Davis v. Strack (211 F. Supp. 2d 377, 2000)

ORDER

BERMAN, District Judge.

INTRODUCTION

On or about July 11, 1997, Ronald Davis (“Davis” or “Petitioner”) filed a petition, pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 2254(d), for a writ of habeas corpus (“Petition”) in the United States District Court, Southern District of New York. Davis had been convicted in 1994 in New York State Supreme Court, New York County, of manslaughter in the second degree (N.Y. Penal Law § 125.15) and sentenced to seven to twenty-one years imprisonment for fatally shooting Eddie Ray Leonard, also known as “Bubblegum” (“Bubblegum”). In his Petition, Davis argues that the trial court’s refusal to charge the jury with respect to the defense of justification' violated his due process rights under the Fourteenth Amendment. On April 13, 1999, the Honorable Andrew J. Peck, United States Magistrate Judge, Southern District of New York, to whom the matter had been referred, issued a Report and Recommendation (“Report”), recommending that Mr. Davis’ Petition be denied on the merits. Petitioner timely filed Objections to the Report (“Objections”) with the Court; the State of New York (through the Office of Robert Morgenthau, District Attorney, New York County) filed Respondent’s Reply to Petitioner’s Objections to the Magistrate Judge’s Report (“Reply”).

For the reasons set forth below, the Court adopts Magistrate Peck’s Report in all material respects and concludes both that Petitioner’s writ of habeas corpus is not procedurally barred and that it should be denied on the merits.

FACTUAL BACKGROUND

The facts are undisputed and include the following:

Petitioner Davis, on June 20, 1992, shot Bubblegum five times in the back and killed him. At the time of the shooting, Bubblegum did not have a gun.

Although Davis knew Bubblegum all his life, the two were adversaries. Davis had regarded Bubblegum as “a bad guy, a stick up kid, robbing people.” (Report at 393 quoting Davis, Tr2. at 34.) Davis testified at his trial that he would “go the other way” from Bubblegum because he “didn’t want to have no problem [sic].” (Id.) Davis had three negative encounters with Bubblegum over the years prior to the day of the shooting. Bubblegum, according to Davis, twice robbed Davis (1984, 1986) and also raped him during a 1992 encounter (“third incident”), threatening to kill him on two of those occasions. None of these incidents were reported to the police “because [Davis] was getting [his] money from numbers. They wouldn’t have done nothing about it. And plus, that is snitching.” (Report at 394 quoting Davis, Tr2. at 40.) After the third incident, Davis went to Maryland. He returned to New York three to four weeks later on June 19, 1992, “so that he could be with his family on his birthday on June 21.” (Report at 396.)

Magistrate Judge Peck outlined the following events leading up to and including the shooting of Bubblegum by Davis. (Report at 6-13). On June 20, 1992, after running numbers in the morning, Davis came out of a grocery store on the corner of 146th Street and Amsterdam Avenue (in Manhattan) at 9:00p.m. and stood with his friend “Little Will.” (Davis, Tr2. at 55, 95-99.) Davis “looked over” and saw Bubblegum who was standing two cars down on Amsterdam Avenue. (Id. at 55-56, 96.) Davis made eye contact with Bubblegum, and Bubblegum looked in his direction while talking to “another guy.” (Id. at 56-57, 101-102.) Ellen Symonette testified that Bubblegum had just come out of a drug prone location with eyes that were “bugging out” and “sweating real like popping out real sweats” and that Bubblegum looked “nervous.” (Symonette, at 485-87, 501.)

Davis testified that he was afraid of Bubblegum as soon as he saw him. (Davis, Tr2. at 103.) Thereupon, Davis went around the corner to “get a gun” from a man named Red at “the spot,” i.e. the place where Davis took the numbers he ran and where drugs were dealt. (Id. at 57-58, 102-103.) Davis looked to see if Bubblegum was following him. He was not. (Id. at 103-106 (emphasis added).) In “the spot,” Davis told Red that “the guy who robbed [him] was downstairs,” and Red gave him a chrome plated .38 revolver. (Id. at 58, 110.) Davis checked that the gun was loaded. (Id. at 110-111.) Davis got the gun, he said, “[bjecause last time [Bubblegum] left [Davis] he told [Davis] he was going to kill [Davis].” (Id. at 58.) Davis testified that he did not intend to kill Bubblegum, but he “wasn’t going to let [Bubblegum] hurt [him] again.” (Id. at 59, 111.)

When Davis came out of the building with the gun, he did not see Bubblegum (Id. at 112). He conceded that he could have left the area or stayed (presumably safely) at “the spot,” but did not because he “wasn’t thinking right.” (Id. at 59, 107, 112-114.) “All [Davis] was thinking about was the last time [Bubblegum] raped [him].” (Id. at 107.) Instead, Davis went back out onto the street and found the place where Bubblegum previously stood. (Id. at 58-59, 113-114.) At first Davis saw the man with whom Bubblegum had been standing, but did not see Bubblegum. (Id. at 58-59.)

At approximately this point in time, Symonette had stopped Bubblegum and “asked him [if he] want[ed] to buy, a phone.” (Symonette, Trl. at 487.) Bubblegum called his wife from a phone booth to discuss buying the phone. (Id. at 488-89, 503-04, 516-18.) On direct examination, Symonette testified that' Bubblegum said “[’]there is something I have to take care of you know. I am going to take care of it and I still want the phone.... [’]” (Id. at 490.) On cross examination by defense counsel, Symonette said that when she went (back) up to Bubblegum he looked agitated and when she said “what’s wrong” he said he wanted the phone and just stood there. (Id. at 520.) Symonette also testified that Bubblegum said “ ‘I have to hit this guy off.’ ” (Id. at 506-07.) Bubblegum had a brown bag in his right hand and the telephone in his left hand. (Id. at 521-22.)

At about this time, Davis spotted Bubblegum (again) at “the entrance of the school closer to 147th Street,” up the block on the other side of the street. (Davis, Tr2. at 59, 62.) Davis walked “across the street [in Bubblegum’s general direction] and tried to ring [his] friend” Gregory Reid’s doorbell allegedly “[t]o get out of the street and away from [Bubblegum],” although geographically — with a loaded .38 chrome handgun — Davis was going toward the danger (i.e. Bubblegum) instead of away from it. (Id. at 60-61, 114-115.) Davis testified that no one answered Reid’s bell, and Davis could not get into Reid’s building without being buzzed in. (Id. at 61-64.) Davis “[s]tepped down from off the building because [Bubblegum] was coming [his] way. [Davis] didn’t want to get trapped in the hallway” of Reid’s building. (Id. at 62.) Davis put his back against the wall. (Id. at 64.) Bubblegum “just stood there looking at him and [Davis] was looking at the guy across the street.” (Id.) Bubblegum and Davis made eye contact. (Id. at 126.) At this point Bubblegum was about fifteen to twenty feet away from Davis. (Id. at 124-25.)

Bubblegum started to walk toward Davis; Bubblegum was “looking at [Davis] but he was talking to [Symonette]. As [Bubblegum] got closer and closer [Davis] was looking... at him and the guy across the street — [Davis] was scared.” (Id. at 65.) “[Davis] didn’t want to get shot in [his] back.” (Id. at 65-66.)

According to Davis, Bubblegum walked past Davis, turned, and reached to his left with his hand at his waist. (Id. at 65-66, 72-73, 139.) Davis was on Bubblegum’s left side. (Id. at 66.) Davis “thought [Bubblegum] was going to shoot [him],” although he did not see a gun on Bubblegum. (Id. at 72-73, 132-33.) Davis ran behind Bubblegum to the right, so that Bubblegum would always have his back to him. (Id. at 67, 146-47, 191.) Davis said that at that point he was “stuck;” he “panicked,” and could not run away. (Id. at 141-44.)

At this point, Davis aimed his .38 revolver and shot Bubblegum five times in the back. (Id. at 68; see also Hayes, Trl. at 630, 636, 646 (Bubblegum had five bullets in his back).) As Bubblegum fell, wounded, Davis kept shooting. (Davis, Tr2. at 69.) Davis then ran down the hill, threw the gun away, and went home. (Id. at 69-71,153.)

On January 6, 1993, the police arrested Davis. (Sgt. Hollifield, Trl. at 281-86; Detective Mooney, Trl. at 586.) Detective Mooney “explained to [Davis] that.. .[he] had several eyewitnesses to the case and that [he] knew that [Davis] was the person who shot [Bubblegum].” (Id. at 587.) Detective Mooney advised Davis of his Miranda rights. (Id. at 587-92.) Initially, Davis lied and said that he had not been present at the shooting, but had (instead) been at a party. (Id. at 593-97; see also Davis, Tr2. at 71-72, 163-65.) Thereafter, Davis recanted, confessed to shooting Bubblegum, and gave a second statement, which he went over with Detective Mooney two or three times, before Mooney wrote it down and Davis signed it. (Mooney, Trl. at 601-03; Davis Tr2. at 166-67.)

At trial, Detective Mooney read Davis’ confession into the record:

I knew Bubblegum almost all my life since I have been in the street. When I was about 15 or 16 years old he robbed me and a Mend of mine named Greg Pearce. He put a gun to our heads, made us strip butt naked and took all our money.

A couple of years later when I was about 18 or 19 years old, I was by myself and Bubblegum grabbed me again. He had a gun and went into my pockets and took my money.

About a month before Bubblegum was killed, he was with another guy. I don’t know his name. They grabbed me on 146th Street by Amsterdam Avenue at the spot I used to be at (508 West 146th Street). They took me up to the roof. They made me strip butt naked and Bubblegum was saying kill his ass about three times. The other guy said we got the money, why should we kill him. Then Bubblegum said f-ck that, kill him. Kill him. Then the other guy didn’t want to do it and said we got the money. Come on, man and the two of them left out the building arguing.

After the last time he robbed, I saw him three or four times on the street but I kept hiding from him because I knew he was going to rob me-again.

On 6/20/92 I was hanging out in front of the store on 146th Street and Amsterdam Avenue near 508 West 146th Street. I saw Bubblegum walking on the same side of the street with a guy. He looked at me. There was a girl in his company but he was talking with the guy. The guy he was talking with stayed on the corner and Bubblegum and the girl walked up to 147th Street.

I figured it was a set up because of the way it looked with the guy staying on the corner by me so I walked across the street. Then Bubblegum crossed over to the same side I was on at 147th Street and started to walk back towards me. He was looking at me. I was watching him and the other guy across the street. He kept looking sideways at me and then he stepped off the curb at 146th Street and he started to turn back toward me and I shot him.

I thought he was going to try to grab me again like he usually do [sic]. I thought he had a gun like he did all the other, times. I don’t remember how many times I shot him because I was scared. I was scared so I didn’t, wait to see if he had a gun. I just beat him to the draw. I. didn’t give him a chance to say anything to me. I was too scared.

I didn’t see the other guy across the street with a gun either.

After I shot, I ran down the hill toward ‘Convent Avenue and I threw the gun down by where the garbage cans go in front of the building. Then I ran home to my mother’s house. I got the gun from the spot.. All I know is that it was a chrome .38.

(Report at 399-400 (citing Mooney, Trl. at 605-08) (emphasis in original).)

Davis consented to. having his confession videotaped, and the. tape was introduced into evidence and played for the jury. (Id. at 609-11, 652.)

PROCEDURAL BACKGROUND Trial Court’s Instructions

Prior to summations, the trial judge advised counsel that she did “not intend to charge justification because [she did] not believe the record supports a justification charge.” (Colloquy, Tr2. at 291; see also id. at 294-95.) The trial judge stated:

You know the duty to retreat is written. The case law is there... It is very clear the defendant has a duty to retreat. The only case I have seen that would even remotely suggest that this defendant when he says he saw the deceased and went into a panic did not have a duty to retreat was the case, I think it is [People v.] Rivera [, 138 A.D.2d 169, 530 N.Y.S.2d 802, appeal denied, 72 N.Y.2d 923, 532 N.Y.S.2d 857, 529 N.E.2d 188 (1988) ].

The critical difference between that case and this case however is that the record there supported a different scenario.

(Id. at 295) During further colloquy about a justification charge, the trial judge summarized her understanding of the law:

First the defendant must establish that, one, he reasonably believed that there was about to be the imminent use of deadly physical force for which he should repel that force; and two, that he satisfied his. duty to retreat or was under no such duty to retreat. People v. Watts [, 57 N.Y.2d 299, 456 N.Y.S.2d 677, 442 N.E.2d 1188(1982) ].

(Colloquy, Tr2. at 301-02.) Defense counsel argued that “this is a factual question. This is hot a legal question... I would also strongly object to the Court charging the duty to retreat language.” (Id. at 307.) Defense counsel argued further that if, “after retreating and being safe, the defendant could encounter a situation where he was in danger,.. .the court would then have to evaluate whether or not he was under an obligation and duty to retreat.” (Id. at 310-11.) The trial judge responded that she “was going to look at this in the light most favorable to the defendant” (id. at 311), and then proceeded to summarize for counsel her view of the evidence in the light most favorable to Davis:

If true, if completely true, then the defendant would have us believe the following: That he was deathly afraid of the deceased. Two, that he had a good reason to be deathly afraid of the deceased. Three, that on the date of this incident he was not at his home nor was he still at his place of business because he said he had finished doing his number running business for the day long before this incident occurred at nine o’clock at night, three; and so to infer from that he was there. He wanted to be there. I guess he likes this area even though he knows, he said, the person he most feared in the world lived in that area.

Four, that shortly before the shooting he saw the person he most feared and feelings of what could be described as sheer panic, overwhelmed him and he left the area. While there may have been some staring.. .there was no physical encounter. The defendant walked away. That he walked down 146th Street towards Broadway and the only thing that prevented him from continuing down towards Broadway and going any place he wanted to go was his own choice to go get a gun and to protect himself.

That he went into this apartment where he knew there was a gun, and he knew the people and told them that the person he was most fearful of who had robbed him was out on the block meaning Amsterdam Avenue and they gave — this I don’t believe — they gave him a gun. I am sure he asked for that gun, but that’s okay, but in any event, he gets the gun. He doesn’t sit there. He doesn’t wait until dark, whatever. He just goes back out on the block. He came back outside. He looked up and down 146th Street to one avenue to the other. He didn’t see anybody and again instead of going away from the danger, where he knows the danger is and frequents because he has had this encounter with him on 146th Street and Amsterdam Avenue for at least three occasions, he walked towards Amsterdam Avenue.

Now, my question and then when he gets to Amsterdam Avenue and 146th Street he sees the deceased a block away on 147th Street, that he did not walk back to where he knew was a safe avenue because he had just come from there and he knew those people were home but rather — and this is the first time we heard anything about this at trial — he walked across the street to a building he couldn’t get in because he knew the door would be locked and could only get in if someone answered the door and no one answered it, so my question is very simple. Is the defendant — is there evidence that one could rationally conclude that the defendant’s actions were those of a reasonable man acting in self-defense who has a duty to retreat? That is, if the defendant has a duty to retreat and I submit he does and successfully retreats as I maintain he does, can he thereafter invoke self-defense by putting himself back in the same position with the gun at the ready?

(Id. at 311-15.)

The trial judge advised counsel that she “would not charge justification” (id. at 345, 358, 360), but would (and did) charge the affirmative defense of extreme emotional disturbance (e.g., id. at 478). Defense counsel took exception to the ruling. (Id. at 345-46, 356, 358-59, 504.)

The jury found Davis guilty of manslaughter in the first degree and guilty of criminal possession of a weapon in the second degree. (Id. at 540-545) He was found not guilty of murder in the second degree. (Id.) On September 8,1994, Davis was sentenced to concurrent prison terms of seven to twenty-one years on the manslaughter count and five to fifteen years on the weapons count. (Sent. Tr. at 18-19; see also Pet. ¶¶ 1-4.)

State Court Appeal

Davis timely appealed his conviction to the Appellate Division, First Department. Davis challenged his conviction on the (sole) ground that the trial court’s refusal to give the justification charge, “deprived [Davis] 'of his due process right to a fair trial,” citing the Fourteenth Amendment of the United States Constitution and the New York State Constitution. (Davis Appendix: Davis 1st Dep’t Br. at 36, 48.) This is the (same) basis for the instant Petition.

On October 8, .1996, the Appellate Division affirmed Davis’ conviction. People v. Davis, 232 A.D.2d 209, 648 N.Y.S.2d 79 (1996). The Appellate .Division’s decision reads as follows:

The trial court properly declined to charge the jury on the defense of justification since there was no objective view of the evidence that would support a finding that defendant’s belief that the victim was using or about to use deadly physical force was reasonable... at the time defendant fatally shot the victim. Although defendant testified that the victim reached toward his waist immediately before the shooting, defendant acknowledged that he did not see any weapon on the victim’s person and that he did not give the victim a chance to turn around before repeatedly shooting him in the back. Defendant claimed that the victim kept looking at him right before the shooting and that defendant feared that the victim would again attack him as in the past. However, defendant did not explain why that final encounter posed a threat of deadly physical force when their previous exchanges of glances minutes earlier did not. Finally we note that defendant offered no convincing reason as to why he did not retreat from the scene at the time of the actual shooting.

Id., 648 N.Y.S.2d at 80 (emphasis added). The New York State Court of Appeals denied leave to appeal on December 31, 1996. People v. Davis, 89 N.Y.2d 921, 654 N.Y.S.2d 723, 677 N.E.2d 295 (1996).

Habeas Petition

As noted, Davis filed the instant Federal habeas corpus Petition on or about July 11, 1997. The Petition raises a single ground for relief: the “[t]rial court’s refusal to instruct the jury on the defense of justification deprived petitioner [Davis] of his due process right to a fair trial. U.S. Const. Amend. XIV.” (Pet-¶ 12(A); see also Davis Br. at 33-73; Davis Reply Br. at 6-11,14-16).

ANALYSIS .

Standard of Review

This Court may adopt those portions of the Report to which no objections have been made and which are not facially erroneous. See Pizarro v. Bartlett, 776 F.Supp. 815, 817 (S.D.N.Y.1991), Letizia v. Walker, 1998 WL 567840 at *1 (W.D.N.Y. Aug.27, 1998), Nelson v. Smith, 618 F.Supp. 1186, 1189 (S.D.N.Y.1985). The Court conducts a de novo review of those portions of the Report to which objections have been made. See Pizarro, 776 F.Supp. at 817, Letizia, 1998 WL 567840 at *1. Once objections are received, a District Judge may accept, reject, or modify, in whole or in part, 'the findings and recommendations of the Magistrate Judge. See DeLuca v. Lord, 858 F.Supp. 1330, 1345 (S.D.N.Y.1994); Walker v. Hood, 679 F.Supp. 372, 374 (S.D.N.Y.1988); East River Sav. Bank v. Secretary of Hous. and Urban Dev., 702 F.Supp. 448, 453 (S.D.N.Y.1988).

Here, the factual findings of the Magistrate Judge are not facially erroneous and are not challenged by the parties. Thus, this Court adopts the Magistrate Judge’s statement of facts in full. With respect to legal issues in the Report, objections have been lodged and, therefore, the Court has undertaken a de novo review. The result of that review is that the conclusion recommended by the Magistrate, i.e. that Davis’ Petition be denied, is accepted by this Court.

Antiterrorism and Effective Death Penalty Act

The legal measure for habeas corpus review is contained in 28 U.S.C. § 2254, as amended by the Antiterrorism and Effective Death Penalty Act of 1996 (“AED-PA”), and is as follows:

(d) An application for writ of habeas corpus on behalf of a person in custody pursuant to the judgment of a State court shall not be granted with respect to any claim that was adjudicated on the merits in State court proceedings unless the adjudication of the claim:

(1) resulted in a decision that was contrary to, or involved an unreasonable application of, clearly established Federal law, as determined by the Supreme Court of the United States; or

(2) resulted in a decision that was made based on an unreasonable determination of the facts in light of the evidence presented in the State court proceeding.

28 U.S.C. § 2254(d) (West Supp.1998) (“Section 2254(d)”).

No Procedural Bar

Before addressing the merits of Davis’ claim, Magistrate Judge Peck concluded that Davis’ habeas petition was not procedurally barred, as New York State had argued. This Court agrees. A state prisoner seeking Federal habeas review of a state court conviction must first exhaust his. available state court remedies. 28 U.S.C. § 2254(b) and (c). In order to satisfy the exhaustion requirement, a petitioner must “fairly present” the Federal nature of his claim to the state courts, thus giving the state courts a “fair opportunity” to hear the Federal claims that form the basis of the habeas petition. Daye v. Attorney Gen. of New York, 696 F.2d 186, 191 (2d Cir.1982). A petitioner must inform the state courts of both the facts allegedly constituting the violation and “essentially the same legal doctrine he asserts in his federal petition.” Id.

Magistrate Peck found correctly that Davis’ constitutional argument was lodged in state court in that it was printed in a bold type heading in Davis’ brief to the Appellate Division. “To suggest that the First Department did not read this bold-type heading to Davis’ argument is, at best, speculation.” (Report at 19.) Moreover, the United States Second Circuit Court of Appeals has held that even “a minimal reference to the Fourteenth Amendment satisfies the exhaustion requirement.” Reid v. Senkowski, 961 F.2d 374, 376 (2d Cir.1992); Fernandez v. Dufrain, 11 F.Supp.2d 407, 415 (S.D.N.Y.1998). See also Joseph v. McGinnis, — F.Supp.2d -, 1999 WL 595645 (S.D.N.Y. Aug.9, 1999).

This Court agrees with Magistrate Peck that Davis’ constitutional argument was presented in his brief to the Appellate Division and, therefore, meets the (exhaustion) requirement for habeas review on the merits. See, e.g., Jones v. Vacco, 126 F.3d 408, 413-14 (2d Cir.1997); Levine v. Commissioner of Correctional Servs., 44 F.3d 121, 124 (2d. Cir.1995); Reid v. Senkowski 961 F.2d 374, 376 (2d Cir.1992); Blissett v. Lefevre, 924 F.2d 434, 438 (2d Cir.), cert. denied, 502 U.S. 852, 112 S.Ct. 158, 116 L.Ed.2d 123 (1991). See also Joseph v. McGinnis, — F.Supp.2d ——, 1999 WL 595645.

Petitioner’s Claim

As noted, Petitioner’s habeas claim “shall not be granted” unless he can satisfy the criteria set forth in AEDPA Section 2254(d). Petitioner’s claim here does not satisfy those criteria.

Habeas Relief Under Section 2254(d)

The interpretation of Section 2254(d) has been the subject of some debate. “The crux of the debate has been what degree of deference, if any, AEDPA requires a federal habeas court to accord a state court’s construction of federal constitutional issues and interpretation of Supreme Court precedent.” Matteo v. Superintendent, 171 F.3d 877, 885 (3d Cir.1999).

The Second Circuit Court of Appeals has recently considered the application and interpretation of Section 2254(d)(1) in Smalls v. Batista, 191 F.3d 272 (2d Cir.1999). In Smalls, the New York State Supreme Court Justice presiding over the trial against defendant Smalls, had given the jury a “supplemental” charge to encourage the jury (in the face of a deadlock) to reach a verdict. See Smalls, 191 F.3d at 275, 278 (citing Lowenfield v. Phelps, 484 U.S. 231, 237-38 & n. 1, 108 S.Ct. 546, 98 L.Ed.2d 568 (1988)). Following the charge, and further deliberation, the jury delivered a verdict convicting Smalls of robbery in the second degree. See Smalls, 191 F.3d at 275. Smalls was, thereafter, sentenced to a term of two to six years imprisonment. See id. at 275-276.

In his habeas petition, defendant Smalls claimed that “the trial court’s supplemental charge improperly instructed jurors that they had a responsibility to convince the others and that the charge failed to instruct them that they were not to abandon their conscientiously held views.” Id. The U.S. District Court (Sweet, J.) granted Smalls’ request for habeas relief, after analyzing whether the state court’s approach was “unreasonable.” Smalls v. Batista, 6 F.Supp.2d 211, 219 (S.D.N.Y.1998). Judge Sweet found that “the charge was coercive and failed to include cautionary-language counseling jurors not to surrender their conscientiously held beliefs, and the Appellate Division unreasonably found — given federal law as determined by the United State Supreme Court — the Allen charge to be proper.” M

The Second Circuit affirmed, concluding that the trial court’s charge was “unconstitutionally coercive” because it “obligated jurors to convince one another that one view was superior to another” and “failed to remind those jurors not to relinquish their own conscientiously held beliefs.” Smalls, 191 F.3d at 278. The Second Circuit determined that “the state court judgment in this case was both ‘contrary to [and] an unreasonable application of, clearly established Federal law, as determined by the Supreme Court of the United States.’ ” Id. The Court reviewed the trial judge’s decision de novo in order to determine whether, under Section 2254(d)(1), it was “contrary to” clearly established federal law. The Court also reviewed the trial court’s determination under the (more deferential) “unreasonable application of’ standard — and arrived at the same conclusion. Id. The Second Circuit has “yet to determine under what circumstances a state court decision is reviewed de novo to determine whether it is ‘contrary to’ clearly established federal law, instead of being reviewed under the more deferential ‘reasonable application of standard.” Id. It has declined to “join either side of the existing circuit split on this issue.” Id.

Following the lead of the Circuit Court in Smalls, this Court has conducted a de novo review and has determined that the trial court’s decision was correct. It was neither “contrary to” nor an “unreasonable application of’ Federal law. The trial court’s decision also was not “based on an unreasonable determination of the fácts in light of the evidence” under 28 U.S.C. § 2254(d)(2).

Supreme Court Precedent

As noted, Petitioner Davis argues that the trial judge’s refusal to charge justification (self-defense) deprived him of his right to due process as secured by the Fourteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution. The Supreme Court has held that “As a general proposition a defendant is entitled to an instruction as to any recognized defense for which there exists evidence sufficient for a reasonable jury to find in his favor.” Mathews v. United States, 485 U.S. 58, 63, 108 S.Ct. 883, 99 L.Ed.2d 54 (1988) (citing Stevenson v. United States, 162 U.S. 313, 16 S.Ct. 839, 40 L.Ed. 980 (1896)). In Stevenson v. United States, the trial judge had instructed the jury with respect to self-defense to a murder charge but refused to charge the jury with respect to the lesser crime of manslaughter. The Supreme Court held, “So long as there is some evidence upon the subject, the proper weight to be given it is for the jury to determine.” Stevenson, 162 U.S. at 314, 16 S.Ct. 839. The Court continued, “There must, of course, be some evidence which tends to bear upon that issue. The jury would not be justified in finding a verdict of manslaughter if there were no evidence upon which to base such a finding, and in that event the court would have the right to instruct the jury to t hat effect.” Stevenson, 162 U.S. at 315, 16 S.Ct. 839.

At the same time, due process does not require that a defendant receive a particular jury instruction when such charge is not supported by the evidence. See Beck v. Alabama, 447 U.S. 625, 635-36, 100 S.Ct. 2382, 65 L.Ed.2d 392 (1980); Blazic v. Henderson, 900 F.2d 534, 541 (2d Cir.1990). See also Holt v. Deere & Co., 24 F.3d 1289, 1295 (10th Cir.1994).

In the case at bar, this Court has (after de novo review) determined the trial judge’s decision not to include a self-defense charge in the jury instructions was not “contrary to” federal precedent. The trial judge concluded that Petitioner Davis did not present “sufficient evidence” of self-defense to warrant a jury charge of justification. She informed counsel that she did “not intend to charge justification because [she did] not believe the record supported a justification charge.” (Colloquy, Tr2. at 291.) This Court agrees. The trial court found that Davis had a duty to retreat when he (first) encountered Bubblegum on June 20, 1992 since, as he testified, he was afraid of Bubblegum a soon as he saw him. He never fulfilled that duty either temporally or substantively — rather he immediately got a gun, sought and (re)encountered his “nemesis,” and shot Bubblegum five times in the back. He became the aggressor.

Justification Under New York Law

Judge Peck correctly concludes that Davis “was not entitled to a justification jury charge under New York Law since he could have retreated from imminent harm with complete safety.” (Report at 404.) New York Penal Law § 35.15 provides that a person is justified in using physical force under the following circumstances:

1. A person may, subject to the provisions of subdivision two, use physical force upon another person when and to the ejctent he reasonably believes such to be necessary to defend himself or a third person from what he reasonably believes to be the use or imminent use of unlawful physical force by such other person, unless:

(b) The actor was the initial aggressor; ...

2. A person may not use deadly physical force upon another person under circumstances specified in subdivision one unless:

(a) He reasonably believes that such other person is using or about to use deadly physical force. Even in such case, however, the actor may not use deadly 'physical force if he knows that he can with complete safety as to himself and others avoid the necessity of doing so by retreating; ...

New York Penal Law § 35.15 (emphasis added). Neyv York has one of the strictest duty to retreat requirements. See, e.g., 35 N.Y. Jur.2d Defenses to Criminal Liability § 3484 (1995). A defendant is not entitled to claim self-defense if he fails to retreat (and he can safely do so) once the duty to retreat arises. See, e.g., In re Y.K., 87 N.Y.2d 430, 434, 639 N.Y.S.2d 1001, 663 N.E.2d 313 (1996) (“If a defendant confronted with deadly physical force knows retreat can be made with complete safety and fails to do so, the defense is lost”).

The trial court, in deciding not to charge justification, focused upon Davis’ duty to retreat following the first encounter with Bubblegum on June 20, 1992. See supra, p. 382 (quoting Colloquy, Tr2., at 295). See also Report at 401-02, 408. Referring to Davis’ failure to fulfill that duty, the trial court concluded that Davis’ actions, as a matter of law, did not warrant a charge on self-defense. See supra, at 382. Stated in other terms, Davis “went away” (i.e. retreated) from Bubblegum because he was deathly afraid of Bubblegum — and “should have stayed away/’ (Report at 400-402 (quoting Colloquy, Tr2. at 291, 295, 311-15).)

The Magistrate Judge also (correctly) concluded that since Davis did not (completely) retreat when he had the opportunity to do so safely, he relinquished his right to a jury charge of self-defense. (Report at 412.) In reaching his conclusion, Magistrate Peck agreed with the trial court.

... [I]f there was any truth to petitioner’s claim that he had subjectively feared the use of deadly physical force by Leonard [Bubblegum], that fear would necessarily have been aroused when petitioner first saw Leonard on the street, . before petitioner got the gun... [I]f petitioner was right about Leonard presenting a deadly threat, that threat must have been ongoing.

.. .Leonard can hardly have offered so- little threat to petitioner before the shooting that petitioner had no duty to retreat from his presence at that time, but so great a threat when he added a hand motion to whatever he had been doing before then that petitioner was entitled to kill him... Having purportedly been aware of his danger, petitioner armed himself and deliberately placed himself in close proximity to the source of that danger when there was clearly no need to do so. If it was true that petitioner believed Leonard was armed and intended to kill him, he did not have to wait for the final, overt consummation of that intent to realize he should retreat. Thus, the court correctly denied his request for a charge on justification.

(State Br. at 46-47, record citations omitted & emphasis added.) Since Davis had the opportunity to retreat safely after his first encounter with Bubblegum on June 20, 1992, and, in fact, did safely retreat, the Magistrate Judge concluded that the trial judge “correctly applied New York law to the facts as she found them.” (Report at 413.) This Court agrees and believes that Davis became the “initial aggressor” by obtaining a gun, coming back to confront Bubblegum, and shooting Bubblegum in the back.

The trial court’s refusal to charge justification is clearly consonant with New York case law. Indeed, the New York courts have refused to charge self-defense on facts far more compelling than those in the case at bar. In People v. Rattley, 148 A.D.2d 642, 539 N.Y.S.2d 101 (1989), for example, the Court held:

[T]he evidence established that the defendant and his brother argued loudly and violently and that the defendant’s brother, brandishing a knife, told [the defendant] to get out of his room. The defendant returned to his own room and after remaining there for a short time, took his gun and returned to the scene of the prior fight. When his brother screamed at him and came at him with the knife in his hand, the defendant shot him twice, killing him.. .We find that the evidence clearly establishes that in the second confrontation, which ended in the death of the defendant’s brother, the defendant was the initial aggressor.

539 N.Y.S.2d at 101 (emphasis added).

Similarly, in People v. Mungin, 106 A.D.2d 519, 483 N.Y.S.2d 54 (1984) the Court stated:

The evidence established that following the first altercation between the parties, the defendant went to a friend’s house, obtained a shotgun and shells, returned to the scene and sought out the decedent. Even assuming that the decedent did grab for his knife when the defendant approached him with the shotgun in hand, the defendant concededly had the ability to withdraw and retreat from the encounter but instead chose to resort to more than necessary force to allegedly defend himself. In view of these facts, the defense of justification was not available to the defendant as a matter of law.

483 N.Y.S.2d at 55.

And, in People v. Snell, 256 A.D.2d 480, 682 N.Y.S.2d 80 (1998), the Court held that “[c]ontrary to the defendant’s contention, the People adduced legally sufficient evidence to prove that the defendant was able to retreat safely, but instead chose to return with a loaded firearm and retaliate by shooting the victim. This evidence negated the essential elements of the justification defense.” Id., 682 N.Y.S.2d at 80-81 (internal citations omitted).

Here, by not retreating after the first encounter with Bubblegum on June 20, Davis became the “initial aggressor” in the fatal encounter with Bubblegum. See People v. Rattley supra. The justification defense is not available to him as a matter of Federal (or state) law — as Judge Peck and (with respect to state law) the trial judge concluded. See Penal Law § 35.15. (See also Report at 413). Davis was not entitled to a jury charge of justification because by not staying (safely) away when he had the chance, Davis did not fulfill his duty to retreat. He was not “justified” in shooting Bubblegum in the back. (Report at 413.)

The evidence here did not, as a matter of law, warrant a justification charge. See People v. Counts, 214 A.D.2d 897, 625 N.Y.S.2d 697, 698 (1995). Accord, e.g., People v. Watts, 86 A.D.2d 964, 448 N.Y.S.2d 299, 300 (1982). The jury instructions were not erroneous and, thus, they neither “removed a factual question critical to guilt or innocence from the jury’s consideration and effectively directed a verdict” nor “so infected the trial as to violate due process.” (Davis Br. at 40.)

The trial judge, as Judge Peck concluded, did not violate Davis’ due process rights. See Blazic v. Henderson, 900 F.2d at 541. This Court cannot conclude that the trial court’s decision was “contrary to” (or an “unreasonable application of’) Supreme Court precedent. Federal law only requires a jury charge be given where sufficient evidence is presented at trial, and the evidence here did not support a justification charge. The trial judge acted in accordance with Supreme Court precedent, and, therefore, the standards for obtaining habeas relief under Section 2254(d) are not met.

CONCLUSION

For the reasons stated-herein, the Court adopts Magistrate Judge Peek’s Report to the extent that it concludes that Petitioner’s request for a writ of habeas corpus should be denied. The Clerk is respectfully requested to dismiss the case with prejudice.

REPORT AND RECOMMENDATION

PECK, United States Magistrate Judge.

Petitioner Ronald Davis admitted that he fatally shot Eddie Ray Leonard, also known as “Bubblegum,” in the back, and was convicted of manslaughter and criminal possession of a weapon, and sentenced to seven to twenty-one years imprisonment. Davis’s habeas corpus petition, filed by the Legal Aid Society on his behalf, argues that his conviction violated his due process rights under the Fourteenth Amendment because the trial court refused to charge the jury with the defense of justification. (Pet-¶ 12(A); see also Davis Br. at 33-73; - 'Davis Reply Br. at 6-16.) Bubblegum had robbed Davis three prior times, and on the most recent, said that he would kill Davis when he next saw him. ■ The next time that their paths crossed, Davis left, got a gün and returned to wheré Bubblegum was standing; Davis then shot Bubblegum in the back when Bubblegum reached' toward his' waist. The state cdurts held that the justification defense was not available because Davis should have retreated before using deadly force, instead of getting a gun and laying in wait for Bubblegum. '

For the reasons set forth below, I recommend that the Court deny Davis’ habe-as corpus petition on the merits.

FACTS

The Trial Evidence

At trial Davis testified that he shot Bubblegum. {E.g., Davis, Tr2. at 67.) Davis had known Bubblegum all his life, although he , tried to avoid him. {Id. at 33-34.) Bubblegum was “a bad guy, a stick up kid, robbing people” {id. at 34), and when Davis saw Bubblegum, “[b]ecause I know that he is a stick up kid. I didn’t want to have no problem, so I go the other way.” {Id.)

Bubblegum’s Prior Armed Robbery and Rape of Davis

Bubblegum robbed Davis at gun point three times prior to the shooting, and raped him once. Bubblegum first robbed Davis and his friend Gregory Pearce, when Davis was “about 15 or 16” {id. at 34-35, 74-75):

I was running the numbers and I got to 146th Street, I seen a friend named Gregory, I was talking to him. Then this guy named CC [who Davis knew] comes up to him. Then ... CC come up to me. He is asking me questions that I couldn’t answer. He kept talking to me. He pulled out the gun and made me go into the hallway.... After he forced me into the building, we got to look in the building, then I see Bubblegum picked up groceries and carried [them] into the building.... Then they made us go upstairs.... They had the guns to us.... Both of them had a gun.... [When we got upstairs] [t]hey went and took — they went in our pocket took the money we had and made us strip.... They said “Take off your clothes.” ... CC had the gun on me.... [Bubblegum’s gun was pointed] at Gregory. [Davis and Gregory took their clothes off and put them] [o]n the floor, then [CC and Bubblegum] kicked them.... They kept demanding more money. They thought I had more money but I didn’t have any more. Bubblegum said I was lying. He told CC to shoot us.... [CC] said, “We got the money, why shoot him?” Then they was arguing. Then they left down the stairs.

(Id. at 35-88; see also id. at 84-86; Pearce, Tr2. at 280-82, 286-89.) Neither Davis nor Pearce reported this incident to the police. (Davis, Tr2. at 40, 77-79; Pearce, Tr2. at 284.)

Bubblegum robbed Davis again two or three years later when Davis was “about 18.” (Davis, Tr2. at 38.) Davis was “alone” on “147th Street and Saint Nicholas” having “just walked over from [his] friends” who “were on 146th and Saint Nicholas.” (Id.) “It was just getting dark” and “as soon as [Davis] turned the corner on 147th Street, Bubblegum was there.... [Bubblegum] grabbed [Davis] by [the] shirt and said, ‘Come here, come here, little bitch.’ He had a gun out. He went in [Davis’] pocket.... [Bubblegum was pointing the gun] towards [Davis’] chest.... He took the money [Davis] had in [his] pocket.... After [Bubblegum] took the money ... [h]e told [Davis] [’]to get the fuck out of here.[’] ... [Davis] left.” (Id. at 39^40.) This time Bubblegum did not force Davis into a building, but robbed him on the street. (Id. at 39-40.) Davis did not report this second incident to the police “[b]ecause [Davis] was getting [his] money from numbers. They wouldn’t have done nothing about it. And plus, that is snitching.” (Id. at 40; see also id. at 79-82.) Davis also said he was scared to report the incidents. (Id. at 40, 79-82.)

After the second robbery, Davis hid from Bubblegum. (Id. at 40.) Then Bubblegum was imprisoned for robbery and Davis did not see Bubblegum for a while. (Id. at 41.)

Davis also was aware of violent acts that Bubblegum had committed against others. (Id. at 41^42.) Davis knew that Bubblegum “beat a lady with a chain and robbed her. And there was an old lady and old man he had robbed and he had stabbed the old man. He had robbed the [drug] dealers that were on the street ... [and] there were two guys he robbed. They had their girlfriend with him. He had tied him up and raped the girl. He had beaten somebody up bad around his block and he had to go to the hospital. He robbed and raped a lady in his building.” (Id. at 41-42.) Davis said that Bubblegum had a reputation for being “a bad guy.... Everybody knows him as a stick up kid, he is dangerous.” (Id. at 42-43.) Davis said he knew that Bubblegum used PCP “[d]ust, cocaine and dope.” (Id. at 43.) Davis said that when Bubblegum was on drugs he “would get wild and violent' and go on his missions ... sticking people up in the neighborhood.” (Id. at 43^44.) ■

Three to four weeks before Davis shot Bubblegum, Bubblegum again robbed and raped Davis at gun point:

I was on 146th Street, 518, where I usually take the numbers. I was hanging out there, drinking coffee and I had a danish. It was early in the morning. ... A tall guy comes up to me and he is asking me about drugs. Did I know where to get them from. I was telling him no, I don’t know. You know what I am saying.... I didn’t know that person.... He kept talking to me: I was trying to walk away from him and ignore him because once I told him, no, he still kept talking to me. Then he pulled out the gun and pushed me in the hallway. When I got to the back of the hallway that is when Bubblegum came in.... [Bubblegum] said, [“T]ake him upstairs.[”] Bubblegum had a gun.... The other guy had the gun to my back. They both led me upstairs ... ■ [t]o the top landing of the building. When it is the top landing, as soon as you step 1 outside the door, you’re outside on the roof.... They' went into my pocket.... He was going through my pocket. [Bubblegum] said[,] “I know you got more money.” I didn’t have any more money. He made me strip. He figured I had some money in my drawers.... [Bubblegum] kicked [Davis’ clothes] into the corner.... Then he sent the guy downstairs, told him to go watch out....

When he left, Bubblegum hit me in my head with the gun...., After he hit me in my head I bent down. He took my head and slammed it into the wall.... That is when he did what he did to me.... That is when he raped me.... He stuck his penis in me ... I was bent down. I told you he held me against the .wall.... I kept screaming, telling him “stop.” I was in pain.... He said, “Shut the fuck up.” He said he would treat, me like one of the bitches. [Davis said he did not know how long the attack lasted, but it stopped] because somebody had opened the door downstairs and they had closed it.... I heard the door open and I heard it close. I started screaming even more, figuring somebody would come out.... I was saying “please stop.” [Bubblegum was saying] [“]Shut the fuck up before I kill you.[”] ... [At that point] I didn’t see the gun. I told you he had me down.... After he stopped he hit me again. I was on the floor. Then he was zipping up his pants. Then he tells me, next time he sees me he is going to kill me.... Then he left....

(Davis, Tr2. at 44-52; emphasis added.)

Davis explained that did not report the rape because “it bothers me to talk about it that I know what he did to me. I never told nobody, my mother, nobody. That is why they are not here now. I asked them not to come.” (Id. at 52-53, 87, 167, 190.) The first people Davis told about the rape was the prosecutor and defense counsel, in the prosecutor’s office, after defense counsel said thát Davis “was going to trial [and he] had to tell the truth. [He] had to tell them what happened.” (Id.' at 168-69.)

The Events of June 20,1992

After the rape/robbery, Davis went to Maryland. (Id. at 54.) Davis returned to New York on June 19, 1992, so that he could be with his family on his birthday on June 21. {Id. at 54-55.)

On June 20, 1992, after running numbers in the morning, at 9:00 p.m. Davis came out of a grocery store on the corner of 146th Street and stood with his friend “Little Will.” {Id. at 55, 95-99.) Davis “looked over” and saw Bubblegum. {Id. at 55-56, 96.) Davis made eye contact with Bubblegum, and Bubblegum looked in his direction while talking to “another guy” with whom Bubblegum was standing, two cars down. {Id. at 56-57, 101-02.) Ellen Symonette testified that Bubblegum had just come out of a drug spot with eyes that were “bugging out” and “sweating real like popping out real sweats” and looked “nervous.” (Symonette, Trl. at 485-87, 501.)

Davis was afraid of Bubblegum as soon as he saw him. (Davis, Tr2. at 103.) Davis went around the corner to “get a gun” from a man named Red at “the spot,” the place where Davis took the numbers he ran and where drugs were dealt. {Id. at 57-58, 102-03.) Davis looked to see if Bubblegum was following him, but he was not. {Id. at 103-06.) In “the spot,” Davis told Red that “the guy who robbed [him] was downstairs,” and Red gave him a chrome plated .38 revolver. {Id. at 58, 110.) Davis checked that the gun was loaded. {Id. at 110-11.) Davis got the gun, “Because last time [Bubblegum] left [Davis] he told [Davis] he was going to kill [Davis].” {Id. at 58.) Davis did not intend to kill Bubblegum, but he “wasn’t going to let [Bubblegum] hurt [him] again.” {Id. at 59, 111.)

When Davis came out of the building with the gun, he did not see Bubblegum {id. at 112) and admitted that he could have left the area or stayed at “the spot,” but did not because he “wasn’t thinking right.” {Id. at 59, 107, 112-14.) “All [Davis] was thinking about was the last time [Bubblegum] raped [him].” {Id. at 107.) Instead, Davis went back out onto the street and looked at the place where Bubblegum previously stood. {Id. at 58-59, 113-14.) At first, Davis saw the man with whom Bubblegum had been standing, but did not see Bubblegum. {Id. at 58-59.) Davis testified as follows:

Q. Ronald when you got the gun, why didn’t you just leave the area?

A. I don’t know. I wasn’t thinking right.

Q. You have to keep your voice up.

A. I don’t know; I wasn’t thinking right. I just got the gun for my protection. I wasn’t going to let him hurt me again.

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Q.... [W]hen you got off the block and turned the corner instead of keeping on going instead of going on, you went and you got a gun; is that right?

A. Yes, I did.

Q. Bubblegum didn’t follow you around the corner, did he?

A. No, he didn’t.

Q. And Bubblegum didn’t come after you; is that right?

A. No, at that time he didn’t.

Q. At that point you went into the building, right?

A. Yes, I did.

Q. With the intention of getting that gun; is that right?

A. Yes.

Q. You could have stayed in the building, couldn’t you?

A. I went to somebody’s house, I got the gun and I left.

Q. What you’re testifying to is, you walk into this apartment, tell the person by the name of Red, that the guy who robbed me is outside and they wouldn’t let you stay there?

A. Like I said, I wasn’t thinking straight.

I went and got the gun. All I was thinking about was the last time he raped me.

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Q. So when you went back downstairs and saw Bubblegum you would be able to shoot him; isn’t that correct? ....

A. I wasn’t going to use the gun unless he tried to hurt me.

Q. But you Mr. Davis, put yourself in that position by going back doim-stairs, did you not?

A. I did go back downstairs....

Q. When you came down out of that building, you did not take a left to go to Broadway [away from Bubblegum], did you?

A. I told you I went back up to Amsterdam.

Q. You took a right and went right back up to the place where you last saw Bubblegum; is that correct?

A. Yes.

Q. Mr. Davis, the question I am asking you, when you came out of the building and are standing on the sidewalk of 146th Street between Amsterdam and Broadway, looked right, you could not see [Bubblegum], correct?

A. I could not see him....

Q. Af that point you could have taken a left hand turn and continued on your way, is that not correct?....

A. I said I wasn’t thinking right.

Q. But Mr. Davis you were thinking right enough to take that gun and hide it in your pocket?

A. Yes, I was.

Q. So Bubblegum when you went back to him would not know you had a gun in your pocket; isn’t that correct?

A. Yes.

Q. So basically when you went up to the comer you were going to lay in wait for Bubblegum to see ivhat he would do to you; is that right?

A. Yes, I did.

(Id. at 59, 103, 105-07, 111-13, emphasis added.)

Meanwhile, Symonette had stopped Bubblegum when he came out of the drug spot and “asked him [if he] wantfed] to buy a phone.” (Symonette, Trl. at 487.) Bubblegum called his wife from a phone booth about buying the phone. (Id. at 488-89, 503-04, 516-18.) Symonette heard someone call out to Bubblegum, and told Bubblegum to take care of his business. (Id. at 489.) After Bubblegum spoke to someone, he called Symonette back to him, and he “looked kind of nervous like shook up about something.” (Id. at 490, 520.) On direct examination, Symonette testified that Bubblegum said “[‘Jthere is something I have to take care of you know. I am going to take care of it and I still want the phone.... [’]” (Id. at 490.) On cross examination- by defense counsel, Symonette said that when she went back up to Bubblegum he looked agitated and when she said “what’s wrong” he said he wanted the phone and just stood there. (Id. at 520.) Symonette also testified that Bubblegum said “ T have to hit this guy off.’ ” (Id. at 506-07.) Bubblegum had a brown bag in his right hand and the telephone in his left. (Id. at 521-22.)

Davis spotted Bubblegum again at “the entrance of the school closer to 147th Street,” up the block on the other side of the street. (Davis, Tr2. at 59, 62.) Davis walked “across the street and tried to ring [his] friend” Gregory Reid’s doorbell “[t]o get out of the street to get away from [Bubblegum],” though geographically Davis was going toward the danger instead of away from it. (Id. at 60-61, 114-15.) No one answered Reid’s bell, and Davis could not get into Reid’s building without being buzzed in. (Id. at 61-64.) Davis “[s]tepped down from off the building because [Bubblegum] was coming [his] way. [Davis] didn’t want to get trapped in the hallway” of Reid’s building. (Id. at 62.) Davis put his back against the wall. (Id. at 64.) Bubblegum “just stood there looking at him and [Davis] was looking at the guy across the street.” (Id.) Bubblegum and Davis made eye contact. (Id. at 126.) At this point Bubblegum was about fifteen to twenty feet away from Davis. (Id. at 124-25.)

Bubblegum started to walk toward Davis; Bubblegum was “looking at [Davis] but he was talking to [Symonette], As [Bubblegum] got closer and closer he was looking, [Davis was] looking at him and the guy across the street — [Davis] was scared.” (Id. at 65.) Davis said he did not run away, however, “[b]ecause [he] didn’t want to turn [his] back. [Davis] didn’t want to get shot in [his] back. [Bubblegum] told [Davis previously that] he was going to kill [Davis].” (Id. at 65-66.)

Bubblegum walked past Davis, turned, and reached to his left with his hand at his waist. (Id. at 65-66, 72-73, 139). Davis was on Bubblegum’s left side. (Id. at 66.) Davis “thought [Bubblegum] was going to shoot [him],” although he did not see a gun on either Bubblegum or the other man. (Id. at 72-73, 132-33.) Davis said, however, that every time Bubblegum was around him he had a gun, and he thought Bubblegum had a gun then. (Id. at 73.) Davis ran behind Bubblegum to his right, so that Bubblegum would always have his back to him. (Id. at 67, 146-47, 191.) Davis said that at that point he was “stuck,” he “panicked,” and could not run away. (Id. at 141-44.)

Davis shot Bubblegum four or five times in the back. (Id. at 68; see also Hayes, Trl. at 630, 636, 646 (Bubblegum had five bullets in his back).) As Bubblegum fell, wounded, Davis kept shooting. (Davis, Tr2. at 69.) Davis then ran down the hill, threw the gun away, and went home. (Id. at 69-71,153.)

On January 6, 1993, the police arrested Davis. (Sgt. Hollifield, Trl. at 281-86; Detective Mooney, Trl. at 586.) Detective Mooney “explained to [Davis] that [he] had the gun and that [he] had several eyewitnesses to the case and that [he] knew that [Davis] was the person who shot [Bubblegum].” (Id. at 587.) Detective Mooney advised Davis of his Miranda rights. (Id. at 587-92.) Initially, Davis said that he had not been present at the murder scene, but had been at a party. (Id. at 593-97; see also Davis, Tr2. at 71-72, 163-65.) Detective Mooney told Davis that-his story was “absolutely not true.” (Mooney, Trl. at 598; Davis, Tr2. at 166.) In response Davis recanted, confessed to shooting Bubblegum, and gave a second statement, which he went over with Detective Mooney two or three more times, before Mooney wrote it down and Davis signed it. (Mooney, Trl. at 601-03; Davis, Tr2. at 166— 67.) At trial, Detective Mooney read Davis’s confession into the record:

“I knew Bubblegum almost all my life since I have been in the street. When I was about 15 or 16 years old he robbed me and a friend of mine named Greg Pearce. He put a gun to our heads, made us strip butt naked and took all our money.

“A couple of years later when I was about 18 or 19 years old, I was by myself and Bubblegum grabbed me again. He had a gun and went into my pockets and took my money.

“About a month before Bubblegum was killed, he was with another guy. I don’t know his name. They grabbed me ,on 146th Street by Amsterdam Avenue at the spot I used to be at, in parentheses 508 West 146th Street. They took me up to the roof. They made me strip butt naked and Bubblegum was saying kill his ass about three times. The other guy said we got the money, why should we kill him. Then Bubblegum said fuck that kill him. Kill him. Then the other guy didn’t want to do it and said we got the money. Come on, man and the two of them left out the building arguing.

“After the last time he robbed, I saw him three or four times on the street but I kept hiding from him because I knew he was going to rob me again

“On 6/20/92 I was hanging out in from of the store on 146th Street and Amsterdam Avenue near 508 West 146th Street; I saw Bubblegum walking on the same side of the street with a guy. He looked at me. There was a girl in his company but he was talking with the guy. The guy he was talking with stayed on the corner and Bubblegum and the girl walked up to 147th Street.

“I figured it was a set up because of the way it looked with the guy staying on the corner by me so I walked across the street. Then Bubblegum crossed over to the same side I was on at 147th Street and started to walk back towards me- He was looking at me. I was. watching him and the other guy across the street. He kept looking sideways at me and then he stepped off the curb at 146th Street and he started to turn back toward me and I shot him.

“I thought he was going to try to grab me again like he usually do. I thought he had a gun like he did all the other times. I don’t remember how many times I shot him because I was scared. I was scared so I didn’t tuait to see if he had a gun. I just beat him to the draw. I didn’t give him a chance to say anything to me. I was too scared. I didn’t see the other guy across the street with a gun either.

“After I shot, I ran down the hill toward Convent Avenue and I threw the gun down by where the garbage cans go in front of the building. Then I ran home to my mother’s house. I got the gun from the spot. All I know is it was a chrome 38.”

(Mooney, Trl. at 605-08.)

Davis consented to having his confession videotaped, and the tape was introduced into evidence and played for the jury. (Id. at 609-11, 652.)

Professor Eileen Treacy, a graduate professor and consultant in sexual abuse, assault and child development, testified that rape victims frequently suffer from “rape trauma syndrome,” and explained the syndrome. (Treacy, Tr2. at 234.) The court ruled that Prof. Treacy’s testimony was relevant to the defense of “extreme emotional disturbance” but not to a justification defense. (Id. at 231.)

The Charge Conference and the Trial Court’s Charge to the Jurg

Prior to summation, the trial judge announced that she did “not intend to charge justification because [she did] not believe this record supports a justification charge.” (Colloquy, Tr2. at 291; s