Preview:

IN THE COURT OF APPEALS OF THE STATE OF IDAHO Docket No. 36211 STATE OF IDAHO, Plaintiff-Respondent, v. STACEY LEWIS GROVE, Defendant-Appellant. ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) )

2011 Opinion No. 13 Filed: March 25, 2011 Stephen W. Kenyon, Clerk

Appeal from the District Court of the Second Judicial District, State of Idaho, Nez Perce County. Hon. Carl B. Kerrick, District Judge. Judgment of conviction for first degree felony murder, affirmed. Molly J. Huskey, State Appellate Public Defender; Diane M. Walker, Deputy Appellate Public Defender, Boise, for appellant. Eric D. Fredericksen argued. Hon. Lawrence G. Wasden, Attorney General; Kenneth K. Jorgensen, Deputy Attorney General, Boise, for respondent. Kenneth K. Jorgensen argued. ________________________________________________ GUTIERREZ, Judge Stacey Lewis Grove appeals from the judgment of conviction entered upon a jury verdict finding him guilty of first degree felony murder, by aggravated battery of a child under twelve years old. For the reasons set forth below, we affirm. I. FACTS AND PROCEDURE Stacey Grove was indicted for the first degree felony murder of K.M., his girlfriend's twenty-three-month-old son, who was beaten and died as a result of his injuries on July 11, 2006. K.M. was the son of Lisa N. ("Lisa") and Todd M. ("Todd") who had ended their relationship when K.M. was under a year old. Todd and Lisa had a turbulent relationship and engaged in a custody battle over K.M. In approximately April 2006, Todd was granted overnight visits with K.M. At some point in 2006, Lisa and Grove became romantically involved and Grove moved into the house Lisa shared with K.M. and her young daughter in Lewiston.

1

On July 7, 2006, it was observed that K.M. was not acting normally and that he appeared lethargic and "puny." Lisa's mother took him to the doctor, but nothing of significance was found. That evening, Lisa brought K.M. home, but Grove was absent from the house overnight and was never around K.M. The next morning, Todd's wife picked up K.M. for an overnight visitation. Lisa and Grove went on a recreational outing and Lisa's daughter was with a relative in Oregon. At approximately 4 p.m. on July 8, Todd and his wife decided it was necessary to take K.M. to the emergency room, where they expressed concerns about a sore on K.M.'s nose and several bruises on his jaw and one under his armpit and requested that Child Protection Services (CPS) be called. A doctor examined K.M. and called CPS who consulted with the family. K.M. left the hospital with his father and stepmother at approximately 7:10 p.m. On July 9, Todd returned K.M. to Lisa who proceeded to bathe K.M. She testified that K.M. was continuing to act ill and wanted to be held for a prolonged period, which was unusual. When K.M.'s older sister arrived home, K.M. was excited to see her and briefly acted more lively. He opened a gift from his sister and the two played with a balloon. At dinner K.M. exhibited a normal appetite, but after dinner he acted tired and declined to color in a book his sister had provided to him. Lisa put him to bed an hour early. The next morning, Monday, July 10, Lisa awoke at approximately 5:15 a.m. and checked on K.M. She found him awake, laying on his back with his eyes open, and noticed there was dry vomit in the bed. Lisa put K.M. in the bathtub and noticed that he was "very, very pale" and, unlike his usual behavior, did not enjoy his bath. K.M. was placed on Lisa and Grove's bed where he watched cartoons and, according to Grove, again attempted to throw up and his lips turned purple. Because she was the only one who could open the building, Lisa left K.M. with Grove and took her daughter with her to work, planning to come home as soon as she could. After arriving at work, Lisa noticed that Grove had called and she returned his call at approximately 7:54 a.m. Grove told her that K.M. was worse than when she had left, he was worried about K.M., and he wanted Lisa to come home. Lisa spoke to her son and told him she loved him to which he responded "I too." Lisa testified that K.M. sounded "droopy" on the phone. At around 8:20 a.m., a hysterical Grove called Lisa and demanded that she come home immediately. He told her that K.M. was not breathing right and that he was getting him ready to

2

take him to the doctor. Lisa arrived home approximately ten minutes later. When she entered, K.M. was laying on the floor on a blanket, struggling to breathe. He appeared to be having convulsions and his eyes were rolling back into his head. Lisa called 911 at 8:54 a.m. After arriving at the home, paramedics immediately transported K.M. to the hospital where Dr. Jay Hunter quickly diagnosed him as having a severe head injury, which he characterized as "shaken baby syndrome" that occurred in the last twenty-four hours. After Dr. Hunter determined that K.M. needed more specialized care than the hospital could provide, he was taken by helicopter to a hospital in Spokane. At approximately 3 p.m., doctors informed Lisa that K.M. was not going to survive. He was declared brain dead on July 11 at 9:20 a.m., the date on which his death certificate indicates was his date of death. Cardiac death occurred on the morning of July 12 when the organ donation procedure was performed. The night of July 12, Grove and Lisa stayed at Grove's father's house during which time Grove tearfully told Lisa that something had happened to K.M. while he had been watching him on July 10. Lisa loudly asked Grove what had happened, causing Grove's father and stepmother to enter the room. Grove told them that he had placed K.M. on the counter, left him there to go get a brush, and K.M. had fallen off. Approximately six months later, a grand jury indicted Grove for first degree felony murder, Idaho Code

Download stacey-20grove-20-20corr.pdf

Idaho Law