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(Denied by Governor Jennifer M. Granholm, May
2006)
Read
Governor Granholm's response HERE!
MELISSA
LOUISA CHAPMAN, MDOC #:
196612 PETITION
FOR CLEMENCY
I.
introduction
Melissa
Chapman was convicted and sentenced to life in prison without parole
for
First Degree Murder and Felony Murder on October
19,1988 for
aiding and abetting her abusive boyfriend in the
murder of Michael Gaines. Leading up to the night of the murder,
she suffered severe sexual,
physical, and emotional abuse by her boyfriend and co-defendant,
Robert Goodyear. Ms.
Chapman has served almost 15 years of her life sentence, and
respectfully requests a grant of clemency given the severe
domestic violence in her relationship with Goodyear, the amount of
time she has served, her excellent prison record and achievements,
and her strong ties to the community and her family. Melissa Chapman
is not a threat to society. To the contrary, Ms. Chapman's
successful rehabilitation, strength of character, determination, and
newly acquired skills prove that she will be a productive member of
society. She has served enough time for her crime, and is a model
candidate for executive
clemency.
II.
domestic violence
issues
Ms. Chapman and Robert
Goodyear had known each other for several years (cousins by
marriage) before they began dating in July of 1987. He began the
abuse a week into the relationship, and the abuse continued on a
daily basis. The severity of the physical and sexual abuse escalated
fairly quickly into the relationship. Within a few weeks of being
together, Goodyear showed
extreme jealousy when Ms. Chapman spoke to other men. In his attempt
to control and instill fear into her, Goodyear would rape,
beat, and threaten Ms. Chapman. In addition to the physical and sexual
abuse, Goodyear was emotionally abusive. He often played mind
games with her. Goodyear would tell her that he knew where she was
at all times, and if she tried to leave him, he would kill her
father, then rape and kill her mother. Ms. Chapman was too terrified
of Goodyear and his threats to her parents to try to escape. Her
only attempt at escaping ended in failure when her call to the
Domestic Violence Shelter in Flint failed to get her out of
Goodyear's grasp. Even after the committing the
murder,
Goodyear
continued the abuse. He pointed the gun at Melissa right after
shooting Gaines and threatened to shoot her, too, A few days after
the murder, Goodyear fired a gunshot at Melissa when she attempted to run
away from him. Furthermore, her compliance with Goody ear's actions after murdering Gaines was a
result of her fear of him and the psychological toll of his
severe
abuse.
Though
she could not recall specific dates, Melissa recounted a list of
Goodyear's abusive behavior in a letter
to her former attorney, Marguerite Hanes:
• He hit, kicked, spit,
strapped, and urinated on her
• Burned her with cigarette
joints
• Put loaded gun to her head
and pulled the trigger while playing Russian
Roulette
-
She
was often handcuffed while he
did
this
-
She
would be so sick from fear that she would vomit during these
"games"
• Locked her in windowless rooms for
hours, or days by
herself
- Usually
tied or handcuffed her
• Bit her till she bled: on
neck, breasts, genitals, thighs
• Cut her with
knives
- He would wake her up by straddling
her and threatened to cut out her vagina
so no one else
could have her
• Raped her with a knife to
her throat, at other times with a loaded gun to her
head
• Raped her by using a gun to
penetrate her
• Raped and beat her while she
was tied to a pole
• Beat her on many occasions
in front of family and friends
• Choked her during
sex
• Forbade her from calling
friends and family
• He would not let her out of
his sight - held her hand while she went to the
bathroom
• Verbally abusive in public
and private
• Did not allow her to speak
to other men
• Threatened to kill her
father and rape her mother if she ever left
him
• Told her he was always
watching her and knew her every move
• After Goodyear shot Gaines, he
pointed the gun at Melissa and threatened to kill
her
too.
Goodyear
wrote several letters to Ms. Chapman and two other inmates (D. V. name withheld and
Maria Medacco) while in prison. D.V. is a mutual friend of
Goodyear
and Chapman, and was Goodyear's cell mate for a short period of time
at Thumb Correctional
Facility. Maria Medacco is an inmate at Scott Correctional Facility
who had a romantic relationship with
Goodyear through love letters. These letters show Goodyear's controlling, abusive, jealous, and
manipulative behavior towards
Melissa:
• Would not give Ann Denny's letters
to Ms. Chapman until there is a new trial
because he
feared she would "cop him out"
Goodyear's
letter to D. V. revealed that he was using Ann Denny's
letters to regain Melissa's "friendship" or some kind of
relationship.
- Later admitted
to Melissa in a letter that he lied about Ann Denny's letters
that
he was using them just so she would be friends with him.
• Told
Ms. Chapman that he had a friend find out her prison number. He also
told her
that he could FOIA her
prison records if he wanted to.
• Admitted to Ms. Chapman that
he beat her.
• Admitted
to Maria Medacco, inmate at Scott Correctional Facility, that he
was
possessive
and that he used to beat Ms. Chapman
• Told
her he forgave her for everything, and that he's happy that she is
with D.V. (shows his jealousy because Ms. Chapman was not dating
D.V.)
Told
Ms. Chapman that he had a letter from Ann Denny with an admission
that she
lied
on the witness stand about Ms. Chapman's confession. Goodyear
admitted in a
letter that he lied about the admission and used it
to get closer to Ms. Chapman.
III.
summary of the
offense
On
the evening of December
19,1987, Melissa, Goodyear, and Michael
Gaines drove to Meijer's in Gaines' truck. While Goodyear went to
the pay phone to finalize a drug deal, Melissa and Gaines were left
alone in the truck. Gaines proceeded to stroke Melissa's hair and
come on to her. At this point, Goodyear returned to the car and saw
Gaines' advances. Goodyear, then, placed handcuffs on Melissa. When
Goodyear took the handcuffs off Melissa, she put them on Gaines'
wrists to deflect Goodyear's hostile attention away from her. Shortly after Melissa placed
the handcuffs on Gaines, Goodyear told Gaines, "That's my
girlfriend you're messing with," and shot Gaines twice in the
head. Melissa testified that she was nervous and afraid of Goodyear
after the shooting and during the car ride. As Goodyear
drove, she was terrified and in shock as Gaines' blood
spilled over onto her side of the car seat and soaked her jeans. The
fear paralyzed Melissa, and she did whatever Goodyear commanded her to do. The smell of
Gaines' blood sickened her so much that she had to open up the
windows to keep from vomiting. Goodyear drove to
Webster Road where they disposed of the body in a field. Then, he
drove to Flint to wash the blood out of the car. They returned to
Gaines' apartment to clean off any fingerprints and took some of
Gaines' property and put them in the garage in Camden where they
were staying.
Around l am, Goodyear and
Chapman went to Joseph Belin's (Goodyear's brother-in-law) apartment
where they convinced Joseph to buy some things from Gaines'
apartment. Goodyear and
Melissa returned to the garage they were staying at and got into an
argument. When Melissa tried to run away from him, Goodyear fired a
shot into the air. Melissa turned around and returned to
Goodyear and told him that she believed he would've shot
her.
The next day (12/20/87),
Goodyear and Melissa used Gaines' truck to go to Jack Pollard's
place around 6 pm. At Pollard's house, Goodyear tried to sell him
some of Gaines' property. Melissa said that she laughed out of
nervousness and stress when explaining the blood stain on her jeans
to Pollard. After visiting Pollard, they returned the car to Gaines'
apartment complex and walked to Kay Bloomer's
place.
Later
that evening, Goodyear and Melissa returned to the field on Webster
Road. Melissa refused to burn the body, so Goodyear poured the
gasoline and lit the flame. They returned to Kay Bloomer's and
stayed there until their arrest on 12/25/87. In the
meantime,
while staying at Kay's place, Goodyear
and Melissa sold some of Gaines' property. On 12/23/87, Goodyear
told Kay that if anyone said anything about the murder, he would
kill Melissa and then he would kill
them.
IV.
legal
Issues
A. Accessory After the
Fact
Ms.
Chapman contends that she had no prior knowledge that Goodyear
planned to murder Gaines on
the night of December 19, 1987. As a finding of fact, Ms.
Chapman argues that the jury erred in finding her guilty of aiding
and abetting in First Degree Murder. She asks that the Governor
review her case and find that her conviction was in error, and that
her sentence be commuted to
the lesser charge of accessory after the
fact.
B. Self-Defense via Factual
Finding of Battered Women's Syndrome
Regardless of Ms. Chapman's
finding of guilt of either aiding and abetting in a First Degree
Murder, or of accessory after the fact, she asks that the Governor
take into consideration her condition as a battered woman leading up
to and after the murder. Ms. Chapman asks that the Governor
review her case in light of the recent case law in People v,
Wilson, 194 Mich App 599, 695 (1992) (holding that allowed
expert testimony on battered women's syndrome to be presented
at trial). Had Ms. Chapman been able to prove via expert testimony
that she suffered from battered women's syndrome, she could have
used the defense of self-defense. In retrospect, Ms. Chapman
satisfied the elements of self-defense in that she was justified in her
subjective fear of being in imminent danger while in Goodyear's
company. Ms. Chapman's fear of Goodyear was reasonable given his
repeated threats to harm her if she leaves him, and of his threats
of killing her parents if she left him or turned him over to the
police.
C.
Infringement of Due Process - Prosecutorial
Misconduct
Although
the Michigan Court of Appeals found as harmless error the admission
of Jeffrey McNew's testimony in
front of Ms. Chapman's jury, we ask that this issue be
re-examined. Ms. Chapman's right to a fair trial under the
Fifth and Fourteenth Amendments of
the
United
States Constitution were violated
by the admission into evidence of McNew's testimony of statements
made by co-defendant Robert Goodyear. Under Bruton v. United States, 391 US 123, the general rule
holds that the statements of non-testifying co-defendants are
not admissible against the non-declarant because to allow otherwise
would violate the defendant's right to confrontation.
Ms.
Chapman further contends that her right to a fair trial was denied
because the government failed to disclose to the defense and to the
jury of the existence of a plea bargaining negotiations with the key
witness, Jeffrey McNew. Although neither admitted nor denied
by the prosecution, McNew had a strong motive for providing
favorable government testimony after the prosecution agreed to
dismiss his kidnapping charge in return for his testimony against
Goodyear and Ms. Chapman.
V.
model
prisoner
Ms.
Chapman has been a model prisoner in during her 15 years of
incarceration. Aside from early minor misconduct reports for
misbehavior, Ms. Chapman has proved to be a responsible and
well-liked inmate. From glowing block reports to her academic and
vocational accomplishments, she has shown that she is fully
rehabilitated and worthy of clemency. The following lists her
accomplishments and awards while in prison.
Skills:
• Earned her
GED
• Certified
Legal Writer
• Warehouse
experience:
-
Ledger-keeping
-
Record-keeping
-
Inventory
• Office Occupations
experience:
-
Computer word processing
-
All clerical work
- Extensive
typing skills
• Earned her Associates Degree in
Arts and Sciences from Montcalm Community
College
- Honors List
for Fall Semester 1997
• Tutored students in computer
applications/graphic arts
Extensive computer design
skills
• Certified for OSHA Blood borne
Pathogens
Awards/Recognition
• 12/21/02: Positive MDOC Block
Report
"No
problem in unit -gets along well with prisoners and staff- helps out
in unit when asked."
• 6/14/03: Glowing MDOC Block
Report
-
"Prisoner M. Chapman follows all
rules/regulations."
"A pleasant
personality"
-
"An asset to our unit"
-
"Thanks for being YOU!"
-
"Ms Chapman respects staff, follows unit rules, and
gets along with her peers"
• 1990: Attended Pell Grant-sponsored
art classes
-
Her drawings were exhibited at the Ann Arbor Art
Museum.
-
Also had her work shown at the University of Michigan
Rackham Building
• Completed 30 of 30 Domestic Violence
Therapy Sessions. Psychologist recommended that
Melissa
decide for herself whether or not she should continue with further
therapy.
VI.
release plans and clemency
request
A. Letters of
Support
In
addition to her exceptional work with computer application students
in prison, her academic achievements, and her positive block
reports, Ms. Chapman has been an active participant in her community. She
has kept ties with friends and family. In particular, she has
befriended and sought
the counsel of various volunteers and counselors. The
following
summarizes
the list of letters of support that Ms. Chapman has procured over
the years:
• Mr. and Mrs. Chapman (Melissa's
parents)
- Will
provide Melissa moral and financial support
• Elizabeth
Wood (godmother)
• Thomas Song - Ministry
volunteer in Wayne and
Oakland
County
- Willing to hire Melissa as a Manager
at Grimes Cleaners (dry cleaning service in
Farmington
Hills)
B. Release
Plans
Ms. Chapman has an extensive
network of friends and family who will provide her with the social
and economic support system necessary for her assimilation into the
community as a productive citizen. Her mother and father
have already expressed their willingness to financially support Ms.
Chapman until she can get back on her feet. In addition, her friend,
Thomas Song, has generously offered to provide Ms. Chapman
with a managerial position at his
dry cleaning business upon her release from prison. Also, Steven D.
Britten, President and CEO of Sky-Tech Computers, Inc., is willing
to hire Ms. Chapman at his company at a starting salary of $24,000
upon her release. Furthermore, Ms. Chapman wishes to utilize the education and
practical training obtained in prison by one day opening up
her own retail business. Undoubtedly, Ms. Chapman has the
skills, motivation, moral
character,
and support system to become not only a functioning member of
society, but also one
who is a positive contributor.
We
respectfully request that Governor Granholm grant her
clemency.
Respectfully
submitted,
MICHIGAN BATTERED WOMEN'S
CLEMENCY PROJECT
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