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Authors: Don Lasseter

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BOOK: Date With the Devil
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Relieved, Larry Young rose to make his final argument. His voice combined the qualities of a radio announcer and a preacher—easy to listen to and, at the same time, reassuring. Not to be outdone by Bobby's mention of the 9-11 tragedy, Young amplified the significance of this special day and how all deaths are tragedies for all concerned. David Mahler contemptuously stared straight ahead.
After reminding jurors of witness statements that illustrated Mahler's “out of control,” bizarre behavior, his frequent temperamental outbursts, and long-term drug usage, most of Young's speech and graphics centered on the psychiatrist's testimony. He insisted that Mahler was the classic example of someone afflicted with bipolar disorder. “Dr. Miles provided some of the best psychiatric testing you can find.”
In his recap of events leading up to the killing, Young suggested that Kristin Baldwin might have been a “call girl.” At the prosecution's table, Bobby Grace scratched out rapid notes.
Young shifted the jurors' attention to the various forms of homicide. Using PowerPoint, he aimed at minimizing the evidence of second-degree murder. Relentlessly, Young hammered away at the merit of such a verdict. He told jurors that “doing an act involving a high degree of risk of death without due caution” was involuntary manslaughter.
To demonstrate his understanding that Mahler deserved no sympathy, Young described his client as the “whacko from New York living in the Hollywood Hills.” Jurors' eyes zeroed in on Mahler expecting his short fuse to be ignited. Surprisingly, no explosive reaction occurred. Mahler sat stoically in his place staring at counsel table. His attorney spoke of Mahler “living in the fast lane,” using hookers for his pleasure and abusing drugs in the process. At no point did Young say anything complimentary about his client. He concluded his presentation after fifty-five minutes.
 
 
Bobby Grace stood to deliver his rebuttal. Larry Young's insinuation that Kristin was a call girl ignited a fire that burned Bobby's ire. He wanted to come out swinging, angry that the victim had been unfairly diminished. Known for his aboveboard relations with defense attorneys, including Larry Young, Grace felt that the “call girl” reference had struck below the belt. However, his desire to dispel the image could not be heard by the jury. The law holds that the victim's character is irrelevant in a murder case, so the prosecutor had no opportunity to present evidence about that.
Putting aside Young's comment, Grace refocused the jury's attention on the definition of manslaughter versus murder. He then turned to the issue of David Mahler's behavior. For the sake of argument, Grace conceded that Mahler may have had a form of bipolar disorder, but he pointed out again how it apparently hadn't limited his work in the legal or financial professions. And, said Grace, Mahler had never been arrested for any drug violations. On the screen, a slide appeared to reinforce that statement. Unfortunately, just below the bold print words
No prior incidents,
another image could be seen. It showed a faded arrest report.
Larry Young leaped up and shouted, “Objection! May we approach the bench?” Grace searched the screen, wondering what he had done to trigger such an outburst.
Judge Wesley seemed curious too. At sidebar Young complained that the prosecution had projected on the screen, in full view of the jury, one of Mahler's prior arrest reports. References to previous offenses—which are unconnected to the current trial—are generally prohibited.
Grace explained that the graphic had been included as a generic illustration, and that Mahler's name, plus the facts of the arrest, had been blurred out. Nothing prejudicial could be seen, nor was it intended.
Young vehemently demanded a mistrial, which would require a repeat of the entire process. Judge Wesley denied the motion, admonished the jury to ignore the slide, and told Grace to continue. Still, Young had established an issue to be raised on appeal.
Grace remained composed and returned to finishing his presentation. His final slide depicted Kristin smiling down from the screen as though she were in a Higher Place. In a soft but firm voice, he told the jurors that Kristin did not deserve to be murdered, and justice demanded that this defendant be found guilty of murder.
Judge David Wesley turned to the jury, read aloud the legal instructions, and sent them to their conference room to begin deliberations.
It would take them until Tuesday, September 15, including a weekend, to decide David Mahler's fate.
C
HAPTER
39
“S
HE
W
AS
A
P
ERSON
”
During the interminable four-day wait, debates flared among lawyers, investigators, and court watchers. Some argued that David Mahler would be found not guilty and walk out a free man. Others presumed the jury would convict him of involuntary manslaughter, the lowest form of homicide. Even fewer insiders would bet on a verdict of voluntary manslaughter. And the number of people who believed he would be convicted of either first- or second-degree murder could be counted on one hand.
On Tuesday afternoon, Judge David Wesley's courtroom filled up rapidly. A brief hearing on another matter treated the standing-room-only crowd to an added attraction. The principals in a highly publicized case filed in and stood before the judge. Celebrity Anna Nicole Smith had died of an apparent drug overdose, and charges had been filed against several people in her coterie. Judge Wesley heard their complaints and ruled that a trial would be postponed.
At two o'clock, a bailiff called court to order for the David Mahler case. All parties were present, with one major exception. The chair in which the defendant had been sitting since late August sat conspicuously empty.
A deputy sheriff, who ordinarily would have escorted Mahler into the room, told Judge Wesley, “Mr. Mahler said he didn't care, and he went back to sleep in his cell.”
Unperturbed, the judge stated that Mahler's attorney was present and could represent his client. The verdict hearing would go on as scheduled, without the defendant's presence.
It is commonly said that spectators should watch the eyes of jurors as they file in after deliberations. If they look at the defendant, it might indicate a verdict of not guilty.
In this case, the old theory did not apply, with Mahler choosing to stay in his jail cell.
With the twelve people seated, Judge Wesley asked if they had reached a verdict. A husky young man, with short blond hair, rose from his chair in the front row and said they had. At the judge's instructions, he handed the forms to a bailiff, who brought them to Judge Wesley's desk. After reviewing them, Wesley passed the filled-out documents to his court clerk. She read aloud:
“‘We find the defendant, David Mahler, not guilty of violating
Penal Code 187(a), murder in the first degree.
”
At first, the two crucial words “not guilty” chilled a few people, until they realized that the verdict applied only to first-degree murder. Several possibilities still remained.
The clerk read from the second form:
“We find the defendant, David Mahler, guilty of violating
Penal Code 187 (a), murder in the second degree.
”
A collective gasp rumbled through the courtroom. The jury had accepted the evidence presented by Bobby Grace's prosecution and rejected the defense's theory of mitigation through bipolar disorder and the influence of drugs. Some knew that the penal code calls for imprisonment of fifteen years to life for second-degree murder, perhaps more with additional charges.
Judge Wesley's clerk hadn't yet finished. The jury also had found true the allegation that Mahler had personally discharged a firearm causing death. This would add more prison time to the sentence. In addition, they had nailed him for assault with a firearm, as related to the threat of shooting Donnie Van Develde, adding even more time in prison.
The sentencing, Judge Wesley announced, would take place on Friday, October 9. And David Mahler would have no options about attendance. His presence would be required.
 
 
In the San Gabriel Mountains, above Los Angeles, the disastrous fire had been snuffed out finally. From August 26, it had roared across canyons and peaks, through forests, meadows, and residential settlements, taking two human lives and countless wild animals. The blaze had lasted from the beginning of the trial, burning for the same amount of time it took to mete out justice against the man who had taken Kristin Baldwin's life.
On sentencing day, October 9, 2009, the courtroom again filled. Three deputy sheriffs escorted David Mahler in from a side door, and stood guard near him during the entire sentence hearing. He wore jail-issued gray coveralls, slippers, and handcuffs. A thin shadow of newly grown hair decorated the space between his upper lip and nose.
After a bailiff called “order in the court,” Judge David Wesley allowed a hearing on the defense attorney's motion for a new trial. Larry Young had based it on several issues, including the brief, inadvertent flashing on the screen of a prior law violation by the defendant. Wesley ruled that it had not been proffered as evidence, was accidental, barely visible, had not included the defendant's name, and was harmless. He had admonished the jury not to consider it.
He also denied the request for a new trial, saying that the evidence had been sufficient to support conviction for second-degree murder.
Another issue, said Young, involved David Mahler's claim that he should have been allowed to replace his counsel during the course of the trial and defend himself. Wesley explained he had not allowed it because Mahler had filed incorrect and inappropriate motions repeatedly. And Mahler had sabotaged himself by refusing to come to court on the verdict day. Wesley called that childish decision by the defendant “absolute vindication of the court's decision.”
Mahler stood to make a personal appeal, but his lengthy speech failed to convince the judge. The convicted killer even tried to negotiate with Bobby Grace to postpone the sentencing, but without success. Judge Wesley put a close to that portion of the hearing, which had consumed nearly an hour.
Bobby Grace asked, “Your Honor, before you pronounce sentence, we do want to present some victim impact statements.” Wesley concurred.
Grace said, “The victim's family was kind enough to put together a short DVD slide show of photographs of the victim in life that we would like the court to view prior to a representative of the family making a statement.”
“All right, that's fine,” the judge said.
Larry Young objected to a slide show. “That's too much like a memorial service. I don't believe that's proper in a sentencing.”
Judge Wesley said, “Well, your objection is overruled.”
The silently screened photos of Kristin Baldwin, from early childhood to her adult years, crept into the hearts of observers and brought tears to the family's faces.
Bobby Grace stated, “At this time, we'd ask Robin Henson to come forward.”
Robin Henson rose from her place in the front row, where she had been sitting with her daughter, her stepfather Peter Means, and Jennifer Gootsan. She walked with elegance and grace through the swinging gate, up to the lectern. Robin carried what appeared to be a mahogany wood treasure chest, about ten inches long.
With delicate care, she placed it atop the lectern and softly said, “This is my sister.”
Goose bumps dotted the arms of everyone in the room. The silence was broken only by the soft sounds of sniffling and weeping. Everyone realized the chest contained the ashes of Kristin Baldwin.
Even Vicki Bynum couldn't hold back the tears.
Robin's voice trembled, but she held her emotions in check. Her daughter openly sobbed, while stepfather Peter Means struggled to maintain composure.
“This is Kristin,” Robin explained. “I just wanted to say that my family's life has been completely turned around to a point of pain and suffering because my sister is gone. It affected my kids, my family, and my friends.
“Everyone who knew my sister loved her. They thought she was funny, annoying—just like a normal human being. And then one day, she's just gone, way too early in her life. She didn't experience marriage or her own kids, or all the trials and tribulations of being alive and having a life.
“There's absolutely nothing that I can do to change the events that happened. And I would just like to say that a person who could do this needs to go to prison for a very long time if only to protect others from him.”
Robin's eyes welled over and tears spilled down her cheeks. “I'm sorry I'm so upset,” she apologized. “But this is just the hardest thing that I've ever had to do in my life. I love my sister and I miss her and I want her back.” She could say no more, except a heartfelt, “Thank you.”
David Mahler, as usual, couldn't let anyone else have the last word. He asked to speak.
Judge Wesley allowed it.
Mahler began by saying he didn't have much to say. “I don't have to say anything. I could just sit here and my sentence is going to be the same, despite the sister's crying and the family crying. So I don't have to say anything right now—but, nevertheless, I feel it's my obligation. I want to say to the family that I'm sorry this happened... . It happened and I'm taking responsibility. And I am going to jail for a very long time, don't worry.
“But, nevertheless, it's important to me and maybe it means something to you to let you know that I'm extraordinarily regretful. I can't tell you how sorry I am. If there's anything I could do, I would do it... . Anything I can do to try to ease the pain of the family because you deserve that, and you don't deserve this, and I'm sorry.”
Reaction in the gallery was divided. Some thought Mahler sounded sincere. Others thought it was a typical example of his belief that he could negotiate for everything. Perhaps if he expressed his regrets, the judge would hand down a lighter sentence.
Judge Wesley said, “Thank you, Mr. Mahler.”
Without hesitating even a brief moment, he continued.
“The court finds that Mr. Mahler is ineligible for probation. It is therefore denied. On count one, for violation of
Penal Code 187, murder in the second degree,
the defendant is sentenced to the term of fifteen years to life.
“The jury having found true the enhancement that the defendant personally discharged a firearm causing death, the defendant is sentenced to the term set by law of twenty-five years to life to be served consecutively to the fifteen years for a total of an indeterminate sentence of forty years to life.
BOOK: Date With the Devil
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