U.S. Supreme Court refuses to review Danny Lee Hill appeal on murder conviction
The U.S. Supreme Court refused to review a U.S. Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals’ 11-3 decision of August 2023 that denied convicted murderer Danny Lee Hill a new hearing based on bite-mark evidence.
Prosecutor Dennis Watkins upon learning of the decision, was “very appreciative of the efforts of the Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost’s office” in fighting the appeal.
According to Michael J. Hendershot, Chief Deputy Solicitor General for the state of Ohio who has worked with Solicitors General Thomas Elliot Gaiser and Ben Flowers on the appeal, there were no noted dissents on the U.S. Supreme Court to this Hill decision.
Why did Danny Lee Hill seek an appeal?
Following a remand by the Supreme Court and various Sixth Circuit decisions, Hill had sought a new hearing based on “newly discovered evidence,” a report from the American Board of Forensic Odontology that suggested using bitemarks to identify a specific individual might not be reliable. Ohio courts held that there was “no probability” that a new trial for Hill would lead to a “different outcome” because the state had proffered so much other evidence of guilt.
In 2023, Hill’s second federal habeas petition argued that the state trial court violated his due process rights by not properly conducting a materiality review of the bitemark evidence. The Sixth Circuit, in its 11-3 decision, characterized Hill’s petition as “second or successive,” so Hill was required to meet the gatekeeping provisions of court rules.
“We note that if we came out Hill’s way, most convictions involving forensic evidence would never be final,” stated Circuit Judge John B. Nalbandian who wrote the circuit court’s majority opinion on Aug. 25, 2023.
Bipartisan decision cited
Watkins noted that 6th Circuit judges appointed by U.S. presidents from both political parties joined in the decision against Hill. However, attorneys for Hill were unhappy with the decision and had requested the U.S. Supreme Court review the case.
Also, in that Aug. 25 decision, five concurring 6th Circuit judges implored the high court to rule quickly saying “delays keep states and the victim’s family – who have to relive the crime for decades -- in limbo” noting that there have been almost 30 appeals on the part of Hill’s attorneys trying to keep him from facing the death penalty.
Moreover, this so-called “new” bite mark evidence argument was fully litigated in the Ohio court system and determined to have no merit by all Ohio courts, according to Prosecutor Watkins, who handled the bite-mark evidentiary hearing and post-conviction appeals in state court with then Assistant Prosecutor LuWayne Annos.
Afterwards, Hill filed in federal court, and his conviction and death sentence have been successfully defended by the Ohio Solicitor General’s office.
Hill and his co-defendant, the late Timothy Combs, on Sept. 10, 1985, kidnapped 12-year-old Raymond Fife, beat Fife, raped him in multiple ways, strangled him, bit and burned him. Later that day, Fife’s father found him in a field off Palmyra Road Southwest in Warren. Fife died days later.
In his 1986 trial before a three-judge panel, several witnesses testified that Hill was around the crime scene. The state introduced Hill’s confession that he had watched Combs beat and rape Fife. There was physical evidence and other witnesses connecting Hill to the crime.
Hill was sentenced to death in 1986. Ohio and federal courts rejected Hill’s appeal and state habeas petition before he began separate actions involving intellectual disability and bite-mark claims.