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Sam Grady Kilgore v. State
Citation: Not availableDocket: 01-04-00997-CR
Court: Court of Appeals of Texas; February 15, 2006; Texas; State Appellate Court
Original Court Document: View Document
On February 16, 2006, the Court of Appeals for the First District of Texas issued an opinion regarding the case of Sam Grady Kilgore, who was convicted of murder and sentenced to 38 years in prison following a guilty plea to a prior felony enhancement. Kilgore challenged the trial court's decision to admit evidence of an extraneous offense during the punishment phase. During the trial, Sergeant Carmen Ochoa testified that Kilgore's fingerprints matched those on court documents for two prior felony convictions for attempted capital murder and one for burglary. Ochoa confirmed that these convictions were related to a single incident in which a deadly weapon was used. During cross-examination, Kilgore's attorney attempted to downplay the severity of the prior incident, prompting the prosecution to introduce testimony from witnesses Pamela White and Ruben Minjares regarding the extraneous offenses. Kilgore objected to this testimony, arguing it was irrelevant victim impact evidence, but the State contended it was permissible as it was necessary to address points raised by Kilgore during the guilt phase. The trial court ruled to allow limited testimony from the witnesses, who described an incident where Kilgore threatened White and Minjares with a shotgun during a burglary, resulting in injuries to White. The court emphasized that trial courts have broad discretion in determining the admissibility of evidence during the punishment phase, allowing evidence of other crimes or bad acts if deemed relevant to sentencing, according to Texas Code of Criminal Procedure. The court ultimately affirmed the trial court's decision to admit the extraneous offense evidence. Relevant evidence may be excluded under Texas Rule of Evidence 403 if its probative value is substantially outweighed by the danger of unfair prejudice, which refers to suggesting a decision based on an improper basis. A trial court's ruling on the admissibility of evidence will not be disturbed unless there is an abuse of discretion. In the case of Flores v. State, the appellant argued against the admission of details regarding the offense and prior convictions, citing Johnson v. State, which historically limited the introduction of prior criminal records to mere convictions. However, the relevant provision, article 37.07, was amended in 1993 to allow broader evidence for sentencing, including details of prior offenses and bad acts. Since the appellant’s offense occurred after this amendment, the current law permitted the admission of such evidence. The trial court had the discretion to allow any relevant evidence during the punishment phase, which assists in determining an appropriate sentence. The details of the appellant’s prior convictions were deemed relevant for the jury's assessment of punishment for the current offense, murder. Furthermore, the appellant did not demonstrate that the probative value of the evidence was substantially outweighed by the risk of unfair prejudice. The court affirmed that the trial court acted within its discretion in admitting the evidence and upheld the judgment.