United States v. Heinlein

490 F.2d 725 (D.C. 1973)

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Nature of the Case

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Facts

Heinlein (D) was charged with felony murder, murder in the second degree and rape. D chose not to testify at trial. The only eyewitness to the events in question was James Harding, a chronic alcoholic. Harding testified that he and the victim, Marie McQueen, had been released from overnight incarceration for drunkenness. They then met D and the Walkers after buying some wine, and they went with the Walkers to their apartment. D then told Marie that he wanted to have sex with her and she refused. D and the Walkers seized her and then held her down and began to remove her clothing. Marie slapped D, and he drew a knife and inflicted a fatal wound. She was then carried down to the basement and left to die. Harding testified that he could not help Marie due to his paralysis. Harding was arrested for drunkenness a few hours later and made no report of the incident. D was arrested later that day for drunkenness. Marie's body was found two days later by a neighbor. One day after that Harding made a statement to the police that implicated D. During trial, expert evidence was entered to establish that Harding had moderate to severe memory defect, 42 prior drunk convictions, a 1950 conviction for forgery and uttering, a 1950 conviction for assault with intent to commit rape, and a 1968-larceny conviction. D motioned to have Harding examined by a psychiatrist to determine if he was competent to testify. That motion was overruled. D was convicted and appealed.