Court rejects killers’ appeals

Monday, Jan. 28, 2002 | 9:42 a.m.

CARSON CITY -- Two inmates who were members of a prison gang that killed another convict for his drugs have lost their appeals to the Nevada Supreme Court.

Robert R. Rowland and Tony Smith, members of the prison gang known as "God Forgives, Brothers Don't,"or GFBD, were found guilty on murder and burglary charges in 1999 and sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole.

Inmate Steven B. Silva was found beaten in his cell at the state prison in Carson City in January 1998. Witnesses testified that Rowland and Smith were upset that Silva would not give his methadone pills to them.

Rowland was found guilty of beating and kicking Silva, who died later at a hospital. Rowland, Smith and another inmate were seen carrying bags of Silva's property, such as a television set, a portable CD player and a fan, out of the cell.

Rowland, according to court documents, later attacked inmate Richard W. Watson on a prison bus and threatened to cut his throat if he testified. Two other inmates involved in the attack -- Juan P. LaPeire and Ricky Irvine -- were not tried for murder. LaPeire pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit grand larceny, and he was sentenced to time served and testified at the murder trial.

Irvine testified before a grand jury but later committed suicide in his cell after a local newspaper revealed that he had testified, the court said.

Attorneys for Rowland and Smith claimed the prosecution was guilty of misconduct in closing arguments by telling the jury that the prison inmates who testified for the state were truthful, and one was described as a man of integrity.

The court said it was an error for the prosecution to give an opinion as to the veracity of the testimony of the state's witnesses. The jury, not the prosecution, decides whether witnesses are telling the truth, the ruling said.

But, it added, "When a case involves numerous material witnesses and the outcome depends on which witnesses are telling the truth, reasonable latitude should be given to the prosecutor to argue the credibility of the witness -- even if this means occasionally stating in argument that a witness is lying. We find this true in this case."