasoning to support expert opinion, go to the
    weight to be given that testimony and not to its admissibility. See Krumm v. State, 
    793 N.E.2d 1170
    , 1180-81 (Ind. Ct. App. 2003), abrogated on other grounds by Hoglund v.
    State, 
    962 N.E.2d 1230
     (Ind. 2012). That being the case, any inconsistencies or lack of
    clarity in Dr. Wieland’s testimony was for the jury to consider in weighing his testimony.
    We decline to second-guess its apparent assessment of that testimony.
    We conclude that Dr. Wieland’s testimony is probative evidence that Lawson was
    sane when she committed these crimes, and that alone “is sufficiently probative of
    sanity,” despite its conflict with Dr. Trier’s testimony that Lawson was insane. See
    Galloway, 938 N.E.2d at 710. The jury certainly was free to credit Dr. Wieland’s opinion
    over Dr. Trier’s, especially given the much longer time Dr. Wieland spent examining and
    testing Lawson as opposed to Dr. Trier. See Fernbach v. State, 
    954 N.E.2d 1080
    , 1086
    (Ind. Ct. App. 2011) (noting that jury was entitled “to give little or no weight” to insanity
    opinions of expert witnesses, based on their descriptions of how thoroughly they had
    examined the defendant), trans. denied.
    Additionally, there was independent lay witness testimony tending to corroborate
    Dr. Wieland’s opinion that Lawson was sane. First, Lawson told K.K. after J.K.’s death
    not to tell anyone about it because she could go to jail if anyone found out, which is
    13
    evidence of awareness of the wrongfulness of her conduct. Second, Lawson told persons
    who came investigating J.K.’s whereabouts either that he had been adopted or was
    visiting other family members, which is consistent with an attempt to “cover up” her
    wrongdoing. Third, several persons who interacted with Lawson while she was living
    with Hawkins noticed nothing unusual about her behavior; one of these persons went so
    far as to permit Lawson to babysit her children.
    The Galloway majority carefully scrutinized the so-called “demeanor” lay
    evidence of the defendant’s sanity in that case, finding there to be limits to the probative
    value of such evidence. Galloway, 938 N.E.2d at 713. It held such evidence to be “of
    more limited value when the defendant has a long history of mental illness with
    psychosis.” Id. The Galloway majority quoted extensively from this court:
    The proposition that a jury may infer that a person’s actions
    before and after a crime are “indicative of his actual mental
    health at the time of the” crime is logical when dealing with a
    defendant who is not prone to delusional or hallucinogenic
    episodes. However, when a defendant has a serious and well-
    documented mental disorder, such as schizophrenia, one that
    causes him to see, hear, and believe realities that do not exist,
    such logic collapses . . . .
    Moler v. State, 
    782 N.E.2d 454
    , 458–59 (Ind. Ct. App. 2003), trans. denied.             The
    Galloway majority also noted that “insanity is not limited to the stereotypical view of a
    ‘raging lunatic’—a person experiencing a psychotic delusion may appear normal to
    passersby.” Galloway, 938 N.E.2d at 713-14.
    14
    The Galloway majority observed that the concept of using lay witness demeanor
    evidence had more probative value to negate an insanity defense when it was based on
    whether the defendant had the capacity to conform his or her conduct to the law’s
    requirements, but that basis for an insanity defense was removed from the statute in 1984.
    Id. at 714. Finally, the Galloway majority noted that “demeanor evidence before and
    after a crime is of more limited value than the defendant’s demeanor during the crime.”
    Id. Indiana recognizes claims of “temporary insanity,” and so there is the possibility that
    a defendant may be legally insane when a crime is committed but apparently sane
    immediately before and after the crime. Id. In sum, “demeanor evidence must be
    considered as a whole, in relation to all the other evidence.” Id.
    We believe the observations of the Galloway majority have limited application in
    this case, where there is in fact expert testimony that Lawson was sane at the time of
    these crimes. That is, the “demeanor” evidence in this case is not being used as the sole
    basis for a finding of sanity, but merely as corroboration of Dr. Wieland’s testimony.
    Moreover, unlike the defendant in Galloway, Lawson does not have a long-standing,
    well-documented history of severe mental illness. In fact, Dr. Trier’s diagnosis is the
    only one on record suggesting she has a mental illness at all, and she has never received
    treatment for any such illness.     We acknowledge that a mental illness must begin
    sometime, and the lack of a long-standing history of mental illness should not
    automatically preclude a finding of insanity.        Still, the lack of such history is a
    circumstance that a fact-finder may consider in evaluating an insanity defense. Here,
    15
    considered in relation to all of the evidence in the case, including Dr. Wieland’s
    testimony, the “demeanor” evidence in this case had probative value tending to support
    the jury’s rejection of Lawson’s insanity defense.
    Lawson’s behavior in this case admittedly was highly bizarre; her actions
    concerning the “exorcism” and retention of J.K.’s body thereafter were confirmed by
    three independent eyewitnesses. Still, as we recently noted, our supreme court has
    affirmed the rejection of an insanity defense even “where the crimes appear to have been
    completely irrational.” Fernbach, 
    954 N.E.2d at 1087
    . One such case was Gambill v.
    State, 
    675 N.E.2d 668
    , 672-73 (Ind. 1996), where a defendant had drowned her five-year-
    old son for the stated purpose of preventing friends whom she believed were “devils”
    from sacrificing him and four expert witnesses testified that the defendant was insane at
    the time of the crime, but there was lay testimony opining that the defendant in fact knew
    the wrongfulness of her actions. Another case was Barany v. State, 
    658 N.E.2d 60
     (Ind.
    1995), where a defendant bit off his girlfriend’s finger, shot her eight times, then hit her
    in the head and chest with a splitting maul, saying that “all women [were] evil” and that
    the finger had contained an “evil worm.” Although three expert witnesses testified that
    the defendant was insane at the time of the crime, our supreme court affirmed the
    rejection of the insanity defense based on the defendant complaining to a police officer
    about the victim’s “nagging,” a friend’s opinion that the defendant had seemed “O.K.,”
    and the defendant having told his sister that he believed the victim was phoning the
    16
    police when he shot her.9 Barany, 658 N.E.2d at 64. In a third case cited to us by the
    State, whose facts are quite similar to those here, our supreme court affirmed rejection of
    an insanity defense where a woman killed a child after giving him an overdose of salt, but
    claimed to have done so because she was Jesus and she had given the child salt in order
    to “cleanse” his body and four expert witnesses unanimously testified that the defendant
    was legally insane at the time of the crime. Mayes v. State, 
    440 N.E.2d 678
    , 682 (Ind.
    1982). Compared to these cases, we cannot say Lawson’s behavior was so much more
    bizarre that reversal of her convictions is warranted on the basis that the jury improperly
    rejected her insanity defense.
    Conclusion
    It may be, as suggested by defense counsel at oral argument, that Galloway
    requires closer appellate scrutiny of insanity defense claims than had been the case
    before. Still, even after applying such scrutiny in this case, we hold there is sufficient
    evidence to support the jury’s rejection of Lawson’s insanity defense. We affirm.
    Affirmed.
    NAJAM, J., and MATHIAS, J., concur.
    9
    In Moler, this court criticized Barany as making it “very difficult even for defendants with well-
    documented mental illnesses to successfully raise the insanity defense” and stated, “In the interests of
    justice, we hope that our supreme court will revisit this rule.” Moler, 
    782 N.E.2d at
    458–59. Although
    the Galloway majority quoted at length from Moler, it stopped short of expressly criticizing or
    disapproving of Barany, and it also did not disapprove of Gambill.
    17
    

Document Info

Docket Number: 02A03-1107-CR-350

Filed Date: 5/10/2012

Precedential Status: Precedential

Modified Date: 10/30/2014