Appeals Court reverses David Nickels' murder conviction

SPOKANE — The Washington Court of Appeals, Division III, reversed the murder conviction of a Montana man because of an error in instructions given to the jury during his trial.

Following about six weeks of testimony and five days of deliberations, David Nickels, of Helena, Mont., was convicted by a Grant County jury in 2012 of murdering 35-year-old Ephrata resident Sage Munro on the doorstep of his E Street home in Ephrata in 2009. Prosecutors alleged Nickels shot the Ephrata construction worker because he was dating Nickels’ ex-girlfriend.

Authorities identified Nickels as a suspect in the case through cellphone records and DNA. The DNA in question was reportedly found on a set of handcuffs at the scene of the murder. Nickels’ attorneys offered the jury an alternative theory that alleged Munro was murdered by a local methamphetamine addict, according to a previous Columbia Basin Herald report.

Nickels received a 25-year prison sentence in 2013 for first-degree murder. After the verdict was handed down, Nickels filed a motion requesting a new trial, stating there was permissive language in the “to convict” instruction given to the jury. The trial court shot down the request and Nickels appealed the decision.

Nickels' appeal centered around the word “should” in the “to convict” instruction given to the jury. The instruction given during the trial by retired Grant County Superior Court Judge Evan Sperline read as follows:

“If you find from the evidence that each of these elements has been proved beyond a reasonable doubt, then you should return a verdict of guilty.”

“On the other hand, if, after weighing all of the evidence, you have a reasonable doubt as to any one of these elements, then you should return a verdict of not guilty.”

The appeals court ruled the instruction “deviated” from the standard instruction that is set in the Washington Pattern of Jury Instructions. The judges ruled the word “should” in the instruction constituted a structural error. The state countered that assertion by arguing the error was “harmless” in nature.

“This (the state’s) argument fails to recognize the meaning of structural error. A structural error is one requiring reversal regardless of prejudice. A harmless error analysis is inapplicable,” reads the decision.

The appeals court judges sided with Nickels and reversed his murder conviction and remanded the case back to Grant County for a retrial.

Richard Byrd can be reached via email at city@columbiabasinherald.com.