Mills v. State

Robert Newell Mills appeals the denial of his motion for new trial after a jury convicted him of two counts of aggravated child molestation, nine counts of child molestation and three counts of enticing a child for indecent purposes.1 On appeal, Mills contends 1 that the trial court erred in allowing the State to introduce similar transaction evidence and 2 that his motion for new trial counsel rendered ineffective assistance by failing to argue or present an evidentiary basis at the motion hearing for his claims of ineffective assistance of trial counsel. He asks, therefore, that the case be remanded to allow for an evidentiary hearing on these claims. We find that the trial court properly admitted the similar transaction evidence, and we deny his request for a remand because the claims of ineffective assistance of counsel asserted on appeal are procedurally barred.

Viewed in the light most favorable to the verdict,2 the evidence at trial showed that on various occasions during the summer of 2007, Mills hosted a number of children of both sexes in a camper behind his house, where he would join them in playing “Truth or Dare.” During one of these games, a girl mooned the others on a dare, and during another game, a girl put on a dress with no underpants on a dare from Mills. During yet another game, although not as part of a dare, Mills put on one of his stepdaughter’s dresses, wearing only a green thong under it, and then exposed his penis with some of the girls present. On another occasion, Mills wore a dress with nothing underneath and then jumped on the trampoline. Mills also exposed his penis to the children on other occasions and made some of them touch it. In addition, Mills kissed one of the boys and caused two of the children, a boy and a girl, to perform sexual acts upon one another. During that summer, Mills also showed the children pornographic magazines and movies, provided them with alcohol and cigarettes, showed them condoms, and swam with them in hotel swimming pools when he was unclothed or when the children were unclothed or partially unclothed after Mills removed or loosened articles of their clothing.