State v. Ordway

934 P.2d 94 (1997)

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Nature of the Case

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Facts

A sheriff's officer went to the home of Betty and Clarence Ordway in response to a call from the Ordways' nieces. The officer found Clarence's body wrapped in bedding and partially concealed behind some garbage cans. Officers forced their way into the locked house to check on Betty. The house appeared to be very clean and neat. There was a dog in one of the bedrooms, but Mrs. Ordway was not found. Some items seized from the house--a book of daily devotions and a pill container with a compartment for each day of the week--indicated that the household routine had been interrupted on Thursday, November 18. There were blood spatters sometimes combined with what appeared to be tissue or fat, in a number of different locations. Clarence died from a shot in the back with a shotgun. The date of death was estimated to be November 18, 1993. Law enforcement officials in Kenmore, New York, where D's ex-wife, Suzanne, lived, were advised that D was wanted for questioning in connection with the homicide in Kansas. A New York police officer saw a man sitting in a white Chevrolet with a Kansas license plate, which was parked in front of Suzanne's house. When an officer told him D had been looking for his mother, D said, 'My mom is in the trunk.' A loaded shotgun with the safety off was found under a blanket on the front passenger seat, and a serrated kitchen knife was found under the driver's seat of the car. The back seat was filled with clothes; household items, including some utensils; and toys, some in boxes as if new. Clarence's wallet and two rings were found in a backpack in the back seat. Betty's body, wrapped in a tarp and a rug or blanket, was found in the trunk of the Chevrolet. The car belonged to the parents. The pathologist estimated that Betty died approximately 3 to 4 days before the autopsy was performed on November 23, 1993. She had two shotgun wounds. She also had bruises, lacerations, abrasions, and fractures caused by impact with a blunt object. There were bruising and swelling around the left eyebrow; five lacerations on her head; bruising, swelling, and abrasion of the left forearm; and broken bones in both forearms. The pathologist's opinion was that the injuries to her forearms were defensive wounds and that the other trauma injuries also were inflicted prior to her death. D requested a voluntary manslaughter instruction, but it was refused. D was convicted and appealed. D claimed he killed his parents without malice to prevent them from harming his children.