State v. Clark

755 N.W.2d 241 (2008)

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Nature of the Case

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Facts

In 1969, Clark and Reed, were teenagers living in the Selby-Dale neighborhood of Saint Paul. Reed emerged as the leader of a group of young people. The group used the name United Black Front. They discussed black-empowerment and self-protection from the police. At least two of the neighborhood's young men had been shot by the police. There was testimony that Reed and others in the group wanted authority from the Black Panther Party to organize a chapter in Saint Paul and that members of the group thought that if they got national attention by killing a police officer, it would increase their chances of success. Reed was a strong advocate for killing a police officer, and Clark agreed with Reed. Reed and Clark were seen together with a bolt-action rifle on a number of occasions. Just after midnight on Friday, May 22, 1970, police received an emergency telephone call requesting assistance for a woman in labor at 859 Hague Avenue in the Selby-Dale neighborhood. Officer Sackett and his partner, Officer Kothe, responded to the call, parked their police car and went to the front door, and knocked. No one came to the door. Kothe walked to the back door and knocked. Hearing a dog bark inside, Kothe started to warn Sackett about the dog. Kothe saw a bright flash, heard a loud bang, and heard a scream. Kothe found Sackett lying on the ground, bleeding. At some point, a crowd, including Reed and other members of the United Black Front, gathered at the scene. Clark was not identified as having been present in the crowd. Sackett died as a result of a gunshot wound to the chest. Police determined that no one at the 859 Hague address had placed the emergency call or was involved in the shooting. They concluded that the shot came from a southwesterly direction. The police determined that the shot that killed Sackett probably came from a single-shot, bolt-action rifle. The emergency call that preceded the shooting was made from a telephone booth one block away at the corner of Selby Avenue and Victoria Street. No fingerprints or other useable evidence were found on or in the booth. Clark lived at 882 Hague, which was approximately 102 yards west of 859 Hague. Police identified Constance Trimble as the person who made the telephone call. Trimble was Reed's girlfriend and the mother of his child. Trimble was arrested and was acquitted of Sackett's murder. Trimble refused, to identify the person who asked her to make the call. She was held in contempt of court and remained in jail for some time after her acquittal. In 1995, police contacted Trimble, at which time she admitted that Reed was with her when she made the call. In 2004, Trimble met with the police and disclosed for the first time that Reed had asked her to make the call and had given her a script to read. In 2005, Reed and Clark were indicted for aiding and abetting each other (count 1) and for conspiring with each other (count 2) to kill Officer Sackett. Reed was tried first and was found guilty on both counts. D was tried second. The jury found D guilty on both counts of the indictment. The district court then convicted him of aiding and abetting and sentenced him to life in prison. D argues on appeal in part that (the evidence was insufficient to support the jury's verdicts and the court failed to give an accomplice instruction regarding Trimble’s testimony.